Category: Garden WildlifePage 5 of 67

Spread hope and joy with #plantrainbow

The rainbow symbol is used to represent peace, hope, joy, inclusion and diversity. During the current public health crisis, created by the Covid-19 virus, it has also come…

Emerging buds and size 10’s

The soil is warming and herbaceous plantings are moving. The buds are thrusting up through the soil, established clumps of Hosta are hedgehog like with the multitude of…

Magnolia sargentiana

Tucked away in the upper woodland garden and easily missed is Magnolia sargentiana. Not as prolific a flowerer as Magnolia ‘Charles Raffill’, the flowers it does produce are…

February 2020 Garden Wildlife Report

February 2020 will be remembered both locally and nationally for its exceptionally high rainfall, for the frequency of stormy weather, and for its lack of sunshine. There were…

Plant an evergreen

Mid-March and the worst of the winter weather should be behind us. Now is an ideal time to plant an evergreen as the desiccating cold winds that are…

Snowdrop division

Have you been impressed with the carpets of Snowdrops seen in gardens open for the Scottish Snowdrop Festival? As the flowers fade, now is the time to lift…

A woodland carpet

Symphytum grandiflorum is to be found as an extensive patch of vegetation covering soil in the upper woodland garden. Neat and compact with an inflorescence of creamy white…

January 2020 Garden Wildlife Report

January 2020 was a dull and rather wet month at RBGE. There were only 46.5 hours of sunshine, about twelve hours less than in December 2019, with the…

Old woody blooms in spring

The majority of Primulas are rosette or clump growing herbaceous plants. Primula marginata differs. Take a look at the plant growing in the trough within the alpine area….

Spring ready

Travelling around Edinburgh the grass has a lushness usually associated with the month of March. Plant growth is advanced for this time of the year. This January has…

Crocus damage

The garden becomes a feeding ground for the Grey Squirrel population as they discover the young shoots of emerging Crocus. The appetite is however for the brown corm…

Sweet Success

Flowers set on bare branches are a delight in winter, but there are also some evergreen plants that flower. They are a great comfort to the soul during…

Plant and grow a hedge

Winter storms and ageing fence posts and panels are not good companions. This is the time to replace your garden fence and what better way than to plant…

White stemmed Rubus

These images are of one of the white stemmed brambles that since leaf fall are now more obvious in the border. The white indumentum over ruddy brown stems…

IUCN Threatened accessions in the RBGE Living Collection as of 20 Jan 2020 (Staff Conference)

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…

A fine ground covering plant

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…

December 2019 Garden Wildlife Report

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…

The untold story of an unassuming Berberis

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…

Compost and the need to nourish the soil

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…

Bright and cheerful

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…