Mars, by Lucianne Lassalle It's back!  The Easter Sculpture Festival returns for the first time since 2019. The ephemeral sounds of melodious Zen bells chiming on trees, enchanting pond lily ceramics and the mesmerising sight of the potter’s wheel are all features of this year’s Festival. New sculptors include Simon Probyn, Sonya Wilkins and Geoff […]

Join Dr Paul Smith for a one day workshop to introduce the method of plant identification. Identifying an an unfamiliar plant is easier if you know the family to which it belongs. This is a skill that may be learned in the UK and then applied to the flora of any country, anywhere in the […]

Wendy Leocque is a photographic artist and creative facilitator that has worked in variousdarkrooms around Bristol. As a way of introducing newcomers to alternative photographic process, Wendy teaches Lumen Printing, and Cyanotype process.These processes are a perfect fit for gardens, as your art will be created by the shrubs, blooms and leaves around you and […]

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 £3.1 […]

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? Many groups including gardening clubs, schools, and youth and social groups include […]

Blue Notes Band perform at the Garden After the successful return of this popular event in 2021 we are once again delighted to hold our annual jazz concert with the Blue Notes and Hannah Wedlock. This year we have additional entertainment from a local ukulele band, South Bristol Ukes. In 2021, for the safety of […]

The Bee and Pollination Festival returns this year on the earlier weekend of the August bank holiday. This is a great place to learn about the vital role pollinators play in our lives, see demonstrations, exhibits, and talks, buy honey and see the Botanic Garden in all its September finery. Speakers include; Dr Rowena Jenkins […]

This course with senior associate Jenny Brooks Dip.AD, ATC,  covers the different stages of botanical painting through four themed workshops. By the end of the course you will be able to optimise your equipment to improve your drawing skills; work on observation of different plant specimens; explore different watercolour techniques used in botanical painting; and […]

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Travel back in time to discover the origins of an exceptional garden nestled in the ancient landscape of Somerset. The seed of the story germinates in 1690 and grows through the centuries, blossoming in the mid-20th century during the ownership of Penelope Hobhouse, when it was still known as Hadspen, up until the present where the […]

This workshop is about the life of a flower and how they grow from bulbs to full bloom! We will learn about different parts of the plant (roots, shoots, leaves and stems) and what plants need to live, (water, soil and sunshine). The children will be able to choose two bulbs to take home in […]

With over 40 years of experience in retail and production horticulture Andy McIndoe is an author and regular contributor to a variety of magazines, blogs and BBC Radio.  During his long career with Hillier Nurseries he was responsible for the development of the Company’s chain of garden centres and for 25 consecutive Gold Medal winning […]

LECTURE VENUE: ANSON ROOMS., Queens Road, Clifton. This special lecture for the autumn is a collaboration between University of Bristol Student Union and the University of Bristol Botanic Garden. Poppy Okotcha is an ecological home grower, working to inspire reconnection to land and living world. In this talk Poppy will explore the benefits of home […]

Physalis alkekengi in winter An unusual chance to enjoy the Botanic Garden on a winter weekend. Our knowledgeable and enthusiastic guides will take you on a tour of the garden, stopping off at plants of particular winter interest and warming up in our glasshouses. The tours start at 11am and end at 12:30pm. Come rain […]

Adam is a documentary producer with a passion for growing fruit and vegetables and not a year has passed since he was ten when he hasn’t grown something to eat. In the late seventies he ran a small market garden growing organic, unusual vegetables. Trying to sell red Brussels sprouts or yellow courgettes did not […]

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 diverse kingdom of organisms that support and sustain nearly all living systems. Fungi throw our concepts of individuality and even intelligence into question. They can […]

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 different parts of the plant (roots, shoots, leaves and stems) and what plants need to live, (water, soil and sunshine). The children will be able […]

  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, […]