We're thrilled to be hosting Merlin Sheldrake with this lunchtime talk. Thinking about fungi makes the world look different. Most fungi live out of sight, yet make up a massively […]

THIS WORKSHOP HAS BEEN POSTPONED. NEW DATE TBC. This workshop is about the life of a flower and how they grow from bulbs to full bloom! We will learn about […]

  Elisabeth Cooper is a Bristolian, living and working in the Arctic. She is a Professor of Plant Ecology at the Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø, and has many years of field experience far North of the Arctic Circle, both in summer and winter. She will introduce us to the landscapes and vegetation of Norway, […]

The four-day course running during March and April will be linked with themed workshops, covering the different stages of botanical painting. Beginners will be welcome to work with more advanced Students. Sharpen up your pencils to improve your drawing skills, working from observation of different plant specimens. Explore different watercolour techniques used in botanical painting. […]

Dr Miranda Bane: Pollinator Paradise – Pesticide reduction and long-term monitoring in the Channel Islands Dr Miranda Bane is a pollinator ecologist whose varied portfolio of work centres around the interactions between plants, pollinators, and people. With a PhD in pollinator ecology from the University of Bath, Miranda’s research first focused on the dynamics of […]

The National Garden Scheme (NGS) open day returns to the Botanic Garden this year where you can see the Garden in all its summer glory. The NGS has been running since 1927 initially to support district nurses; there are now over 3500 gardens across the country open as part of the scheme which last year raised […]

After a hard day at work, battling with childcare or coping with the normal stresses and strains of everyday life, what could be more relaxing and enjoyable than spending the evening touring the Botanic Garden with an experienced, enthusiastic and knowledgeable garden guide? Come rain or shine there will be plenty to see. Tours are […]

Wheat is a global crop seen in diets around the world in the form of bread, pasta, and noodles. However, production of the crop is threatened by an equally global foliar wheat pathogen called . Where the plant grows so too does the pathogen, causing a disease called Septoria tritici blotch which is characterised by […]

Join Dr Andy Bailey as he talks about his life in molecular mycology, a fascinating world and an expert in his field. He has researched all sorts of aspects of fungal biology, ranging from their development, the diseases they cause to plants and insects, possible use for biological control, managing fungi by chemical methods, fungi as […]

We are once again delighted to hold our annual jazz concert with the Blue Notes and Hannah Wedlock and with additional entertainment from the local ukulele band, South Bristol Ukes who played for us in 2022. All tickets should be purchased in advance. Blue Notes Band perform at the Garden Bring a picnic and drinks […]

Please note this workshop has been moved to Wednesday 2nd of August (previously Wednesday 26th July) Join Sophie Sherwood for this phytogram workshop. Using vitamin C tablets and washing soda, you will learn how to make your very own light sensitive chemistry. This can then be applied on to light sensitive materials such as 35mm […]

This workshop is about the life of a carrot and a beetroot and how they grow from seed to delicious vegetables to eat! We will learn about germination and different parts of the plant (roots, shoots, leaves and stems) and what plants need to live (water, soil and sunshine). The children will be given beetroot […]

A rose moss; Rhodobryum roseum. Image by George Greiff. Join George Greiff from the University's Faculty of Life Sciences as he unveils the wonderful world of bryophytes; plants including mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. These are plant pioneers that have been ever present for 450 million years. George will provide a general overview and talk about […]

The greening of Ascension Island UPDATE: Please note that there is an error in the Autumn 2023 Friends' Newsletter, and this event will take place on Thursday 21st of September, and not the 14th as originally posted. Additionally, it will be held in the Frank Lecture Theatre, not the Tress. The Friends of the University […]

Why are the whitebeams in the Avon Gorge a wonder? Whitebeam, Sorbus avonensis, over the Avon Gorge Just what is it about Bristol’s amazing Avon Gorge that gives us 5 species of whitebeam which grow here and nowhere else in the world? Discover the answers in the Botanical Gardens with curator Nick Wray, and then […]

Join Tom Leonard, aka Daisy Desire the Drag Queen Gardener, someone who brings “the couture to your manure”. Tom Leonard is a trained horticulturist from Warwickshire, who happens to have a passion for drag. After a break up in 2019 he decided to get an allotment, where his love of gardening grew (and so did […]