Collect conkers in Greenwich Park

Two lines of aesculus hippocastanum run along Blackheath Avenue in Greenwich Park. Better known as horse chestnut trees, these trees give a harvest of beautiful conkers at this time of year. With the amazing winds we saw yesterday at the tail end of Hurricane Katia, the ground is more littered with horse chesnuts than ever, and they're now ready for collecting.


The avenue itself is the park's main axis, and was set out in 1660 and aligned directly on the Queen's House at the bottom of the hill. Whilst only four of its original sweet chestnut trees survive, there are some fantastic horse chestnuts, introduced to replace the avenue’s original sweet chestnuts or elms.

Today, the avenue now provides parking for visitors to the park along each side, making it a great place to stop if you're after a bit haul of conkers.

For more on Greenwich Park, see http://www.royalparks.gov.uk/Greenwich-Park.aspx