Visit to the Charterhouse Gardens

Private tour of the secret gardens of the Charterhouse
Tuesday 9^th June

Tucked away behind the coffee shops and offices surrounding Smithfield market, are the fascinating and very extensive gardens of the historic Charterhouse. This green oasis in the City, including the publicly-accessed Charterhouse Square with its majestic plane trees and wildflowers, has been classified as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation. Traditional planting and innovative ideas are combined in six walled courtyard gardens, designed for the relaxation of the residents of the charitable Foundation. Each tranquil garden is very different, but all are enhanced by the ancient buildings which surround them.
Our guide will be the inspirational Head Gardener, Justin Dennis, who is leading an extensive programme to renovate the gardens and increase their biodiversity, while enhancing the best of the old. We will see unusual plants being trialled for resistance to climate change, as well as romantic climbing roses clothing the Tudor walls and mixed borders at their flowering peak. Outstanding trees include: venerable mulberries, huge magnolias and a towering specimen of the Chinese Golden Rain Tree, Koelreutaria paniculata, sheltering behind a wall onto the Clerkenwell Road.
The tour will commence at 11.30am and last about one hour; light refreshments following the tour are included. The Charterhouse is reached easily from Dulwich by Thameslink to Farringdon station, from where it is a short walk, less than 10 minutes.