Botanical Gardens

The Botanical Gardens were one of my favorite places in St. Louis, so I was thrilled to discovery the Royal Botanic Garden here in Edinburgh as well. Despite the fact that Joe and I stumbled, quite accidentally, upon the gardens during our first few days in Edinburgh, we did not make it back to have a proper visit until yesterday. The gardens are just a short walk from our flat, so I'm sure we'll make it back again!


The RBG has quite an impressive history: it was originally founded in 1670, moving to it's present location in 1820. With 70 acres of space, the RBG has numerous different gardens and houses. We didn't make it through everything, but did enjoy the parts we saw.

Buds popping out amongst the snow!

A floral scuupture

In addition to the gardens, the main visitor's center houses several exhibitions. Currently, one of the exhibits is the Wych Elm Project, which was really spectacular. Apparently a large Wych Elm tree grew in the gardens until 2003 when it was infected by Dutch Elm disease and subsequently cut down. Rather than chipping and mulching this beloved tree, the RBG invited 25 Scottish artists to create various pieces using the wood, bark, and twigs of this tree. One display now are thepieces they created.

A beautifully carved chair

Beveled bowl

We didn't get pictures of everything, but there were some really cool pieces. One was an awesome yurt There was a bow and arrows, a fishing rod, a bookshelf, a "collector's chair," a mirror, various bowls, and tables. Among my favorites, were several sets of shoes actually made from paper (made from the tree) with twigs and cut wood for the buckles and accents. Another favorite was a harp (see picture below). It is on a pedestal and will soon be placed, outside, in a Wych Elm pavilion, where the wind can play the instrument.

Harp

Sadly, there are not pictures of each item on the web, but you can learn more about the project here. We are definitely looking forward to more visits to the gardens to see it's beauty in the different seasons.