The railings of Buckingham Palace are insufficiently broad to accommodate the floral tributes of a nation, hence the creation of The Green Park Floral Tribute Garden.
During this period of national mourning, The Green Park will provide a location to lay floral tributes to Her Majesty The Queen. Any flowers left in the proximity of Buckingham Palace will be sensitively moved at the end of each day to the Green Park tribute site.
A subtly-contoured shady triangle of grass has been set aside for the laying out of bouquets, the leaving of notes and the abandonment of soft toys. This helps to provide a place of focus away from the delays and one-way systems around the palace, an overflow for grief, and at present it's not so busy there are queues to get inside. Most wellwishers emerging from Green Park station instead filter straight down towards The Mall, thinking it must be the place to go, perhaps picking up a red rose from the chancer who's bought a job lot and is standing respectfully beside the path. But they'd perhaps be better off heading to the GPFTG where they could get properly up close to a collective show of emotion that smells like walking into a florists.
The densest concentration of blooms is around the trunks of the larger trees, built up sequentially to create a compact island of petals on a forest of stalks. Yellow sunflowers are popular, or at least much larger than the other flowers so they tend to stand out. Whites and pinks and reds are also commonplace, and here and there regal purples, all interspersed with cards and letters and other expressions of sadness left bobbing on the surface. As more and more arrive, bustling ladies who look like they'd normally be arranging flowers in church are in their element here.
In the interests of sustainability, we ask visitors to only lay organic or compostable material. The public will be asked to remove all wrapping from floral tributes and place these in the bins provided. Removing the wrapping will aid the longevity of the flowers and will assist in subsequent composting which will start between one week and a fortnight after the date of the funeral.
Elsewhere the flowers are laid out in lines gradually increasing in length or in arty swirls whose centres are slowly being filled in. A couple of heart-shaped arrangements look like they were created using bouquets taken from outside the palace after the first day of mourning, because I recognised a flag alongside I'd seen flapping from the gates. New arrivals with flowers can be seen scouring the garden before deciding on the most visible spot to leave their tributes. Several of the newer tributes are still in their M&S Flower Shop wrapping, or in one case sporting a £4 Asda pricetag, but the plastic won't stay in situ for long because a team of park staff is mingling with mourners and bagging up the unnecessary. I spotted a dozen bulging sacks ready to go.
We would prefer visitors not to bring non-floral objects/artefacts such as teddy bears or balloons. Cards and labels will, however, be accepted and will be periodically removed by The Royal Parks’ staff and contractors for storage offsite. This process will be carried out with discretion and sensitivity.
Yes, several people have left Paddingtons, and even marmalade sandwiches sweating inside plastic wrappers labelled "For Later". I also spotted a smurf which had somehow survived the 'organic or compostable' cull, along with a Union Jack hat, a few flags and thankfully few balloons. But it's the written tributes amongst the flowers that really hit home, offered up by adults and children alike, usually heartfelt but occasionally one suspects 'because Mummy told us to'. Pause to read them and they might just bring a watery tear to your eye.
» RIP you were the best Queen I will miss you [Jan]
» Remembered with love and affection from all our families and all the people of Azerbeijan [Namin, Ibrahim, Gulmina]
» Rest in Eternal Peace [Margeret, South Wales, 98 Years Old]
» Life feels empty without you [Arshad & Veena - Ilford]
» To my boss and dearest Queenie [Amanda & Terry]
» I feel very honoured to have lived during your reign
» Thank you for all your great serving [Rayaan]
» Sending your family lots of love [from Archie and Freddie]
» Dearest Queen - Your selfless dedication is unfathomable
» Love your work, thanks for being a Queen [Georgia, Sydney]
» You were the best queen we will miss you and have fun in heaven
» We look forward to learning about the legend you were in our history lessons at school [Aaryan & Anushka]
» Thank you for helping to hold our nation together through divisive and potentially dangerous times, especially of late [Dale Vessey]
» Love from Leopard Class xx
A few really awful poems have made an appearance, one of which I put down to amateur doggerel until I noticed two different people had laminated it. The person who left a "You're One In A Million" card probably hadn't thought their message through. Some had left obsequious screeds they should have realised the Queen will never read. Others too young to really know her had simply done some colouring in. But even if all they'd done was write RIP QUEEN ELIZABETH on the back of a paper plate it's the thought that counts.
The world's media have also found their way here, so you might find yourself walking past a live broadcast on Good Morning America, tangling with the presenters on TeleCinco or unintentionally starring in a teaser pre-record by the Australian anchor on Today. I also watched a reporter sitting cross-legged while typing his entry for the BBC website's liveblog, which is the only time in my life I've ever seen someone upload a news report I've later read.
Please note that access to the parks to leave floral tributes may not be possible during ceremonial activities due to the large crowds expected, and there are expected to be queues to access the Floral Tribute Garden.
In amongst the crowds are married couples, young friends, elderly ladies, even crocodiles of schoolchildren being led through a living history lesson. An image that'll stay with me forever is of a woman with a Guide Dog standing by the foot of a garlanded tree to experience the floral tributes through sound and smell, and the smile on her face as strangers kindly described the scene. I can't begin to guess how busy The Green Park Floral Tribute Garden will get, but whether you consider its contents heartfelt homage or harebrained hysteria it's well worth a visit because we shall not see its like again.
