On our sightseeing trip to Edinburgh my mother and I hopped
off the tour bus (we literally hopped) and decided to have a little gander at
the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. The Garden was founded in 1670 as a Physic garden,
adjacent to Holyrood Palace, and was no bigger than a tennis court.
Today, it is a world-renowned center for studying plant
science and horticulture and features over seventy acres of manicured lawns.
(Slightly bigger than a tennis court.) To me, it’s a space showcasing themed
gardens and a magnificent array of trees and plants.
As soon as we entered the center its clear how important
learning is. They have videos and walls telling you all about the history of different
plant species. I particularly loved the glass cabinets filled with samples. It
made me feel like I was in a science lab. It was good to have a mixture of the
science and also the beauty of the nature.
I couldn't possibly show you everything the garden have to offer. In fact I don't even think I saw it all myself. The place is just too big.
I will show you my favourite parts though.
It's got to be the Glasshouses. Even the appearance from the outside had me in complete and utter awe. I must have taken about twenty pictures in one spot.
They are all interlinked and when you go through it's like a different garden in each glasshouse. Well I guess more like different species in each area. It's strange to get used to at first, the changes in temperature as you go from one to the other is very surreal. half of the time I felt like I was an explorer in a tropical rainforest.
It's free to see the gardens, but £5.50 (per adult) to go into the glasshouses. It's definitely worth it as there is just so much to see.
I will show you my favourite parts though.
It's got to be the Glasshouses. Even the appearance from the outside had me in complete and utter awe. I must have taken about twenty pictures in one spot.
They are all interlinked and when you go through it's like a different garden in each glasshouse. Well I guess more like different species in each area. It's strange to get used to at first, the changes in temperature as you go from one to the other is very surreal. half of the time I felt like I was an explorer in a tropical rainforest.
It's free to see the gardens, but £5.50 (per adult) to go into the glasshouses. It's definitely worth it as there is just so much to see.
Before you've even gotten into the main bulk of the tour, you enter and are greeted with an array of huge palm trees. I'm taking mega sized, hitting off the ceiling, spreading far and wide palms. It's a sight to behold. I love the shapes and the way they look against the top of the glasshouse.
This part is free if you just want a quick peek and don't fancy going in any further.
This is the house showing orchids and cycads. I won't go into too much detail about the plants and flowers as they have an abundance of information on their website. Plus if you go yourself you'll learn all about them. I will give you a couple of facts though.
Cycads, (which I don't think you can see on the photos) are an ancient group of plants that where around when the dinosaurs were here. (Mind blown.)
And did you know there are about 20,000 different species of orchid.
I love how overgrown and natural it all looks. It's like an enchanted garden. The tillandsia usneoides (Spanish moss) AKA the lovely wispy-like stuff hanging from the trees is just beautiful. I think I'll refer to it as nature's curtain. It's calming and I can't help but want to rub my greedy fingers over it when I see it.
The Plants and People House was my favourite by far. You know I'm a sucker for water and as soon as I stepped into the (almost) cloying heat and saw the giant lily pads I felt at home.
This was a proper rainforest. There was vegetation surrounding the pond like bananas, rice, sugar and coco. The purpose of the garden is to show how the tropics make a major contribution to the global economy.
Its a gorgeous sight and I'd quite like to try and bounce from lily pads to lily pad as if they were stepping stones. Anyone else?
Another shot of the Glasshouses as we were walking away. I think I may be a bit obsessed. I just can't help it. The architecture is gorgeous and the roof and windows, gosh, don't get me started.
There is literally so much more to see, even just in the glasshouses. Beyond the glass though there's Alpines, Rock Garden's, Herbaceous Borders, and even the Queen Mother's Memorial Garden which featured a little shed covered in shells.
We saw a good few of the garden's, watching the rain hit off the pond whilst standing under a Chinese-style shelter was definitely a highlight. I'd say you'd need to spend a good day here just taking it all in. It's something to be savoured. So if you have the time to spare, do it at a leisurely pace and just enjoy all of the sights and smells.
Who knows you might befriend a little duckling like I did, or go following a squirrel through the trees.
Have any of you been to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh?
