A kiss for the Queen! Alan Titchmarsh, who has been friends with the King for 40 years, welcomes Camilla with a sweet peck on the cheek as she opens the British Flowers Week at the Garden Museum

Camilla launched the British Flowers Week exhibition at the Garden MuseumREAD MORE: Queen Camilla 'loves a crime thriller and romance novels' and has 'covered every surface of her sitting room with books', charity boss reveals 

The Queen was today greeted with a sweet kiss on the cheek by broadcaster Alan Titchmarsh as she launched the British Flowers Week exhibition at London’s Garden Museum.

Camilla, 75, dressed in a blue and white summer frock, was warmly welcomed by the 74-year-old gardener – who has been friends with the King for 40 years – when arriving at the museum.

During her outing, she met and praised royal florist Shane Connolly, who designed the displays that decorated Westminster Abbey for Charles’ coronation and joked there was not much time to look at them.

The abbey was festooned with blooms, sourced from the UK by the florist who is favoured by Camilla, when the King and Queen were crowned on May 6.

She told gathered guests who included designers of the displays on show in the exhibition: ‘They were so beautiful’ and she made them laugh when she quipped ‘I didn’t have a lot of chance to look at them’.

The Queen was today greeted with a sweet kiss on the cheek by broadcaster Alan Titchmarsh as she launched the British Flowers Week exhibition at London’s Garden Museum

Camilla also singled out for praise the floral decorations around the grave of the Unknown Warrior in the Abbey.

Mr Connolly was the florist for the Queen’s wedding to Charles in 2005 and created the floral displays for the funerals of her father and brother.

He gave a speech highlighting the King and Queen’s ‘support of British grown flowers’ which has ‘never faltered’.

He added: ‘As gardeners you also appreciate the vagaries of using them, the exciting unpredictability, and the happy surprises that result.

‘On May 6 you trusted them, and me, for your coronation. No single flower type could be guaranteed or predicted, in fact nature was in charge of design.’

After Mr Connolly gave Camilla a hand-tied bouquet of flowers picked fresh from his own garden, the Queen revealed she had a surprise for him and gave him a beautifully wrapped box which contained a picture of herself and her husband, King Charles.

She said: ‘Well I have something for you. It’s just a very small present for the wonderful job you did at the coronation. They were so beautiful.

‘I didn’t have a lot of chance to look at them [on the day] but have studied them very carefully since and they were absolutely wonderful, especially around the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior. That was just absolutely perfect. This is just a small thank you from me.’

Camilla, 75, dressed in a blue and white summer frock, was warmly welcomed by the 74-year-old gardener – who has been friends with the King for 40 years – when arriving at the museum

During her outing, the Queen (pictured centre) met and praised royal florist Shane Connolly, who designed the displays that decorated Westminster Abbey for Charles’ coronation and joked there was not much time to look at them

Camilla (pictured right) also singled out for praise the floral decorations around the grave of the Unknown Warrior in the Abbey

British Flowers Week was founded by New Covent Garden Market and the Queen viewed five floral installations on display by designers

The installations have been designed specifically for the historic space and will interact with the Garden Museum’s Grade II listed building, parts of which date back to 14th century. Pictured, Camilla

The theme for this year’s exhibition is New Beginnings, and escorted by Alan Titchmarsh, President of the Garden Museum, Camilla also met volunteers from Floral Angels a charity that recycles donated flowers from events and arranges them for use in hospices, women’s refuges, and care homes throughout London

British Flowers Week was founded by New Covent Garden Market and the Queen viewed five floral installations on display by designers Botanical Tales, Lucy Vail Floristry, Mahal Kita Flowers, SAGE and Yinari, who have created sculptural flower installations using seasonal, sustainably-sourced, British-grown flowers, arranged with environmentally friendly materials and methods.

The installations have been designed specifically for the historic space and will interact with the Garden Museum’s Grade II listed building, parts of which date back to 14th century.

The theme for this year’s exhibition is New Beginnings, and escorted by Alan Titchmarsh, President of the Garden Museum, Camilla also met volunteers from Floral Angels a charity that recycles donated flowers from events and arranges them for use in hospices, women’s refuges, and care homes throughout London. They also recycled the flowers from the coronation.

She also met a group of eight school children from La Retraite RC School in Balham, south London, who were taking part in a cooking lesson in the Learning Studio Kitchen making marigold risotto with fresh flowers.

‘What are you making? Do you enjoy cooking?’ asked the Queen. ‘Look at all those wonderful flowers. Are they all edible? You’re going to have a veritable feast. I am very envious, I wish I was joining you. I’ll see you on Masterchef.’

‘Yes better than Gordon Ramsey!’ Laughed one of the girls. ‘Bon appetite! ‘ declared the royal.

After Mr Connolly gave Camilla (pictured right) a hand-tied bouquet of flowers picked fresh from his own garden, the Queen revealed she had a surprise for him and gave him a beautifully wrapped box which contained a picture of herself and her husband, King Charles

Camilla (pictured left) said: ‘Well I have something for you. It’s just a very small present for the wonderful job you did at the coronation. They were so beautiful’

Camilla also met a group of eight school children from La Retraite RC School in Balham, south London, who were taking part in a cooking lesson in the Learning Studio Kitchen making marigold risotto with fresh flowers