Quiet London: The Garden Museum

London has its fair share of wonderfully large museums full of untold treasures.  They are often very full of people too.  If your taste in museums is a little quieter or quirkier, might I suggest a visit to The Garden Museum.  Unless you are particularly interested in Gardens, or happen to live or work nearby I suspect you may not have come across this quiet London gem.

The Garden Museum is housed in a former, church and is situated next to Lambeth Palace, the residence of the archbishop of Canterbury.  It overlooks the river Thames with a view of Westminster across the water.  Despite its busy location, it is a place of calm and tranquility.

I was first made aware of it when I worked  a short walk away in Vauxhall. As a little lunchtime escape I would regularly visit the cafe for coffee or lunch with a colleague. This was a few years ago now and I had been promising myself a visit ever since.

“The Garden Museum explores and celebrates British gardens and gardening through its collection, temporary exhibitions, events and garden”.

The Museum

The moment you enter the museum the sense of space and light is immediate.  The large galleried building allows for light to flood in and provides ample space for visitors to wander amongst the displays and exhibits unhindered. There is a calmness to this museum which mirrors the calm experienced when spending time in an actual garden.

The exhibits cleverly blend history and gardening through a well curated collection of artifices and paintings.  The different exhibits cover the whole range of gardening related activities from design to tools to sheds and much, much more.  Videos of garden designers talking about their creative process is particularly interesting.  There are many beautiful botanical paintings and because the museum is so spacious it is easy to ponder them slowly and in turn.

The museum has a changing programme of temporary exhibitions.  I was fortunate enough to enjoy “Kiftsgate Court Gardens: 100 Years of Women Gardner’s.”  This was such an interesting exhibition celebrating the life and work of three generations of female gardeners at Kiftsgate Court. A film, lots of photographs and gardening journals and letters gave a real sense of the passion and creativity of these talented women. It made me long to visit Kiftsgate Gardens and I’m wondering if I might manage a visit this summer.

Still showing is an exhibition of the work of Ivon Hitchens “The Painter in the Woods”.  Not an artist I was familiar with  but it was a treat to see his paintings full of colour and plants and flowers.

“The art of gardening is to notice” – Diany Binny

The Gardens

The quiet and peacefulness achieved in a space situated at a busy junction of a very busy central London location is so unexpected.  From the moment you step through the gates and find yourself wandering around hedges and gravestones and little squares of plants you are transported to a different place.  Gardens are such special places and in a congested city such as London I believe they become even more special.  I’m not exaggerating when I say I almost felt my shoulders drop a little and my breathing slow down as I wandered, and sat and pondered in this little green oasis. This garden at the front of the museum is open and available for anyone to visit.  Again when I worked nearby, I would sometimes take my lunch and a book and enjoy a few moments of peace and solitude in the middle of a fraught day.

Behind the cafe and at the heart of the museum is The Sackler Garden.  The garden has been designed by the English Garden Designer Dan Pearson.   This garden is full of unusual plants from all over the world gathered together to create a garden of treasures within the cloisters. The micro climate in this little piece of London means  some rather exotic plants are displayed here.

The Garden Museum Cafe

All my favourite museums have a welcoming cafe and The Garden Museum certainly fulfils this criteria.  The cafe here is light and airy and a lovely place to sit before or after a visit to the museum.  All the food served is local and seasonal with many of the herbs grown in the gardens of the museum.  As a bonus you can visit the cafe without having to visit the museum, so even if gardens are not your thing, I’m sure the cafe will be!

Read more about The cafe at The Garden Museum in my recent post on Calm London Cafes.

The Shop

Almost as important as the cafe is the shop.  I love a museum shop and often find special gifts or card for myself or others in a museum shop.  This shop is relatively small but it has all lovely collection of gardening books, postcards, stationery and sweet smelling hand creams.

An Added Extra

Every Friday between  3-5pm, the Sackler Garden become a Silent Space.  All mobile phones and cameras are banned and visitors are encouraged to sit or stroll quietly and peacefully, taking in the beauty of the plants and surroundings.  Such lovely way to slow down and be mindful.

Visiting:  Sunday–Friday 10.30am–5.00pm

               Saturday 
10.30am–4.00pm

Getting there: Vauxhall, Lambeth North or Westminster Tube

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