The Poppies at the Tower of London

November 4, 2014

Or as they're officially known the Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red which mark the centenary of the First World War, an evolving art installation with each poppy representing a British military fatality during the war. There's 888,246 ceramic poppies being planted by volunteers and they are a powerful visual commemoration.

The first poppies were planted in the moat at the Tower of London on 17 July and they'll continue to be planted up until Armistice Day - 11 November. They're already covering the 16 acres of moat and each of the two volunteer sessions a day aims to plant between five and seven thousand poppies, which need to be assembled before planting.

I first popped up to the Tower of London to see the poppies in August, then spent a Sunday morning volunteering in the moat planting poppies at the end of September (there'll be more on that next week) and then made time for another visit in October. Each time I took some pictures and today I'll share how the installation has grown over my three visits.

August: looking towards St Katharine's Dock and below towards Tower Bridge

Even back in August they looked impressive, but there was clearly more poppies to be planted. The difference a month makes is amazing, below is the same stretch of moat at the end of September. With just a few more poppies!

Similarly the section looking towards St Katharine's Dock was more densely planted

But not much seems to have changed in the section looking towards the Thames

Our September visit was on a misty Sunday morning and much earlier than we'd usually be in town on a Sunday! We were there early for our 9am - 1pm volunteering slot - I'll some share photos from our time in the moat early next week - but it did mean I was able to get some shots I wouldn't have got later on, like this one:

By the time I visited with mum and dad in October the planting looked more dense throughout the moat, and yet there was still another three weeks or so of planting to take place. There were noticeably more people coming to see the poppies too and it seems this has increased still further during half-term and as Armistice Day approaches.

And this time, the section looking towards the Thames had also changed

Each time I've visited I've been amazed and impressed by the number of poppies. While there's plenty of people visiting, there's also a hushed, respectful and reverent feeling around.

There's one view that I've seen which shows the true scale of the installation and it's this one taken from The Shard. Sadly I didn't see this first-hand so I'm grateful to my friend Nicola for letting me share her photo here. Wow.

All of the ceramic poppies have now been sold and dismantling starts immediately after Armistice Day with more volunteers undertaking this huge task. The monies raised from the sale of the poppies will help support six service charities in the UK, which is a great way to ensure that service people today get the support they need. And it's a fitting way for such a poignant memorial to make a difference as we remember those who lost their lives serving our country.

Killerton's more unusual additions

October 21, 2014

So for my final instalment of my Killerton Fest I'm sharing some of its more unusual additions, which include a Bear's Hut and an Ice House, but first we explored some more of the grounds and walked off a very nice lunch! We headed over the rustic bridge, which I couldn't resist photographing from many different angles and soon afterwards we quite literally stumbled across the tree roots and I was off again...

The trees too, came in many different shapes and sizes. Big and small, and some felled too - see Black & White photo #15: Inside a tree.

As with many National Trust gardens there were plenty of paths allowing you to explore the grounds in your own way, in your own time. There were also plenty of benches, lots positioned to take advantage of the vistas across the Devon countryside. There's also an interesting trail around the garden explaining how the plants were used as natural dyes which complements the fashion exhibition - The Nature of Fashion - in the house.

You're probably thinking that it doesn't sound very unusual so far, well our next stop was at the Bear's Hut. Yes, that's a bit more unusual isn't it? The summer-house, which was built for Lady Lydia Acland later became known as the Bear's Hut after her grandson, Gilbert, housed a pet bear there which he had shipped over from Canada. Like you do!

The bear lived in somewhat luxury (well I imagine, for a bear). There's three rooms in this small building, each of which are built of different materials. There's floors of cobbles, log sections and deer's knuckle bones (yes!) and for the ceilings there's basketry, matting and deer skins. Sadly my pictures don't do them justice, but it's a fascinating little place, even more so for its unusual occupant!

One of the rooms even has a stained glass window - just what every bear needs - which dates back to the sixteenth century.

The stained glass window viewed from the outside

Throughout the gardens there's some enchanting deer sculptures (thankfully there weren't any bears) grouped in naturalistic layouts and poses. I was really quite taken with these and would quite happily have taken (at least) one home with me. MOH clearly worried that we'd end up with our own herd of (static) deer hurried me along to the next unusual addition.

Just look at the patterns of the bark on this tree

We walked through lush green paths with rocky boulders which led to the estate's Ice House. It was built in 1808 and is a brick-lined pit over 20 feet deep and is complete with a drain at the bottom. In 1809 it took 30 men over five days to stow 40 tons of ice. Insulated with straw this was considered enough to last the household about three years. Imagine that. There was a definite drop in temperature as you entered, but storing ice for three years seems an amazing feat. Just as I was wondering what on earth they'd use to store the gin in and how big that might be, I read that the ice was used in the kitchens and cellars for cooling rooms or soothing fevers. Oh well...

Out of the Ice House and back at the normal temperature we spotted this beautiful honeysuckle and one of the blue-est hydrangeas I think I've seen. And more gnarly trees.

It was about now that the cow's prediction came true (see - Killerton: colourful borders & a love of Sea Holly) so we took the opportunity to see the house. Once outside again I was determined to use this elegant gate to head towards the chapel.

And then with our visit complete we headed back to the car park where we spotted some beautiful magnolia trees which were too pretty not to photograph.

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Killerton and it'd be great to go back at different times of the year to see how the garden changes. So there's a high chance you may see more pictures at a future date from Killerton, but for now this is the last post in my very own Killerton Fest!

Killerton: Colourful borders & a love of Sea Holly

October 16, 2014

Over the summer we visited Killerton, a National Trust property near Exeter in Devon. Its a huge estate - one of the largest that the National Trust has acquired - and given away because of political beliefs by Sir Richard Acland. The NT website describes Killerton House as a "model of elegance" and inside it was beautiful and the sort of home you could feel quite at home in. But from the outside to me, it looked odd and quite boxy and very peach. However I soon forgot that as the views over the countryside were stunning and something you'd never tire of seeing.

We nipped around the side of the house and entered the garden through the side gate, leaving the tour of the house for when it rained (and it did - those cows know their stuff). The colour on show in the borders was amazing and we hadn't appreciated how much garden and beyond there was to explore until it was right in front of us.

So, let's start with the borders. I only know some of these plants, but there was one of those laminated "border plans" to help us however, after much turning it at 45° and a fair bit of head scratching we returned it to the box and pointed at the stuff we knew, and the ones we didn't!

Reds, oranges, pinks and purples looking beautiful together

Somehow when nature puts these garish colours together it just works. But equally, the muted purples of the Sea Holly is just as beautiful. Put them together and the effect was just stunning.

Ah yes, time for more Sea Holly. Some of it was really quite tall, although I was probably crouching on the floor to get this shot, which looks quite dramatic and sinister.

And as usual I can't resist a Red Hot Poker, even if it's yellow! And red crocosmias too, this photo is messing with my head as in my garden they're both orangey... well they would be if my Red Hot Poker ever decided to flower! I did branch out this summer though and sent for some yellow and red crocosmias to pep up the area I dug out a load of self-seeded-bird-gifted-Holly. They arrived too late (and too poorly after a week in the Sorting Office) to do much of anything this year, so hopefully next year I'll have a Killerton-inspired section in my garden.

Usual service restored, an orange crocosmia.

And with that our route had led us to the cafe - funny how that always seems to happen - so we stopped for lunch before heading out into the grounds to see some of Killerton's more unusual additions, explore the winding paths and see ancient trees, but I'll save that for another time as I've already shared way more photos than I intended too. I think I got carried away with all that colour!

But if you want another peek at that view, remember we've been at Killerton once before with S is for... Sundial - enjoy!