Great London Parks You Need to Visit in Autumn

When it comes to urban green spaces, Londoners are spoilt for options. Of course, there are the royal parks that do need to be enjoyed, from Kensington Gardens to Primrose Hill. Then there is Hampstead Heath, whose idyllic Ladies' Swimming Pond has inspired full-blown essays collections; Kew Gardens, beloved by Virginia Woolf's; Hampton Court Palace, designed by Henry VIII... The list goes on. However, many places are stunning in autumn, when summer blooms give way to autumn fruits, and the trees start to change. As the temperature falls, let's round-up some great lesser-known places to go get a nature recharge in London.

Chiswick House & Gardens

the grounds of Chiswick House designed by William Kent's are believed to have inspired the landscape gardening movement. In the autumn, fresh produce from their Kitchen Garden, from beans to gooseberries, soft fruits and vegetables to honey are available to purchase too.

In winter, wonder at the beauty of the naturalistic landscape, interspersed with inspiring art and sculptures.

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Epping Forest

Epping Forest is technically the largest green space in London. It is home to more than 50,000 ancient trees, with 100 lakes and ponds dotted throughout. It's also a forager's paradise. It offers many forest trails, picnic areas and an Easy Access Path.

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Crystal Palace Park

It was originally designed as a permanent home for relics of the Great Exhibition. The park still boasts full-scale dinosaur models created in the mid-19th-century – like Jurassic Park, only for Victorians.

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Barnsbury Wood

At less than an acre in area, this is London's smallest nature reserve and was once MP George Thornhill's garden. This is an ideal place these days to find rare sixteen-spot ladybirds.

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Chelsea Physic Garden

The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries established the Chelsea Physic Garden in 1673, and it is probably the best-known place on the list. But  It still deserves mention because it contains more than 5,000 plant species.

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St Dunstan-in-the-East Church Garden

Usually, the Grade-I listed St Dunstan in the East, where lush gardens surround the ruins of an 11th-century church, is now a popular location for city workers during their lunch break.

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Isabella Plantation

Isabella Plantation is situated in Richmond Park and is known for its azaleas, which bloom in late spring. But in the fall when the berries and rosehips are out is just as beautiful.

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Dalston Eastern Curve Garden

Garden on an old railway line with beds for residents to grow food, and wildlife-friendly plants, this beloved East London spot is wonderfully peaceful. Get a hot drink from the café, which helps fund the garden, and do a little forest bathing just around the corner from Dalston Junction.

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Fulham Palace

The home of the Bishops of London through the centuries, Fulham Palace, contains 13 acres of landscaped areas, including an 18th-century walled garden, in west London.

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Abney Park Cemetery

It is one of the Victorian cemeteries known as London's Magnificent Seven, wandering through Abney Park, feels a bit like getting into a Gothic novel but in a genuinely lovely way.

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Queen's Wood

Queen's Wood is a 52-acre (21 hectares) area of ancient woodland in the London Borough of Haringey. Dating from the 1600s, the Queen's Wood is carpeted with bluebells and anemones in the springtime – but the ancient forest, with its mountain ash and field maples at ablaze, is at its best in the colder months,

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Walthamstow Marshes

With a dozen miles of footpaths, this man-made wetland is one of the best spots for urban bird watching in London, with wildlife ranging from sandpipers to kingfishers living among its reed-lined fens.

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Ham House & Gardens

It is set along the banks of the River Thames. The grounds of Ham House were restored to the original 17th-century style in the '70s. you should have tea and scones at the lovely Orangery café, which uses product from the kitchen gardens.

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Culpeper Community Garden

Suppose you're looking for a little gardening instead of just enjoying the surroundings. In that case, Culpeper is the perfect place to volunteer – and it feels like a real secret garden in the heart of Islington.

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Inner Temple Garden

Its gardens are believed to have have been here since the Knights Templar established them in 1160. Today it's a welcome patch of greenery in the City.

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Syon Park

Syon Park, the London house of the Duke of Northumberland, was the setting for Julian Fellowes' Gosford Park in 2001. Be sure to look at the Great Conservatory, which was revived to its former glory in the late 1980s after years of neglect.

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Cannizaro Park

Cannizaro Park is a Grade II listed park set just off Westside Wimbledon Common. The park has a long history starting as part of the Duke of Cannizaro's Estate and the transition to a public Park in 1949. Its Grade II status is due to some of the rare and exquisite plants. It has some magnificent trees and shrubs, which are attractive to both the horticulturalists and gardeners as well as those who want to enjoy some peace in one of the park's secluded areas.

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Sydenham Hill Wood

The last remaining portion of the Great North Woods, Sydenham Hill, is known for its spectacular autumn colours and the 350-metre-long Victorian tunnel beneath it.

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Osterley Park & House

The grounds of this Georgian house, once named the "palace of palaces" by Horace Walpole, are truly remarkable – not least because its gardens are grown organically, which ensures that hedgehogs and other species can be found in abundance.

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The Garden Museum

Landscape designer Dan Pearson is behind the beautiful yard in the middle of the restored Garden Museum – set inside the spectacular deconsecrated church of St Mary-at-Lambeth.

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