Author: Kate Townsend

Elephants foot yam ( Arid house)

  Elephant’s foot yam Family: Dioscoreaceae Description Elephant’s foot yam is a spectacular shrubby climber, which grows up to 1.5m high. It has a huge tuber reaching a…

Aloe elgonica ( Arid lands of glasshouses)

Aloe Aloe Elgonica Family:Aloaceae Description A succulent clump-forming perennial that has robust rosettes of brownish green leaves. These leaves are armed with teeth and often have a rose-purple…

Solandra grandiflora ( Chalice flower) temperate walkway in glasshouses

Chalice Flower Solandra grandiflora  Family:Solanaceae  Description: This perennial liana (climbing vine) grows rapidly, reaching up to 30 metres in its natural setting. It climbs up into forest trees…

Coffee (coffea Arabica)

  Coffee Coffea Arabica Family: Rubiaceae Description First introduced to Europe in 1583, the Arabica coffee tree, which grows to nearly 30 feet high, produces a crop of…

Annatto ( lipstick tree) wet tropic glasshouse

Annatto Bixa orellana  Family:Bixaceae  Description The snowy white flowers of Annatto make it an attractive ornamental shrub. The fleshy arils surrounding the seeds produce an orange-red dye, the…

Venus fly trap

Venus flytrap Dionaea muscipula Family:-Droseraceae Description The Venus flytrap is a most remarkable and very recognisable plant. Its leaves are modified in an extraordinary way in order to…

Acacia dealbata (mimosa silver wattle), on the temperate walkway of the glasshouses

Family: Mimosaceae  Description Acacia dealbata is an evergreen tree with noticeably angular shoots and bears true bipinnate filigree effect, blue-green leaves. The highly fragrant pom pom flowers are…

Calliandra ( red powder puff)

Red powder puff (Calliandra haematocephala) Family: Leguminosae Description: This is an evergreen shrub or small tree of 4 to 5 metres, which will grow as wide as it…

The Amazing Victoria Amazonica can be seen in the plants and people house of the glasshouses at the Edinburgh garden

Giant Water Lily Victoria amazonica Family: Nymphaeaceae Description The upper surface has a rather quilted appearance. The purplish-red under surface has a network of ribs, clad in abundant…

Boweia volubiis ( climbing onion plant)

Climbing onion plant Boweia volubiis Family: Asparagaceae Description One of the most peculiar plants in the arid lands glasshouse in flower right now. this bizarre scrambling climber in…

Cocoa Tree

  Family: Malvaceae Description Cocoa is an evergreen tropical tree, usually 5 to 8m tall. The flowers are small, yellowish white to pale pink and grow directly from…