Botanic garden

On the same day that I went to the Grassmarket Vintage Weekend, I had a walk to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. It turned out to be a fantastic time to visit the garden, with so many plants in bloom!

The garden has an amazing collection of rhododendrons (rhododendra?) – it’s been the major centre for rhododendron studies since the late nineteenth century. There are all sizes of plants from little bushes to large trees, and all sizes of flowers and leaves from tiny to huge. And the variety of colours is spectacular! I found out later that there are lots more rhododendron plants in the glasshouses, so that’s something to go back for next year!

The alpine area had just been renovated and re-opened. This includes an amazing rock wall with plants on it, a rockery with a tiny pond, lots of stone planters, and a greenhouse which was full of spring colour.

A new but old addition to the garden is the cottage which has recently been moved from an earlier site of the botanic garden. It’s a lovely building with pale blue-green shutters. Unfortunately I had to leave before it opened that afternoon for an event, so I didn’t get to see inside – but that’s something else for another day.