It’s colder here in the UK than its been for a number of years, but probably not as cold as the rest of Europe as the so called ‘Beast from the East’ whips across the land. Only last week I was thinking that we’d made it through winter and the only way was spring now; primulas were flowering, blossom buds were swelling and the garden birds were flirting. Now they’re all in a frozen stasis waiting for this period of cold to end, and it will. (more…)
The Garden is open again and we’re all looking forward to seeing visitors back, and they’ll be back in time to catch the optimism of spring throughout the displays. Tulips in the Mediterranean, magnolias in the family beds and ruffled new leaves clambering out of buds and stretching into action. They’ll also see carpets of flowers that we didn’t plant, they were here before the Botanic Garden and maybe before whatever was before the Botanic Garden; they’re Anemone nemerosa otherwise known as wood anemones. (more…)
So much is happening in the exciting world of pollinators at the moment. Even wasps have employed a new public relations team to promote their cause! Their key message is sacrifice a bit of your picnic to save the planet! One of the best news stories this year was that even though Notre Dame suffered that terrible fire, the bees in the three hives on the roof were unharmed.
2019’s Bee and Pollination Festival takes place this weekend (Saturday 31st August and Sunday 1st September_will be the best ever. Now in its tenth year the event has become an important feature in the south west’s horticultural, beekeeping and wildlife calendar. (more…)
