The cream of Britain’s horticultural broadcasters are Scotland-bound as BBC Radio 4’s annual Gardeners’ Question Time (GQT) Summer Garden Party prepares to be hosted at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) on Saturday 9 July. Continue reading Summer Garden Party fun as Botanics welcomes the cream of the crop
Sunday 19 June
The Botanic Gardens, from 11am
Dads Rock’s 3rd FREE Father’s Day Family Takeover will be on Sunday 19 June from 11am – 4pm at the Royal Botanic Garden. Continue reading Dads are taking over The Botanics!
Celebrate the restored Botanic Cottage
Monday 30 May midday – 6pm
It’s the party of the year at the Botanics – and you’re all invited!
Join us as we celebrate the opening of the historic Botanic Cottage with a glorious gala day. Bring along a picnic and enjoy an afternoon of free music, creative activities, demonstrations, dancing, storytelling and much more!
Suitable for all ages, the event is part of a season of events at the Botanics called#BeInspiredbyNature and is also part of the Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design, supported by VisitScotland #IAD2016
Botanic Lights cancelled tonight -Thursday 12 November
Unfortunately, Botanic Lights is cancelled tonight for safety reasons due to severe weather conditions forecast for this evening.
For further info visit bge.org.uk/botaniclights
It’s not particularly pretty and it stinks like a rotting corpse – meet the plant they’re all talking about at the Botanics … !
Our Amorphophallus titanum (titan arum), one of the world’s biggest and smelliest blooms, is set to flower and could look like the one (above) at Basel. It’s a first for the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and for Scotland.
There was great excitement at the Garden this morning when horticulturists discovered the bud had started to unfurl to reveal a flower. The plant is currently 137cms in height and getting bigger by the day.
It is expected that our titan arum, which is housed in the Lowland Tropics House, will be of great interest to visitors. So, when it is in full bloom, and at its smelliest, the Garden will be open from 9am until 9pm.
Visit our website or follow us on Facebook and Twitter for details and to check its progress.
Pilton Community Health Project will be producing a cake to highlight the best of North Edinburgh as part of this month’s Edinburgh’s Cake Fest – and they could use your help!
PCHP’s Community Development Manager Anita Aggarwal explained: “We are delighted to have been asked to contribute a cake to Cake Fest – they are building a map of Edinburgh made in cake!
“A master cake decorator (a member of the Sugarcraft Guild) will be with us on Thursday 18 June from 9.30am – 1pm to help us decorate our cake, which will be our building and a community garden – hopefully decorated with symbols and figures that represent the best of the area.
“Drop in anytime between 9.30 and 1 to contribute to the cake which will be displayed at the Botanics. Let us know if you need a creche.”
“You can see all the entire map of Edinburgh made from cake at the Botanic Gardens on Sunday 21 June – its all free and the cake will be shared around from 5pm.”
And what exactly is Cake Fest Edinburgh? Well, it’s part of The Year of Food and Drink Scotland 2015 events and, simply put, it’s a free day of cake, entertainment and Scotland’s best food and drink!
Sunday 21 June 2015 is Midsummer’s Day, and on Inverleith House lawn in the Botanic Gardens, Cake Fest Edinburgh will build a giant edible map of the city including over 50 magnificent landmark buildings in cake! Join us to witness this marvel, explore the gardens and sample delicious local produce.
There’s street food and a producer’s market from 10am and throughout the afternoon there will be workshops for the kids and free entertainment all day and evening long. From midday, the cake map will be assembled – careful, now! – and by 5pm the cake map will be complete …
Once the cake map is complete it will be left for all to admire whilst each baking team casts its vote for the Bakers Choice cake. Shortly after 5pm the winner will be announced by a very special guest – and bakers will then be invited onto the map to cut up their cakes to share with onlookers, all for free!
This event is for all the family and free to attend. For further information visit http://edinburgh.cakefest.org.uk/
Agreement strengthens 200 year relationship
A new era has dawned in collaborations between the UK and Nepal with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) and the Government of Nepal’s Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation Department of Plant Resources (DPR).
The agreement flags up a significant commitment to long-term capacity building in plant research, conservation and education in the South Asian biodiversity hot-spot.
While RBGE has connections in Nepal dating back to the early 1800’s, this is regarded as a distinctively fresh form of partnership. The deal was sealed when Mr Yam Bahadur Thapa, Director General of Nepal’s Department of Plant Resources, flew to Edinburgh to meet RBGE Regius Keeper Simon Milne MBE.
Looking forward to a number of imminent new initiatives including plans for a Biodiversity Education Garden to be built at Nepal’s National Botanic Garden, the two agreed the way was open for yet closer working ties.
Simon Milne said: “The connections between the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and Nepal date back some 200 years and our working relationship is going from strength to strength. This accord underscores a common commitment to build on the strength of our past affiliation towards even more productive collaboration.
“We can look forward to new opportunities in developing appreciation, education, knowledge and conservation of the plant kingdom and protecting the natural capital that sustains us.”
Mr Thapa said: “King Mahendra was so impressed by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh when he visited in 1960 that he inaugurated Nepal’s first and only National Botanic Garden two years later. RBGE horticultural staff are out in Nepal at the moment giving much-needed training to my staff and we are looking forward to developing our partnership in the future.”
Dr Mark Watson, Head of Major Floras at RBGE and Editor-in-Chief of the international Flora of Nepal research programme explained the significance of the MOU: “Although it is a small country, Nepal has an enormous range of habitats and is home to some 7000 species of vascular plants, making it a globally-important biodiversity hot-spot.
“However, conservation and sustainable use of plant biodiversity is hampered by the lack of primary inventory information and means to identify and characterise species. This is exacerbated by a lack of trained people to undertake plant biodiversity inventory and documentation. Poor facilities, lack of equipment and limited funding also need to be addressed.
“The process is underway. RBGE has led several in-country workshops and hands-on training events. MSc and PhD training of Nepalese botanists at the University of Edinburgh and RBGE is proving a success and many more ambitious plans are in the pipeline.”
Click here for more information on RBGE’s Flora of Nepal research programme.
Here’s to the next 200 years!
Commemorative space created in Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic Garden
A new national memorial dedicated to Scotland’s organ and tissue donors has been officially opened by Public Health Minister Michael Matheson.
Situated in Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic Garden, the public memorial will provide a lasting tribute to those Scots who saved or improved the lives of others by making the decision to donate their organs or tissue after death.
Scottish artist Alec Finlay created the memorial, working with donor families, transplant recipients and health professionals.
It features a dry-stane ‘taigh’ (Gaelic for ‘house’) with a turf-roof, which seals in a set of river stones. Buried under the foundations is a memorial book containing the first names of every organ and tissue donor between 2006 and late 2013. This ‘wilding garden’ is also home to two circle poems and a ‘font’ containing pebbles collected from beaches around Scotland.
Public Health Minister Michael Matheson visited the Scottish Government-funded memorial yesterday and met with donor families and transplant recipients involved in its development.
He said: “This memorial is a fitting tribute to the selfless generosity of organ and tissue donors and their families who, at a time of great tragedy, honour the wishes of their loved-ones. Through this act of kindness many lives are saved and it is right that this is marked through a public memorial.
“A very peaceful space has been created in this quiet corner of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, which offers people the opportunity to reflect on the remarkable gift of organ and tissue donation. I hope that everyone whose lives have been touched in some way by donation can find peace and solace by visiting this memorial.”
Alec Finlay (pictured with Minister, above) said: “Organ and tissue donation touches many people: as an act of giving that passes between the dead and the living, it speaks to our values as a culture. I’ve been touched and honoured to share the task with so many people, from surgeons, to families, to the artist collaborators and gardeners who helped make the final artwork.”
Simon Milne MBE, Regius Keeper, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, said: “This is a very inspiring and thought provoking project. Alec Finlay’s remarkable memorial sits beautifully in a tranquil and contemplative part of the Garden in keeping with its purpose and symbolism. It is our hope that our visitors will be moved to reflect on what organ transplantation and donation means to the lives of so many people.”
At the memorial the Minister met with husband-and-wife, Sandra and Craig Warden, who donated their 11-year-old daughter Rachel’s organs and in doing so, saved three lives.
Sandra said: “Giving someone the gift of life is so very important. Having this national memorial, set within these beautiful gardens, recognises and remembers all those who provided that gift of life to others.
“This memorial is for the families of donors, for transplant recipients and anyone whose lives have been touched by donation and transplantation. From when she was very young, Rachel understood organ donation and made me promise we would donate her organs if anything ever happened to her and we fulfilled her wishes.”
Under cover of darkness, in the heart of the City the abundant natural landscape of ‘the Botanics’ will come alive this winter when the gates are opened to visitors at night-time. Who knows how many pairs of little glowing ‘eyes’ will be keeping watch over them as the Garden sheds some light on its after-dark secrets?
This November, visitors to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) will be invited to enter the Garden after dark for a spectacular outdoor event featuring a magical combination of light and nature. It is the first outdoor light experience of its kind to be organised by the Garden.
Night in the Garden, which starts on 30 October and runs until 23 November, has been created by the Botanics and Edinburgh-based Unique Events, in association with Scottish light artist Malcolm Innes and his colleague Euan Winton. The artists’ vision means that night-time visitors will be able to make their way through a one kilometre route full of light and shadow and experience the Botanics in an entirely new manner, with interactive stations and a few unexpected surprises along the way.
The outdoor trail will use the Garden’s favourite features, such as the famous Victorian Glasshouses and Pond, as the backdrop for extraordinary light effects. Visitors can watch ‘the sun’ set inside the Palm House, see a host of sparkling lights suspended over water and enjoy enchanting illuminations that bring the indoors outside. They will also have the opportunity to create their own light show by manipulating some of the installations themselves.
Heather Jackson, RBGE’s Director of Enterprise, explained: “This is a chance for those who know and love the Edinburgh Garden, as well as new visitors of course, to see it in a completely different light – quite literally.
“We have over 700,000 daytime visitors a year and we are often asked if it’s possible to come at night, so we thought we’d come up with something unique to create a truly enchanting experience.
“The planned light installations by Malcolm promise to be spectacular, and by combining the wonder of light with the secrets of the trees and nature we have in abundance, it will certainly be a magical evening to remember for our night-time visitors.”
Malcolm Innes said: “The Garden at night is already a magical place, as some of the most recognisable features softly merge into the darkness. It is this new reality that we will be manipulating to create installations that span the range from grand spectacle, through romantic and beautiful, to mysterious and tiny.
“The kind of hard edged, simplified geometry we learn at school is seldom discussed in relation to the natural world, but when the two are brought together, the visual effect can be magical. Come and join us and bring the family as we turn the world inside out and make the invisible, visible.”
The event will be open to members of the public with an hour-long experience allowing visitors to participate in something that they have never seen before, with different parts of the route being jaw-droppingly spectacular, some romantic and pretty, and others just a wee bit spooky – although not enough to put the kids off. Night in the Garden is an event for all the family.
The experience is being delivered by RBGE and Unique Events, Scotland’s leading independent events company; organisers of the capital’s famous Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations and large-scale outdoor festivals and events. ‘Botanic Lights’ installations are designed by Malcolm Innes and Euan Winton of Edinburgh Napier University, and Leith-based Black Light is working with the partners to deliver lighting installation technical support.
Pete Irvine of Unique Events said: “Unique Events is delighted to be involved in this exciting and innovative project. The Botanics is one of Edinburgh’s best loved places to visit in any season, but we will never have experienced it like this.”
Visitors to Night in the Garden will be required to purchase tickets in advance for a specific date and time slot. Tickets are now on sale – for details and further informaton about the event, visit www.rbge.org.uk/botaniclights.
And if the Botanics lights experience appeals, you may want to know about this charity event too:
The Enchanted Forest, Perthshire’s multi-award winning sound and light show, has announced that it has released an additional 1500 tickets for Thursday 2 October when it will hold a dedicated charity event, the proceeds from which will be split equally between Children’s Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS) and Autism Scotland.
Over 45,0000 tickets went on sale for The Enchanted Forest’s 13th event, elemental, in June and organisers are already predicting a sell-out show this year with demand for tickets already up by 37%. The release of additional tickets will be welcomed by fans of the show and by supporters of the charities alike.
Graham Brown, chairman of the Highland Perthshire Community Interest Company that runs The Enchanted Forest, commented: “The Community Interest Company is, for the first time, in a strong position to give back to the local community and we have selected two charities that are very active in this area.
“It is marvellous to be able to assist Scottish Autism and CHAS with a charity night on the 2nd October and we wish them well and hope that they will benefit greatly from this unique fundraising opportunity.”
Derek Allan, producer of The Enchanted Forest added: “This is an exciting development for the show. As a community based event, we are very committed to giving something back and the two charities chosen both do exceptionally important work to support families and children across Scotland.
“Every year we get very positive feedback from customers whose children are affected by autism, and the profound impact the show has on them. For other families who are facing challenges, such as those supported by CHAS, the show offers an opportunity to enjoy time together and a break from their normal routine. We are proud to be giving both Scottish Autism and CHAS a helping hand.”
Karen Wilson, fundraising manager for Scottish Autism said: “We are delighted to be selected as one of the charities to benefit from this event. This is a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of our services which support people with autism and their families throughout Scotland. We are also looking forward to bringing along some of our service users to enjoy the experience on the night.”
Alison Rennie, CHAS Fundraiser added: “We’re very excited to have been chosen as one of the charities to benefit from The Enchanted Forest’s first ever charity evening. It promises to be a magical event and all the funds received by CHAS will help us to continue to provide vital support to babies, children and young people with life-shortening conditions.”
The 2014 show, elemental, sees the return of the creative team that put together last year’s successful show, with lighting design by Kate Bonney and Simon Hayes, sound design and composition by RJ McConnell, and orchestral compositions by Jon Beales.
The Enchanted Forest takes place from Friday 3 – Sunday 26 October 2014 at Faskally Wood near Pitlochry.
Tickets for the Charity Night on Thursday 2 October are available by visiting www.enchantedforest.org.uk/charity
An attempt to break the world tree-hugging record in Inverleith is now in the hands of international adjudicators. 1387 people took part in the world record attempt during the successful Midsummer event at the Botanic Gardens on Saturday evening – but a rival attempt in faraway Nepal is keeping the Scots huggers in suspense!
RBGE’s website blog Botanics Stories explains: ‘At 8pm an air horn sounded the start of a one minute tree hug on the evening of midsummer 2014 at the Botanics. The weather was overcast, but pleasantly warm. For the duration of the tree hug the Garden went quiet. Then the horn sounded for a second time, and as quickly as it had died away the gentle sound of conversation and laughter returned.
The participants signed a sheet to act as evidence in this world record attempt and we now know that the total number of people involved was 1,387. The youngest was just seven months.
Whether this will turn out to be a world record is unclear as an unofficial world record was set in Nepal recently that involved 2,000 people. This record will only be accepted if the supporting evidence can be provided. If it cannot then the Botanics tree hug would represent the current world record. We will be following this up and keeping our fingers crossed.
A big thank you to all those who took part.’
As all you professional treehuggers out there will know, the current world record for the largest tree hug was set in the USA by Treecology Inc and Hoyt Arboretum in Portland, Oregon, on 20 July 2013 – 936 people took part that day.
We know that record’s now been broken, but was that Nepalese attempt valid? It’s now an anxious wait – Inverleith’s Botanics, or Kathmandu? As the world holds it’s breath, Guinness world record adjudicators – it’s over to you!
