Two outings are being arranged this year for KHS members - in June Mike Kidd's visit to Hatfield House and in September Gareth James' visit to West Dean. Here are the details.

Hatfield House and Gardens - Wednesday 22 June 2011

Hatfield House is one of our great stately homes; the Old Palace is associated with Elizabeth I, the Great House with the Cecils, and the gardens with John Tradescant. In modern times the gardens have been restored to their former glory and also extended, so there is a great deal to see both inside and out. The visit will include a tour of the house, entry to the main formal gardens which are packed with flowers, and the surrounding park, and also the East Garden (which is not always open) and which includes an ornamental kitchen garden with topiary and ponds. In 2011 there is also a Henry Moore exhibition at Hatfield which, for anyone who wishes to compare it with the one held at Kew, will cost an extra £10 payable on the day! The coach will leave from outside the Coach and Horses on Kew Green at 9.30 am and will return by 6pm. The cost is £26 per person.

There is a restaurant at Hatfield for coffee, lunch and tea, or those who wish can bring their own refreshments and have a picnic in the park.

West Dean - Tuesday 7 September 2011

The gardens of West Dean are famous mainly for the walled kitchen garden which is planted ornamentally with a large variety of vegetables, and the extensive glasshouses, which are at their most interesting in September because West Dean specialises in different varieties of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines - more than one ever knew existed. There are also flower gardens and orchards to wander through, and a plant nursery.

There is a restaurant at West Dean for coffee, lunch or tea, or those who wish can bring their own refreshments.

The cost, to cover coach and entry, will be £26 per person, more details nearer the time.

How to Book the Visits

There are booking forms for both outings attached to the newsletter. The effort that Mike and Gareth put into arranging these outings is much appreciated, and I am sure you will all wish to cut down on the amount of admin that they have to do. Both outings will cost a very reasonable £26 to cover travel and entry. Cheques are payable to Kew Horticultural Society (not Mike or Gareth!) It would be very helpful to enclose a cheque for the full amount when returning the booking form - although it is still possible to pay a £5 deposit and the full amount later. If you would please add your email address to the booking form, that too helps when sending out any extra information about the arrangements.

RHS Garden Wisley 18 May 2011

We have a group membership of the RHS which would enable members to get into Wisley free of charge if we all arrived at the same time on a specific day, by prior arrangement! It has therefore been suggested that several carloads of KHS members might wish to do this on 18 May. Those interested should contact the Secretary, Carole Brougham on 020 8948-7254.

Talks

A talk by Alan Roe on the Gardens of Northern France is being arranged for October/November and here is a follow-up on some of our previous talks;

London Open Squares

Those of you who enjoyed the KHS talk on London Squares by Chris Sumner will be interested to know that in 2011 the Open Squares weekend will be on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th June. Details will be on the website www.opensquares.org. Members of the London Parks and Gardens Trust, and also volunteers, who sell tickets and man the gates, get free tickets. For this see another website www.londongardenstrust.org. There is also a programme of monthly talks listed there.