Toddington Manor has a wonderful backdrop - many established specimen trees planted by the previous Victorian inhabitants. One of these is a fine example of a Liriodendron tulipifera, you can see how large it has grown in the photo. It is on the right hand side, on the left is a wellingtonia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) and a Red Horse Chestnut (Aesculus x carnea). It has now finished flowering, but many visitors merrily walk past it without looking up, missing the hundreds of flowers tucked between its leaves. As they are a similar shade of green as the leaves, from a distance, the flowers just look like browning leaves.
But up close - wow!Immediately you can see where the common name originates from. The flowers last for just about a month during June and are about the same size as an average tulip flower.
Also worth mentioning are the unusual leaves, with lobes and a notch at the tip which makes it look like it has been cut off. These turn a lovely buttery yellow in Autumn.
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