kawh

My friend and I both adore roses. I am lucky enough to have many dozens on our 2 acres, and she is lucky to live near the Golden Gate Park rose garden.
We will visit London in mid-to-late September. Would love to see some wonderful English roses or rose gardens. Won't have a car, unfortunately. Any great ideas for places to go to see some gardens that may have some roses in bloom? (or are they even still blooming at that time??) Thanks for any ideas you may have!
Oh..We are willing to go on an excursion out of town-- but would have to be near the train...

jamikins

Check out Regent's Park in Central London - they have a lovely rose garden: http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/the-regents-park/

PatrickLondon

The obvious one is Queen Mary's Rose Garden, as jamikins says, and you may well find rosebeds here and there in different London parks.

Sissinghurst might be possible, but I don't know if they go in for late roses (best to check nearer the time): by train and bus, an hour and a bit from London:

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/thin...-2/item273775/
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/siss...w-to-get-here/

PatrickLondon

I've just remembered, there is a rose garden area in Hyde Park, at the Hyde Park Corner entrance.

alihutch

The Gardens of the Rose just outside St Albans are amazing and really interesting. You could get there by getting a train from London and then a taxi. However in Sept you'd need to be a member to visit...if nothing else, this website might be interesting to you.

http://www.rnrs.org/

emily71

Kew Gardens.

janisj

Regents Park for sure.

RHS Wisley. Instructions for getting there are on the website http://www.rhs.org.uk/gardens/wisley Plan on spending at least 4 or 5 hours at the gardens (so basically all day including travel time)

Sassafrass

Queen Mary's in Regents Park, as others have mentioned, has beautiful roses.

kawh

thanks much for all the ideas. will check out the london spots listed above--
looking into sissinghurst and will wait to see whether the roses are still blooming when it's closer to the date.

i'm disappointed about needing to be a member for rhs-- looked at the web site and looks like it would be a fantastic excursion.

janisj

"<i>i'm disappointed about needing to be a member for rhs-- </i>"

You don't need to be a member. Wisley is totally open to the public. It is just that RHS members get in free.

kawh

oh-- i meant 'gardens of the rose'...members only in september.

janisj

If you want to attend - you can join the RHS.

I do that some years when I want to attend members' day at Chelsea.

kawh

janisj- thought about joining-- and would like to support them-- but it would be US $75 -- just too dear for this budget trip! maybe next time!

janisj

AFAIK It is only £38.25 ($60) - joining at this time of year they usually give a discount.

Still a bit of money but at least not $75.

flanneruk

"AFAIK It is only £38.25 ($60) - joining at this time of year they usually give a discount."

The tiny and badly cash-strapped Royal National Rose Society (which now allows access to its St Albans garden only for its members) costs non-UK residents £50 a year to join, and doesn't offer midseason discounts.

It's a completely different beast from the spectacularly well-pocketed Royal Horticultural Society, which operates a huge range of easily accessible displays around Britain.

kawh

janisj
i am showing 50gbp plus 5 joining fee at this address...???
https://www.netcomsecure.com/rnrs/

still-- probably too much either way with the train and taxi all figured in.

janisj

Oh - I was talking about the RHS. Sorry for the confusion.