I'm the park manager Phil and it's my pleasure to welcome you to Bushy Park.

The landscape started out as one of Henry VIII's hunting grounds and its storied history includes hosting almost 8,000 soldiers during the Second World War, with the decisive D-Day plans made right here in Bushy.

These days the park is home to a wild deer herd, a number of sports clubs, stunning gardens and of course - as a Site of Special Scientific Interest - a huge variety of plants, animals and invertebrates.

I wanted to introduce myself to you all so we put together this short video . If you see me out and about feel free to stop and say hello!

The park is looking fantastic as always this spring, thanks to a lot of hard work from the team over autumn and winter.

The camellia flowering season is almost over, but magnolia, rhododendrons and azaleas will soon be in bloom.

Keep an eye out for one of my favourites, rhododendron augustinii, which has distinctive lavender blue flowers.

In the coming months we'll introduce new areas of the park and the people who help make it such a special place, the latest info on what you can see day to day, and a look back at some of the more interesting bits from hundreds of years of history.

All the best,

Phil Edwards, Bushy Park Manager

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