TAKE a trip to the tropics - and be home in time for dinner.

It sounds impossible, but all you have to do is spare a day to visit the Royal Horticultural Society's gardens at Wisley, just north of Guildford.

Wisley's glasshouses include a tropical section, called the stove house, where the air is kept at a hot and steamy 16 degrees C and exotic plants can be seen at their best all the year round. Here, the heat and humidity make the plants feel right at home, while the visitors feel as if they have arrived at the equator!

There are huge palms, forest trees, vines, tropical ferns and many flowering plants, both strange and familiar.

Among them are numerous epiphytes - plants which grow on the trunks and branches of other plants. They are not parasitic, but somehow obtain their nutrients from the rain and moisture in the atmosphere - hence the term air plants.

Some of these plants have become popular house plants, and can be seen struggling to survive in living rooms all over the country. At Wisley, however, you can see them flourishing in the ideal conditions. Tillandsia cyanea, an evergreen air plant, is in full bloom at the moment, with gorgeous purple-blue flowers emerging from pink bracts.

Many other kinds of plants can also be seen in flower, notably the jade vine, a fast growing climber from the Philippines.

Streptocarpus, another popular house plant, also in flower with many lovely colours, is in the stove house. Nearby, there are yet more stunning blooms in the orchid house, where the temperature is kept at around 14C to 15C.

In a less humid part of the glasshouse complex, a new cacti area is being developed, while the cool section currently houses Wisley's collection of chrysanthemums, which attracts enthusiasts from all over the country at this time of year.

The large temperate house, where the temperature is kept at around 10 degrees C, has been completely re-landscaped in recent months. There are now wide, paved paths, providing easy access for wheelchairs. This house has a dry section, with superb cacti, succulents and other sun-loving plants originating from Australia, South Africa and the Mediterranean countries.

From the first week of December, the gardeners of Wisley will be staging their Christmas Extravaganza in the temperate house: a dazzling display of traditional winter-flowering pot plants, all groomed to perfection.

Don't miss the two alpine houses, they also have many plants in full bloom at this time of year. Please note that these two glasshouses will be closed for maintenance work on next Tuesday, Wednesday and on November 29-30.

Although I visited Wisley in November, I was fortunate enough to have a day of mild, sunny weather. Floral Superintendent David Jewell showed me round and pointed out many sights of winter interest. Do come prepared though, with stout walking shoes, for there is plenty to see.

"We now have some 240 acres under cultivation," said Mr Jewell. "Naturally, some areas are at their best in spring or summer, but there are also many wonderful autumn and winter features, such as berries, seed heads, glossy bark, coloured stems or lovely foliage.

"There are many plants which always flower in November and December, and with the mild autumn weather, some of the late-flowering summer and autumn plants are still performing."

It is impossible to list them all, but I will mention a few of the winter attractions. Labelling is a strong point at Wisley, so you will have no difficulty identifying plants or trees.

Trees with eye-catching bark include the snake bark maple (Acer davidii), the Prunus serrula (Tibetan cherry) and the dazzling white birch tree (Betula utilis Silver Shadow).

In the wild garden area and on Battlestone Hill, there are several varieties of sweet-scented camellias which flower in November. There is a whole border of grasses near the restaurant area, showing just how many shapes, sizes and textures are offered by these versatile plants.

Most visitors make a bee-line for the model gardens, where small plots have been carefully designed to create a variety of contrasting garden schemes, full of ideas suitable for the modest suburban garden.

The latest to be developed is the modernistic Daily Telegraph garden, first seen at the Chelsea Flower Show,and now transferred to a site at Wisley. This garden looks great in winter, and so does the nearby Japanese garden, with its raked gravel, bonsai trees and Japanese ornaments.

Finally, stop for a little Christmas shopping on your way back to the car park. There is a large, well-stocked garden centre, with a huge range of plants. Next door is the shop, with a feast of Christmas goodies already on sale, ranging from books, calendars and greetings cards, to glass, china and many unusual trinkets and household ornaments.

Admission to Wisley cost £5 for adults and £2 for children aged six to 16. Children under six are admitted free and there is no charge for parking. From now until February 2000, Wisley will be open to the general public on Sundays (which for the rest of the year are reserved for RHS members and guests). This means that during the winter, the gardens are now open seven days a week, from 10am until sunset. Wisley is well signposted from the A3, seven miles north of Guildford.

For further information, call Wisley on 01483 224234.

Converted for the new archive on 25 January 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.