Adelaide Botanic Gardens - Autumn Adventures

No trip to Adelaide would be complete without a walk around the Botanic Gardens, and I remember it fondly from previous visits. The gardens are within walking distance from the city centre, and a perfect escape to socialise with friends, or to find a bit of solitude, which is why I visited today. Despite being so close to the city, they are peaceful with most of the noise being made by the birds flittering through the trees.

The Conservatory Gate

The gardens host an absolutely amazing array of plant collections, as well as 3 very different and yet all equally stunning glass houses. You could wander for hours looking at the huge variety of plant species, dotted absolutely everywhere.

The banana plants and the massive bamboo plants caught my attention. Many people had carved their names into the bamboo. Whilst I don't entirely like the idea of carving ones name into a plant, this city seems one of expressing yourself with graffiti wherever you happen to be....

A + D 2010 Love

 

Bicentennial Conservatory

The Palm Glasshouse looked really beautiful today, with the blue glass matching the blue sky.

Palm House

I spent a bit of time near the Nelumbo Pond, which is packed with lotus plants. It's currently mostly seed pods, with the last of the lotus flowers shedding their petals. The seed pods look like the sprinkler attachment on a watering can, and look almost alien as they poke up into the air.

Seed pods in Nelumbo Pond

I found a quiet little spot to read a book, listen to some music, and rest my somewhat weary feet. My moment of solitude.

Time to kick off your shoes and relax....

....if you can find a shady spot!

Some of the plants look a bit vicious. There were some incredible cacti.

Spiky.

Whilst plants like the bamboo and the banana trees are visually dramatic from a distance, some of the prettiest things are only appreciated close up. The bark on some of the trees is fantastic, with a variety of colours, textures and even smells where sap is running out.

I can see myself spending a lot of time here during my stay in Adelaide.

To find out more about the Botanic Gardens visit: http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/botanicgardens/Visit/Adelaide_Botanic_Garden

To see the rest of this photo set visit: Adelaide Botanic Gardens Flickr Set