December 2017 was a mixture in terms of weather, with several cold snaps and frosty mornings, as well as some milder spells. Total rainfall was just over 49…
Thursday 18th January sees the Botanical Society of Scotland lecture – The greening of the Arctic with Dr Isla Myers-Smith, University of Edinburgh. Isla Myers-Smith is a global change…
During a family holiday to Santiago, Panama in June/July 2011, we snuck in a short bryologising trip, first heading west along the Pan-American Highway, then north, to the…
In April 2004, I flew north from Illinois to met up with a botanical friend, Dr Zoe Badcock. Our meeting point was Vancouver, British Columbia; from there we…
This Thursday sees the Botanical Society of Scotland Christmas lecture – Wildlife from a wild place: the flora and fauna of Glencoe National Nature Reserve with Dan Watson from National…
To understand giant panda diet you need to understand bamboos and there are many types of bamboos in their habitat. Giant pandas seems to know which is best…
Dear Edinburgh tree data person, I have sent you to this blog page because you have been involved in some correspondence on Twitter about http://contours.org.uk/edtreemap/ You may remember…
It is always a treat to see bright autumn colour, yet occasionally the reverse happens. The colour has drained from the foliage of Viburnum orientale to such an…
Last February, RBGE launched the Wee World of Lichens, a self-guided safari-style exploration of the frequently overlooked but fascinating world of the small. Now that the leaves are…
At the weekend I went to look at the new exhibition on coffee at the John Hope Gateway. The exhibition is borrowed from the Berlin Botanic Garden, but…
The story of Private John Mathieson Brown, who was killed on the 24th November 1917, takes us away from the Western Front in Belgium and France, and focusses…
The bright sunny days we have had are ideal for highlighting the soft shades of grey and silver in the garden. The foliage of Geranium traversii var. elegans,…