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Curator’s September tour
Sternbergia lutea, the autumn daffodil. Join an inspiring special tour of the Garden with the Curator, Nicholas Wray. Enjoy hearing about the new South African Rondaval and the exciting tea garden. Then, experience the secret treasures of the Amazon rainforest in the exotic glasshouses; enjoy enchanting orchids, bromeliads and a magical world of tropical food and medicinal plants. Come rain or shine there will be plenty to see. Tours are an excellent opportunity to hear updates…
Find out more »Plant hunting in Eastern Anatolia – Timothy Walker – Lecture
Timothy joined the staff of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden in 1980 as a trainee gardener and in 1988 became the Horti Praefectus (director), a post that he held for 26 years until July 2014. He now lectures in plant sciences at Somerville College Oxford. In May 2011 he presented a BBC4 series on the history of botany. He has travelled widely in the UK and Europe, and further afield in search of plants. In addition to working in…
Find out more »Seasonal gardening – make the best of your garden in time for autumn
Expect an informal and supportive atmosphere with lots of opportunities to discuss aspects of the garden that are relevant to the coming gardening season. This might range from pruning and propagation to lawn maintenance. You will also be introduced to a range of plants that will make your garden more beautiful every autumn. We will concentrate on the decorative aspects of your garden so we will not cover fruit or vegetable production. The aim is to make every gardening season…
Find out more »Herb talk – tincture making with Chris Roe
Alcohol is a common medium of extraction for making plant medicine, it both extracts and preserves the medicinal properties of plants. Learn about how to make your own medicinal herb tincture for common complaints, from the most simple method to the more complex. Which herbs give themselves well to tinctures? How do they compare to other types of preparation? How do we assess strength and potency? How does the strength of the alcohol affect the final preparation? During the workshop…
Find out more »Propagation workshop
An introduction to the exciting world of propagating plants. The tutor Julie Henderson will guide you through the various methods of creating new plants. You will learn the principles behind plant propagation with a general overview of the basic types of propagation for the home gardener; including seed collecting and sowing, division, layering and the various types of cuttings, including some houseplants. The practical session will focus on what is suitable for the time of year, but the skills you…
Find out more »Herb talk – Physiology of stress with Chris Roe
What do we mean by stress? What are the signs and symptoms of stress? We will discuss the manifestation of stress in the nervous and endocrine systems. How stress effects the heart and blood vessels, digestive function, the liver and pancreas, the immune system and ourselves? What Herbs and Botanics can we use to help guard against stress? What does temperament tell us about our predisposition towards stress? Finally, we shall look at the role of consciousness in stress. How…
Find out more »Drawing in the Glasshouses with Sheena Vallely and Pick Up a Pencil group
A drawing course designed to develop and to satisfy most drawing abilities. Providing a unique drawing source, the glasshouses hold botanical collections from climate zones across the world. The objectives for each class, are to learn and develop new drawing skills as a valuable practice, to surprise and to satisfy as a result of intense study. For experienced and for complete beginners, to share and to encourage dialogue. Individual instruction and guidance on drawing exercises are key elements in every…
Find out more »Herb talk – Back to our senses with Chris Roe
Mostly when we learn about herbs we rely upon information from a book and we think of their medicinal action in terms of biochemistry. But what can we learn about herbs from our own senses? During this workshop we will look at the 5 tastes and how taste can have specific physiologic effects as well as telling us something about its medicinal action. In the past people believed in the doctrine of signatures that a plant conveyed in its form…
Find out more »The role of Botanic Gardens as a positive force to mitigate against climate change and biodiversity loss
The Botanic Garden and the Annals of Botany are delighted to host Dr. Paul Smith, Secretary General of the world’s largest plant conservation network, Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), for this year's Annals of Botany lecture. The mission of BGCI is ‘to mobilize botanic gardens and engage partners in securing plant diversity for the well-being of people and the planet’. Dr Smith has travelled widely, helping to set up botanic gardens and bring people together with a shared interest to…
Find out more »Photography at Twilight workshop with Graham Parish
Sunset and twilight are considered by many photographers to be two of the best times in the day to take pictures. Join Graham Parish and have a look at the reasons why. The first half of the workshop will be in the classroom. We’ll have a look at some twilight images, consider how they were achieved and also consider how we can overcome some of the challenges twilight may present. In the second half we’ll go out and find some…
Find out more »Curator’s tour
Join an inspiring special tour of the Garden with the Curator, Nicholas Wray. Enjoy hearing about the new South African Rondaval and the exciting tea garden. Then, experience the secret treasures of the Amazon rainforest in the exotic glasshouses; enjoy enchanting orchids, bromeliads and a magical world of tropical food and medicinal plants. Come rain or shine there will be plenty to see. Tours are an excellent opportunity to hear updates of the innumerable new developments and also learn about…
Find out more »The orchid hunter: a summer in search of our tresses and twayblades – Leif Bersweden – Lecture
Leif Bersweden has had a lifelong interest in nature, focusing on plants from the age of seven. He grew up in rural Wiltshire where he taught himself how to identify the local flora and now regularly leads plant identification training courses for The Species Recovery Trust. Leif graduated in biology from the University of Oxford and is now a PhD student at Kew Gardens, where his research focuses on orchid genetics. In a world where an interest in botany is…
Find out more »Tropical Terrarium workshop with Loof
Get hands on and learn a new planting skill with Robi from Loof at one of her terrarium workshops! Learn all about the history of terrariums, how to plant one up and the plants you will be working with. You'll be shown you a quick demo before you get stuck in and plant up your own! Robi will be on hand to lend her experience and expertise. You’ll get to walk away with your beautiful creation, knowledge on how to…
Find out more »Mosses and Liverworts – Dr. Jonathan Sleath – Lecture
Dr. Sleath has been an amateur bryologist since 1979 when he joined the British Bryological Society as a schoolboy. He was recorder for bryophytes for Herefordshire until 2018. Bryophytes is the collective term for mosses, hornworts and liverworts, spore-producing, rather than seed-producing, plants without flowers. The British Isles support a rich and geographically diverse flora of bryophytes with more than 1000 native species (four hornworts, 298 liverworts and 767 mosses) currently known. Fifty-nine new species have been discovered in the…
Find out more »Up your photography with Phil Savoie
Join award winning cinematographer Phil Savoie with these two enthralling 50 minute lectures. Phil will share local images, lens science and methods to better your photography. No matter what you shoot, sports, people, nature or astrophotography there will be useful practical tips for everyone beginner to pro. Phil has 40 years experience as a biologist, photographer and filmmaker and has worked with BBC (Planet Earth, Life of Mammals, Deep Jungle, Congo, Wild Africa, Life in the Undergrowth) and National Geographic…
Find out more »Bryophytes and Ferns with Dr Paul L Smith
This is a two-day course to introduce and develop understanding of bryophytes and ferns and to develop skills in their identification. It is aimed at beginners. Students can attend one or both days. This course will open the door to a fascinating group of organisms able to tell us much about the environments in which they are found and how these might be changing. Bryophytes and their distribution patterns can tell us how the environment itself is evolving due to…
Find out more »Plant preparations and herbal pharmacy with Chris Roe
Juleps, oxymels, liniments, emplaisters, syrups, cordials, glycerites, tinctures- there are many diverse ways to make herbal preparations bounded only by your imagination and ingenuity. Spend a day learning about different herbal preparations and how you can easily make them at home for your personal medicine chest or for beautiful hand-made gifts. Chris Roe was trained at the Scottish School of Herbal Medicine and has his own medicinal herb garden in the North of Bristol from which he runs his herbal apothecary.…
Find out more »Christmas wreath making
It’s that time of year again, when you can take some time out and enjoy a minced pie while you create your own Christmas wreath. There will be lots of traditional greenery and seasonal treats from the hedgerow to choose from, so you can make your wreath as wild and natural as you dare. Feel free to bring any of your own items to add a personal and unique touch. There are two workshop dates to choose from; Saturday 7th December and Sunday…
Find out more »Botanical Latin simplified
Have you ever wondered why we use Botanical Latin? Do you struggle with long, unpronounceable plant names? Are you frustrated when your favourite plant’s name changes? Come on a journey of discovery with Julie Henderson, revealing the delights of Latin plant names, and how they help us as gardeners. Looking back to the early Plant Collectors, through the Linnaean classification system, and into the future with fascinating current research; all illustrated using the exciting plant displays within the Botanic Garden,…
Find out more »Planting the Oudolf Gardens at Hauser and Wirth, Bruton, Somerset – Rory Dusoir – Lecture
Rory Dusoir decided to pursue a career in horticulture while studying for a classics degree at Balliol College, Oxford. After graduating, he worked at Great Dixter as assistant head gardener prior to undertaking the prestigious Kew Diploma. He has been head gardener at Howe Mill, Wiltshire and Stud House, a private estate within the grounds of Hampton Court Palace. During these years, he was given some freedom to develop his own distinctive planting style. In 2016, Rory set up the…
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