I was given really privileged access when I was allowed inside the brand new Glasshouse at the Royal Horticultural Society's HQ near Wisley in Surrey. As part of a newspaper assignment I was allowed to photograph it as they were putting the finishing touches to the planting four weeks before HM The Queen was due to open it to the public on 26th June. It is a fabulous addition to the society's wonderful gardens at Wisley, arguably Britain’s best loved garden on a 240 acres site, it offers a fascinating blend of the beautiful with practical and innovative design and cultivation techniques.

The new Glasshouse is a cathedral-like glass structure and covers an area equal in size to 10 tennis courts and is 40ft height and provides the RHS with significant space to showcase their world class plant collection and an enhanced horticultural experience for everyone who visits. The RHS’s extensive tender plant collection, comprising more than 5,000 varieties has been replanted in the new building, including difficult to grow, rare and endangered species and hundreds of orchids.

A winding pathway leads you past rocky outcrops, waterfalls, still pools and gently sloping gradients, allowing you to see plants in a range of different environments. Entering The Glasshouse is like walking into a jungle - tree ferns, tall palms, lush-leaved creepers and dazzling flower displays give an air of expectation and drama. There are three interlinked zones: dry temperate and moist temperate (adjacent spaces within the main area of the glasshouse), and a tropical zone overlooking the lake at the front. The tropical section is divided from the temperate by a glass partition and a huge, reddish-brown ‘rock’ structure that also provides a range of planting habitats.

Surrounding The Glasshouse is an attractive new lake, which will bring environmental benefits as well as becoming home to Molluscs, damselflies, dragonflies and amphibians.

Now that it is open, it is sure to be very busy, so try to avoid weekend visits, but nevertheless a great day out for all, whether "greenfingered" or not.

For more information go to: http://www.rhs.org.uk/WhatsOn/Garde...eglasshouse/