Sofiero castle park - full of rhododendrons

My morning walk today brought me to the Sofiero castle, just a few kilometers north of the city of  Helsingborg on the Swedish side of the Sound. The castle, which used to be the summer residence of  the Swedish kings Oscar II (1829-1907) and Gustaf Adolf (1882-1973), is famous for its park - last year it was chosen as the most beautiful park in Europe. The castle park is at its best this time of the year, when the more than 10.000 rhododendrons are blooming.

Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf and Crown Princess Margareta (the UK  princess  Margaret of Connaught) received Sofiero as a wedding gift. They took both a great interest in gardening. The gardens of the estate were redesigned in an English style. As Crown Princess Margaret published two books, Vår trädgård på Sofiero ("Our Garden at Sofiero) and Från blomstergården , illustrated with her own drawings and photographs, which were sold for the benefit of household schools. 

Gustaf Adolf, then Crown Prince, planted his first rhododendron in Sofiero already in 1907. Later on he became an avid collector of rhdodendrons. When he died, there were already 5000 of them.

Here are a some of today´s rhodies:

More information about Sofiero here, and here