Isabella Plantation

I am now a member of the selected group that know of Isabella Plantation and I am proud of it! :)
I have been going to Richmond Park for years and I love every bit of it. But I now love it even more! Isabella Plantation is quite a large garden secluded from the rest of the park by a wooden fence but set right in it. It has a magnificent collection of colourful flowers, and a stream that runs right through it. It also has three ponds and a great selection of trees too.
It is charming, peaceful, secret and beautiful.
Don’t miss it if you go to Richmond Park. But don’t stay long, I wouldn’t want it to start getting crowded ;)

Another dreamy spot in Richmond Park!
An ornamental woodland garden that deserves to be visited as much as is humanly possible. At this very moment, a lot of the trees are glowing red! It’s just stunning! There’s a delightful pond filled with waterlilies and the most beautiful reflections.
It’s name seems to originate from the word ‘isabel’ in the 15^th century, which meant dingy or greyish yellow — referring to the colour of the soil in this part of the park. It certainly contains a much brighter pallet now.
Some of its seasonal delights include:
Spring — camellias, magnolias, daffodils and bluebells.
Summer — Japanese irises and day lilies.
Autumn — guelder rose, rowan and spindle trees loaded with berries and leaves on the acer trees are turning red.
Winter — camellias and rhododendron, mahonia, winter-​flowering heathers and stinking hellebore.
For drivers the Broomfield Hill car park is closest. If on foot, it’s best to enter the park at Ladderstile Gate where there is a big map to direct you!

My children and I think of this as our Private Secret Garden. It is a part of Richmond Park, hidden away. In the summer you go through beautiful ornamental gates and enter Paradise! The enormous bushes of breathtakingly beautiful azaleas & rhododendrons are every colour you can imagine and seem to reach the sky. A little steam runs down the middle, bordered with irises and ferns with tiny crossing places — perfect for pooh sticks. At the bottom is a large lake with black swans and exotic ducks
— and tadpoles! There are wonderful gnarled old trees to climb (illegally) and places to hide and private places to picnic; in the spring the bluebells look like water.
You can park in a car park nearby and walk to the Isabella Plantation for about 5 minutes, don’t miss the ice cream van. There are no toilets or any amenities there which makes it so perfect.

Next time you’re visiting Richmond Park, make sure you go to the Isabella Plantation. It’s an enclosed ornamental garden in Richmond Park. Lots of exotic plants, little pathways, a pond with ducks and open space to just sit and watch the world go by. The garden is particularly beautiful in autumn with lots of different shades of gold and red leaves.

You’re likely to miss this secret garden unless you know of it or stumble upon it by luck. It is a wonder of an abundance of trees and flowers. Spring really is the best time to catch Isabella plantation at it’s most beautiful — popping with colour and aroma everywhere. If you’re going with younger children, remember to take some bread to feed the ducks, geese, swans and cootes — there’s a small pond situated to one side of the plantation and is a nice place to sit and reflect and dose if you have the time.

Absolutely stunning. If you don’t have time to walk around the whole of Richmond Park then this is the best part to pick. The vast array of flowers and plants are beautiful, particularly in spring. The bright red walls of rhododenrons truly are a sight not to be missed! You canj also take free guided walks of the plantation or there are lots of information plaques throughout.