Today in the staff conference Simon was asked the number of threatened plants that the RBGE is growing. This is a dynamic figure as plants at the RBGE…
Now well established in the Copse is the evergreen Vinca difformis. Straggly bootlace shoots are sent out over ground at a rate of knots. Occasionally rooting down at…
The simple thalloid liverwort Aneura has become a flagship genus for DNA barcoding at RBGE. Only a single widespread species, Aneura pinguis, is traditionally recognized in the UK,…
1914-1919 The Service Roll is different from the Roll of Honour in that it shows the names & a short statement of service of all members of staff…
We Will Remember Them Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh Roll of Honour, 1914–1919 At the outbreak of war in August 1914 the appeal for H.M. Forces met with ready…
December 2019 at RBGE gave the impression of being somewhat dull and wet although the graphs do not bear this out. Total rainfall was 52.4 mm, most of…
Today we have reached a new landmark with half a million herbarium specimens imaged and freely available online on our herbarium catalogue.
A recently described moss, Sphagnum divinum, the Divine Bog-moss, has been discovered in Britain and Ireland, though the only Scottish site yet found has sadly been lost. Its taxonomic discovery has a long history, starting over 250 years ago with a French explorer in southern South America.
All plants have stories. The Botanics over its 350 years has managed to create many, from intrepid tales of plant hunters to discovering plants new to science. Some…
Much of the work to be done in the garden at this time of year produces quantities of pruning’s and other green resource material. Note the use of…
This unassuming section of trunk was sitting on a desk in the herbarium office after being “discovered” in the back of a carpological cupboard. It arrived in our…
Works on the Temperate Palmhouse to repair the glazing bars and replace broken glass has reached the halfway point. The North and East elevations have been completed and…
It is great to see Dr Santhana Krishnan Ganesan’s revision of the genus Pterospermum has just been published in the Edinburgh Journal of Botany [click here]. Ganesan, from…
Jasminum nudiflorum; the ideal plant to appreciate from the warmth of your home and a pleasure to encounter when garden visiting at this dreich time of year. The…
It will be of no surprise that an attractive plant has been found in this particular genus. One in which has been so highly regarded by the garden,…
2018 ended with temperatures in double figures, not as isolated incidents but repeated daily. Before dusk fell, the bells announcing the ice cream van touting for trade were…
There is always a ‘plant of interest’ for every month of the year growing in the Living Collection at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Kirsty Wilson, Herbaceous Supervisor…
November 2019 was a pretty grim month at RBGE. It was wetter than average, with a total rainfall of 76.6 mm (155% of the long-term average). Most of…
Expedition to Northern Vietnam, October 2019 Participants (UK) Richard Baines: Expedition leader and Curator of Logan Botanic Garden Will Ritchie: Curator of The National Botanic Garden of Wales…
By this time of year all the herbaceous plants have died back and reduced to yellow/brown remnants of their former glory. Take the opportunity to rake any remains…