A Video Journey Through Horniman

Step into a hidden oasis of South London with me as I explore the enchanting Horniman Gardens.

I got the idea for the video above as I was walking around the Horniman Gardens in South London. I wanted to share a few small clips from the garden and talk about my time spent in this beautiful space as autumn truly sets in.

For those who don’t wish to watch video, please feel free to read on instead. The music I used can be found here.

Today I visited a garden that I’ve been meaning to go to for quite a while now. I’ve never really had time though because it’s south of the river Thames. Like all big cities that have wide rivers dividing them, people from one side of the divide rarely visit the other.

It’s called the Horniman Gardens and embarrassingly I heard about them all the way back in 2017 when I visited my cousin who was living in the area back then. At that time, we briefly walked through, but it was more of a fleeting visit. I always wanted to return but never made the pilgrimage until now. Recently, I met the head gardener of the Horniman, Errol Reuben Fernandes. We struck up a good conversation at Niwaki where I work, so I made the vow to come visit.

I’m learning so much about horticulture and garden design, that I wanted to see how the professionals do it. It was a glorious day for it, with the sun peeking behind the clouds, leaving dappled light on everything below. A beautiful breeze made all the tall grasses sway.

Part of the reason for my visit was to learn the botanic, or scientific, names of plants. My gardener friend Sarah said that’s an important first step for those who want to learn. Persicaria virgiana, Taxodium Distichum, Tropaeolum minus. I’m probably butchering those names, by the way! Pachysandra terminalis is one that I can remember off the top of my head because it grows in the garden behind Niwaki. And Cryptomeria japonica. “Krypto” means to hide, and “meris” means a part of something. People can usually guess what “japonica” refers to.

Before working for Niwaki, I had a fascination with one plant in particular. No, I’m not talking about that plant, but coffee! It was whilst working in the coffee industry that I found out that coffee beans are the seed of a fruit, which just about blew my mind at the time. Lots of people haven’t even seen coffee beans before they’re roasted, and I’ve come across plenty of people who believe it grows on the tree like that — brown and ready to grind and pour water onto. I often wonder what it is that these people think coffee roasters do exactly!

But there are no coffee plants — Coffea arabica that is — here in the Horniman though. There is a small section dedicated to medicinal plants & herbs which is fascinating and they have a giant reed plant which is what saxophone & oboe reeds are made out of.

The gardens were first established in the late 19th century when Frederick Horniman, a tea trader and philanthropist, began developing the grounds around his home in Forest Hill. Originally designed to complement his growing collection of natural history specimens and artefacts which would later form the museum attached to the gardens. I didn’t visit the museum today as I was too enthralled by what was outside, but that’ll make for a nice excuse to return soon.

Thank you for joining me on this walk around this gorgeous place. I'm excited to explore more gardens just like this one as I continue my journey into the world of horticulture. And until next time, I’d love to know your favourite garden to visit, and why?

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SJF 🍃