Part of the grounds surrounding the Royal Hospital, Chelsea home of the iconic Chelsea army pensioners, these ornamental gardens are attractively profiled into a series of embankments and hollows, with planted shrubberies, lawns and a large number of mature trees. The site of the annual Chelsea Flower Show, Ranelagh Gardens are closed to the public from mid April to mid June (see the related link for details).
Local Wildlife Site
Accessible Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation
Ranelagh Gardens
Borough: Kensington and Chelsea
Grade: Borough Grade II
Access: Free public access (all/most of site)
Area: 5.31 ha
Description
Wildlife
The trees are mainly London plane, with frequent horse chestnut and beech. Holly is common in shrubberies. Some of the slopes are left unmown and have developed a roughland flora, with cock's-foot grass, cow parsley and bramble. The gardens are well known to botanists for the presence of perfoliate alexanders, an introduced species which is naturalised in the shrubberies, along with deadly nightshade. Bullwort, another rare alien species, was found on bare ground in 1994.The gardens support a good variety of common breeding birds, and both green and great spotted woodpeckers are frequently seen. Foxes are present, as well as common pipistrelle bats.Facilities
Information; historical features; sculptures/ monuments.
View of Ranelagh Gardens © London Wildlife Trust
View of Ranelagh Gardens © London Wildlife Trust
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