The rain was torrential last Tuesday and our windscreen wipers were going nineteen to the dozen as we drove down the M4.  Familiar yellow signs guided us through Windsor…….

…..and in spite of the weather the garden gate was wide open at Frogmore. Open for charity just 3 days a year, they have been opening for the NGS for a noble 71 years. The rain did not seem to deter the visitor and many hundreds who had purchased pre-booked tickets braved the weather.

I was overwhelmed with the unexpected welcome awaiting me. Heather, County Organiser extraordinaire for Berkshire, Trustee AND Deputy Chairman of the NGS, was waiting for me and with her big smile she held up the notice she had prepared:

We joined the garden history tour and gathering under a huge old crusty Indian bean tree, Catalpa bignonioides,  we stood for a sobering reflective minute silence remembering…