Author: andy.winfield

Going to Extremes

Posted on by andy.winfield

By Andy Winfield

Pink and yellow flowers and greenery in a valley between cliffs
The Fynbos of South Africa

For Bristol, this is extreme weather; usually we hardly go a week without rain, it’s been over a month. The plants in the Garden are taking it all in different ways; the aromatic Mediterranean plants look at home and are producing wonderful fragrant oils whose scents drift up as you brush past them.  Tree ferns on the other hand need their trunks watered daily to stop them from drying out; native to wet forests they have adapted roots on their trunks to soak up all the rain. (more…)

Let’s hear it for the Volunteers

Posted on by andy.winfield

By Andy Winfield

This week the Botanic Garden volunteers were awarded the highest accolade for volunteering in the land, the Queen’s Award for Volunteer Services; aka the MBE for volunteer groups. As a member of staff here I’m very chuffed for them because I know that without them the Garden would be a very different place.

It could be argued that one of the most precious commodities we have these days is time, and so the value attached to people offering us their time for an afternoon, morning or just a couple of hours each week is unquantifiable. The Garden has four full time Gardeners, including a job-share; one trainee; just under two administrator positions shared by three people; and, of course, the Curator. The number of volunteers on our books is two hundred and forty-four! (more…)

Looking East

Posted on by andy.winfield

 

By Nick Wray

2018 marks the seventeenth year of the partnership between Bristol and the city of Guangzhou (formerly Canton) in Guangdong Province Southern China. Located on the Pearl River about 120km north west of Hong Kong and 145 km North of Macau, Guangzhou has a history spanning 2200 years and was a major terminus for the maritime silk road and continues to serve as a major port and transportation hub today as well as being one of China’s largest cities. In 2016 a stainless-steel kapok flower sculpture that was donated by the Mayor of Guangzhou to the City of Bristol and now stands proudly in our Chinese Medicinal Herb Garden.
(more…)

The stories of plants

Posted on by andy.winfield

By Andy Winfield

breadfruit illustration
Breadfruit

At the Botanic Garden we have educational visits from all age ranges and all subjects. Primary school children come to learn about the very basics of plants, what they need to grow and what they do to survive; secondary schools come to learn about plants and what it is to run a business like this; sixth form art students can often be seen sitting around the Garden. The University brings a diverse selection of faculties to the Garden; the Biologists come and have complex tours based on evolution and adaptation; the School of Medicine will be using the Garden more in the future with the angle of plant’s role in medicine; the Philosophy students visit each year and have a tour before sitting next to a favoured plant and writing their thoughts. (more…)