Officially opened by HM The Queen in 1964, the Herbarium and Library was built to house the collection of three million preserved plant specimens held by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, as well as one of the largest botanical library collections and archives in Europe.
The design was overseen by the Ministry of Public Works, with Robert Saddler the lead architect. It is built of reinforced concrete and finished with white terrazzo (a composite of marble chips in a matrix).
Inside, pillars are a key feature of the building, supporting the ever- increasing weight of the growing collection of dried plant material, with 10,000 new specimens added each year. Huge windows with workstations behind them provide light spaces at which to examine specimens, as well as inspirational views across the Garden.
A herbarium is a collection of pressed and dried plants, stuck onto sheets
of card and catalogued, enabling them to be used for research for hundreds of years after they were first added. Today these specimens are used by scientists to understand plant evolution, the impact of climate change, identification of new species, and much more.
Stories from the Biomes: A Change in the Weather
Every day for the last thirty years, rain or shine, Senior Horticulturist Bruce Robertson has climbed up on to the roof of the Temperate Palm House to change the Campbell-Stokes recorder's sunshine card. As the restoration on the Victorian Palm Houses begins, the recorder's solid crystal ball is stored away for safe keeping.
Garden Buildings: Introduction
Building for Nature Buildings have been important to gardens for thousands of years – from the humble wooden shed for potting to magnificent glass palaces in which to...
Inverleith House
Inverleith House was designed by David Henderson in 1773 and built the following year. It stood at the heart of Sir James Rocheid’s estate, which comprised not only...
Caledonian Hall
Built by the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society when this part of the Garden was under their care, the Caledonian Hall is a beautiful example of a Victorian exhibition...
East Gate Lodge
William Henry Playfair was responsible for some of Edinburgh’s grandest buildings, including the Royal Scottish Academy and the National Gallery of Scotland, but the East Gate Lodge is...
The Herbarium
Officially opened by HM The Queen in 1964, the Herbarium and Library was built to house the collection of three million preserved plant specimens held by the Royal...
The Linnaeus Monument
This handsome monument honours the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, who popularised a system of sexual classification of plants in the 18th century. It originally stood in the previous...
Main Glasshouse Range
When built in 1967 the 128 metre long main glasshouse range was regarded as the greatest innovation in glasshouse design in a century. The then Curator of the...
The Temperate Palm House
Completed in 1858, the Temperate Palm House is the tallest traditional Palm House in Britain, with a height of 21.95 metres. Designed by Robert Matheson, the glasshouse cost...
John Saddler
As the second cousin of Robert Saddler the architect of the herbarium and library, I applaud you for the website and the information on the buildings. However it would be good if you spelled his name correctly with two D’s in Saddler.
He was my father’s cousin and they grew up together in Forfar.
I hope you can make this correction.
John Saddler