Friends@ News September 2012

Friends’ News – Issue 90 – September 2012

Friends’News

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Chairs and tables set out in front of theGlasshouse Range were quickly occupied bysome 120 guests enjoying canapés and wineprovided by Swift Catering, who also run ourGarden Café. The Garden seemed to glow inthe golden light, and guests revelled in thechance to walk around the site in the peace ofthe out-of-hours Garden, wandering the MainLawn with glasses in hand, and admiring theflourishing Bee Borders. One friend andvolunteer commented, ‘It was a delight to bein the Garden, which was looking its best, onsuch a wonderful early summer’s evening.’

One of our guests of honour, Meg Brian,recalled how she was persuaded by the thenDirector, Dr Max Walters with his wife Lorna, tostart from scratch the Friends of CambridgeUniversity Botanic Garden during a relaxed teain deck chairs on the lawn at Cory Lodge, thenthe Director’s residence: ‘The first step was tohand deliver letters to all those holding

‘Sunday keys’ to invite them to be involved. Asit happened, over 250 people joined theFriends even before the ‘inaugural meeting’when the committee was formed. As the mainpurpose of the Friends was both to raisemoney (in the first instance for the GilmourBuilding) and to give help to staff, willingvolunteers were also enlisted for training asGarden Guides.’ Meg noted that some of themost memorable money-raisers were ‘threeconcerts held in the central Tropical House justafter it was rebuilt in 1987 but before theplants went in. And when the GilmourBuilding opened in 1989, the Friends wereresponsible for equipping and organising theShop and the kitchen, and began the servingof refreshments. Thus the Friends were helpfulright from the start’.

Dr Tim Upson, Curator and Acting Director,made a short speech thanking the Friends forall their support over the last thirty years in

many areas of activity from running the firstshop to guiding, volunteering and of coursesupporting the Garden financially. The 1840Wind Quartet provided a gently jazzy musicalbackground to the hum of conversation,ensuring that new and long-standing Friendsalike enjoyed a mellow and memorableevening’s celebration. May there be manymore such celebrations to come.

Heidi Bradshaw, Outreach Assistant

Friends of CUBG celebrate 30 years

Guests gathered in front of the Glasshouse Range

Dr Tim Upson thanks the Friends for thesupport over the last 30 years

Julie

tDay

Your chief memory of summer 2012 may be of summer events cancelled due to torrential rain, but here at theGarden on the 24th May, we knew nothing of the deluges to come, and Friends attending our 30th anniversaryparty relaxed outside in warm evening sunshine. As one of our Friends and valued volunteers said,‘The weather was perfect for an evening spent outdoors in a stunning setting, made even more special by the ensuingdisappointing summer where these opportunities were few and far between’.

Apply for your tickets nowto the Friends’Annual Lecture:

Thinking like a vegetable –how plants decide what to do.Given by Professor Ottoline Leyser,Associate Director at the SainsburyLaboratory Cambridge University in theSainsbury Laboratory Lecture Theatreon Thursday 8 November, doors openfrom 7pm.

Please see the enclosed booking formfor details.

Julie

tDay


Welcome

As Friends’ News goes to press, so does thenew, fully revised Guide to the CambridgeUniversity Botanic Garden. Beautifullyillustrated throughout, this gorgeouspublication gives an overview of our work, abrief history and descriptions of all of themajor plantings and gardens. We have also

included for the first time a profile of the treecollection and picked out some of our mostnotable and ‘champion’ trees for write-ups,plotted onto a new map. The Guide should beavailable from the ticket offices and Shop fromthe end of October, retailing at £3.95, but until24 December 2012 we are pleased to offer The

Guide at the ticketoffices for £3.50 to allFriends of CUBG onpresentation of avalid card. One forthe Christmas list?

Gillian Toynbee-Clarke 1927-2012

In the May Friends’ News I commented onhow the weather had been dominating thegardening season. At the time this was inlight of low winter rainfall and a dry earlyspring, making us fearful of anotherprolonged drought. How wrong this provedwith a record-breaking period of wetweather following, which has affected bothflowering and crop yields, as any vegetablegrower will know. Rarely, though, have weseen the lawns look so green and verdant inmid-summer and certainly the trees haveput on good growth after the stress ofseveral dry years and prolonged droughts.There never seems to be a ‘normal’gardening year these days.

The weather however has not diminishedthe verve of several different annual flowermeadows sown to provide a bright splash ofcolour and celebrate some of the key 2012events, including a patriotic mix of red,white and blue to mark the Queen’s

Diamond Jubilee, and a field of gold to wishour Team GB athletes luck at London 2012.In a time of financial uncertainty we arepleased that we have been able to continueto recruit staff to fill both vacancies and newpositions, although it has occupied much ofour time and will continue to do so throughthis year. We were sad to say goodbye toMartine Gregory-Jones our deputyadministrator and wish her well in anexciting new job. We welcome AlexSummers, a previous Cambridgehorticultural trainee and winner of theYoung Horticulturist of the Year, s the newGlasshouse Supervisor after a one-yearinternship at Longwood Gardens, USA.Congratulations to Simon Wallis who movedearlier this summer from assistant in theSystematics to the Alpine and Woodlandsection. We are currently recruiting areplacement in the Systematic section andalso to the Experimental section, which willtake the horticultural team back to full

strength. Felicity Plent has rejoined theeducation team whilst we recruit a newhead of education. Sadly Judy Fox plans toretire from the education team towards theend of the year and so we will also belooking to refill this post. You will also noticenew faces in the ticket offices: Clare Hall,Alicia Lloyd, Jacqui Riley and Hannah Winterjoin our visitor services team, but we saidgoodbye to Tom Arnold. September is alsothe time we say goodbye to our currenthorticultural trainees and welcome the newcohort for the coming year. More recentlyJane Adams joined the staff as PA to me andultimately to the incoming Director. Ofcourse this has been the main vacancywaiting to be filled, and the Directorshipwas advertised over the summer, with theshortlisted candidates due to beinterviewed in September.

Dr Tim Upson, Curator and Acting Director

Gillian Toynbee-Clarke, known as Jill, wasone of the Garden’s great supportersand champions.

After finishing at Grantham Secondary (nowKesteven and Grantham Girls’ School), whereshe described her contemporary, MargaretThatcher, (neé Roberts), as ‘a very bossyheadgirl’, Jill went on to study horticulture atMidland Agricultural College in Leicestershire,before coming to the Botanic Garden as ahorticultural trainee in 1947-48.

With horticulture firmly in the blood anddeciding to stay in Cambridge, Jill joined thePlant Breeding Institute in Trumpington. Herlong career saw her author individually and incollaboration with colleagues, many researchpapers, particularly on the pollinationmechanisms of field beans, Vicia faba, and ondisease resistance in red clover, Trifoliumpratense, for the Journal of AgriculturalScience. Her contributions, as a femalehorticultural scientist at this time, are notable.

Upon retirement from the PBI, Jill became acommitted member of the Friends ofCambridge University Botanic Garden,including serving as its Chairman. Together

with Frances Haywood, sheestablished and ran the firstBotanic Garden Shop in theGilmour Building for 13 years, withthe help of the many volunteerFriends. Jill also used her expertplant knowledge to producemonthly lists of plants of interest for ourvisitors, the forerunner of the Friends e-newstoday, and these were edited into thebeautifully-produced Plants of Interest,published in 1999. Jill was also a Guide of theBotanic Garden, and entertained and informedmany visiting groups with her tours aroundthe Garden. She was also a devoted memberof the Cambridge University Botanic GardenAssociation for current and former membersof staff. It is wonderful to note that Jillattended both the Friends’ 30th Anniversarydrinks and the 60th Anniversary of CUBGAin May this year, and was in good heart atboth celebrations.

Jill made many significant donations to theGarden in her lifetime, including to theLimestone Rock Garden 50th AnniversaryFund, and a major Gift in Memory to honourFrances Haywood, which helped us extend theMagnoliaceae plantings. We are deeply

grateful to report that Jill has also chosen toremember the Garden in her Will with a verygenerous legacy.

Outside the Botanic Garden, Jill enjoyed ahuge range of activities and interests. She wasan active member of two NADFAS groups, theCambridge Antiques Society, the Wine Societyand she is remembered as playing a ‘wicked’game of bridge. She was incrediblyknowledgeable on and a great collector ofceramics and 18th century glass, and oftengave talks on these subjects. At home onAlmoners’ Avenue, Jill created a beautifulgarden and the copious bounty from thevegetable plot was shared across theneighbourhood. She also loved her holidays,her favourite spot being Southwold. Therewere no rules when on holiday there with Jillsave one: guests must always presentthemselves at the beach hut at 12 noon sharpfor a Martini.

NEW! The Guide to Cambridge University Botanic Garden

Jill (fourth from left) at the CUBGA 60th anniversary

Credit


Here in the education department we are solucky to have the beautiful surroundings ofthis Garden to inspire us while planning thecourse and workshops programme for theyear ahead - often the most tricky aspect iswhittling down the choice! The 2013What’s On brochure will offer over 50 coursesincluding beginner botany, plant photographyand garden writing, wood block printing,knitting flowers and Tudor garden history. Allsitting alongside our well establishedbotanical illustration, gardening and plantidentification courses.

High on our agenda for 2013 is to get you allgardening and looking closely at plants in thecompany of our great team of horticulturalists.This year we want to share their knowledgeand expertise with you a bit more. So if youadmired our annual flower meadows, join usfor the day and learn how to create your ownat home, or perhaps how to grow cut flowers?A new highlight will be a Learn to Gardenweekend course, run by our Head of

Horticulture, Sally Petitt – the perfectintroduction to gardening. We’re alsodelighted to welcome some new tutors:garden designer and author, Dawn Isaac, offersFamily Garden Design Clinic while journalistJackie Bennett’s one day course will focus onCreating Wildlife Gardens. We will also beincluding an Ask the Gardeners session inMay’s Celebration of Plants event – so pop inwith those mystery plants and burninghorticultural questions and tap into the font ofknowledge that we are lucky enough to haveat our fingertips everyday.

We’re delighted to welcome back Pete Murray,RHS gold winning photographer, to run aseries of one-day courses for SLR and compactcameras with a focus on creative plantphotography. There are introductory andintermediate courses so you can progress fromone course to the next or jump in at your ownlevel. As ever if you are not sure which courseis right for you please give us a ring to talk itover with us.

Firm favourites remain, this year including aseries of one-day courses on painting trees inwater colour, four basketry courses with therecently honoured Mary Butcher OBE and aseries of plant identification workshops,including our renowned week-long FloweringPlant Systematics course.

If you’ve never attended a course here at theGarden, I hope that 2013 will be the year youtry one (and, while I really don’t want tomention Christmas this early, a course makes athoughtful gift!) And if you have a burningdesire to see a course here that isn’t on ourprogramme, please let me know so I can startour ideas file for 2014!

The full 2013 What’s On brochure will beavailable from the ticket offices in November.

Felicity Plent, Education Officer

Many will miss a small tree perched on thesouthern edge of the Humphrey Gilbert-Carterarea, peeking up above the Forsythiacollection with the leaning trunks of an oldJudas tree, Cercis siliquastrum, below. Thesharp-eyed might notice the distinctivebronze-coloured new growth when it flushesin spring. I look every year just to check on theoff chance there may at last be some flowerbuds as this is a tree described as being ‘one ofthe most strikingly beautiful trees of theChinese forests’. The tree is Emmenopteryshenryi (I fear it has no common name!), whichbelongs to the coffee family, Rubiaceae. TheRubiaceae is a large family which is morediverse in warmer climates than in our owntemperate conditions, and best known to us inthe UK not as trees but the herbaceousbedstraws (Galium spp.) including the scourgeof many gardens, Galium aparine commonlyknown as cleavers or goose grass. The tree wasintroduced to cultivation in the UK by thefamous plant hunter Ernest Wilson in 1907 and

named in honour of the Irish plant hunter,Augustine Henry who first found the tree incentral China in 1887.

This year patience has been rewarded and as Iwrite in mid August the tree boasts a goodnumber of flower buds, which will developinto relatively large white flowers and stilllarger bracts borne on the crown of the tree.Not only is this tree rare in cultivation, but itflowers even more rarely. The first recordedflowering was at Wakehurst Place in Sussex in1987 but they had to wait for a further 23years before it flowered again in 2010. It alsoflowered at Borde Hill, again in Sussex in thesame year and spectacularly at KalmhoutArboretum in Belgium in 2009.

Why this year? Well there is no clearexplanation. Many including myself hadfigured the tree needed a combination of coldfreezing winters and hot dry summers toinduce flowering so it appears even

extraordinary that it should flower now,following a cold and wet summer. Sosometime this month, we shall be treated to avery rare and spectacular flowering and oneunlikely to be repeated in the near future. I dohope this copy of Friends’ News arrives in timefor you to come and enjoy this special event.

Dr Tim Upson, Curator & Acting Director

Flowering firsts: Emmenopterys henryi

Shh… SNEAK PREVIEW: courses, workshopsand events coming up at the Garden in 2013

The Sainsbury Laboratory CambridgeUniversity, situated in the heart of the Gardenhas been nominated to the shortlist of sixbuildings in contention for this year’s StirlingPrize 2012. The Royal Institute of BritishArchitects' Stirling Prize is now in its 17th yearand celebrates the best of new British

architecture. The Stirling Prize judges praisedthe Sainsbury Laboratory for its “stimulatingworking environment” designed to attractworld-class scientists.

The winner will be announcedin Manchester in October.

Dryas bycourse tutor,Pete Murray

Emmenopterys henryi

Sainsbury Laboratory nominatedfor highest architectural accolade


Flying the flag with flowersThis year we have been experimenting with several differentannual meadow mixes, with spectacular results.

Pot marigold in the Field of Gold mix

The red of Shirley poppy, blue of cornflower and purple tansy with a smattering of white baby's breath create a patriotic palettefor the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Inset: Purple tansy is a favourite nectar source for bees.

We wanted to make the most of sometemporary opportunities afforded by thecompletion of the de-commissioning oftemporary structures associated with theSainsbury Laboratory build. As the haulroad was removed, the temporary caféfacility deconstructed, and the researchplots returned after housing a temporarymachinery barn and other horticulturalfacilities, areas of bare earth were revealed.Before permanently planting these areas,what better than to use these blankcanvases to fly the flag in flowers to marksome of the exceptional celebrationsof 2012.

Along the elegant new curving path thatleads through the research plots from theAutumn Garden and Station Road ticketoffice, we elected for a 2.5 metre wide stripeach side sown with a patriotic mix of red,white and blue to mark the Queen’s

Diamond Jubilee year. The seed was mixedwith sharp sand and broadcast sown toensure an even distribution and nearlymade it into full Union flag colours in timefor the Jubilee bank holiday. The visualeffect of red, white and blue sweepinground the bend has been superb, andvisitors have really enjoyed walking rightthrough this Jubilee meadow. It has alsobeen absolutely buzzing with bees and amyriad other insects.

To celebrate the London 2012 Olympics, wealso sowed a field of gold up at Station roadto wish the Team GB athletes luck. And, as ifresponding to the tremendous haul of goldmedals on ‘super Saturday, the meadowwas at its peak for the final week andclosing ceremony. The mix selected was thesame as that developed especially for thelandscaping of the Olympic Park byProfessors James Hitchmough and Nigel


Dunnett of the University of Sheffield andretailed through Pictorial Meadows Ltd.And, like the athletes’ village, the meadowmix had a cosmopolitan make-up:marigolds from South America; goldentickseed and Californian poppy, both fromNorth America; corn marigold from theMediterranean; Cape marigold from SouthAfrica, and contrasting blue cornflower, arare annual native to the Mediterraneanand also found in the UK. Our onlyunintended but very effective addition tothe mix were hundreds of sunflowers, selfsown from the last year’s displays, whichcame up through the golden meadow –much like Team GB!

On the eastern side of Cory Lodge, aparabola of bare earth backed by greenyew hedges provided another opportunityto splash some wildflower exuberance andcolour. Here, a classic wildflower mix has

been chosen for a balance of colour andlong season of interest, beginning with red,white and blue and turning red and gold inthe autumn. Major components includeShirley poppy, cornflower, baby’s breath,fairy toadflax and purple tansy. We thinkthat the varying heights and compositionof the mix are due to differing soilconditions across the site – as thetemporary café was removed, the voidswere filled with rich topsoil accounting forthe patchwork of different soil fertilities.With the old café tables creating a newpicnic area here, it has been a wonderfulspot to sit at through the summer, and wewere very pleased to host the BatemanStreet Residents Association here for theirJubilee celebrations.

We are currently planning future meadowsand will certainly retain the one on front ofCory Lodge, whether this be another

annual mix or sown with a longer termperennial meadow next year. Permanentplantings are on the autumn and winterwork plan for Station Road gate and acrossthe research plots.

Juliet Day, Development Officer andDr Tim Upson, Curator & Acting Director.

Corn marigold in the Field of Gold

Self-seeded sunflowers added to theField of Gold at Station Road.

The Cory Lodge parabola began rainbow-coloured beforeturning plum and gold in late summer.

Meadow mixes seed lists

Field of GoldCalendula officinalis Pot marigold

Centaurea cyanus CornNower

Coreopsis tinctoria Tickseed

Dimorphotheca sinuata Cape marigold

Eschscholzia californica Californian poppy

Glebionis coronaria Corn daisy

Glebionis segetum Corn marigold

Tagetes sp Marigold

Jubilee MeadowAmmi majus Bishop’s Nower

Atriplex hortensis Red orach


Consolida ajacis Larkspur

Cosmos bipinnatus Cosmos

Gypsophila elegans Baby’s breath

Papaver rhoeas cultivar group Shirley poppy

Phacelia tanacetifolia Purple tansy

Cory Lodge parabolaAmmi majus Bishop’s Nower

Atriplex hortensis Red orach


Consolida ajacis Larkspur

Cosmos bipinnatus Cosmos

Gypsophila elegans Baby’s breath

Linum grandiflorum Red Nax

Linum maroccana Fairy toadNax

Papaver rhoeas cultivar group Shirley poppy

Phacelia tanacetifolia Purple tansy

Rudbeckia hirta Annual black-eyed Susan


The Landscape andMachinery sectioncomprises me andan assistant, AlistairCochrane, with theuse of a trainee twodays a week. Our firstline of responsibility

is for all the grass areas in the Garden, bothformal and informal lawns, but we are alsoresponsible for any landscaping requirements.Past projects have been the re- landscaping ofthe Bog Garden, Dry Garden and Schools’Garden. We are also responsible for the repairand maintenance of over 40 machines, andthe running of the Garden’s yard and compost

areas. This all makes a varied and enjoyable job– you never know what's coming next!

From an early age I have been involved inhorticulture, helping my grandparents whowere keen growers of show chrysanthemums,for which they won many prizes at the localshows in the1970s-1980s, and pottering abouton their three allotments. On leaving school Iinitially thought to follow my father into thebuilding trade, but was wisely discouraged as aproperty slump was looming. Instead I headedfor the landscape industry, before two yearslater joining the gardens team at FitzwilliamCollege, Cambridge University. During thistime I was involved in the

re- landscaping of Tree Court, Grove andWilson court developments, before beingposted to the Sports Ground to providetemporary cover for the Groundsman. Thislasted nearly two years and gave me thechance to learn my skills on grassmanagement and got to work with anythingmechanical – lawnmowers, old cars, bikes, thelot – all of which I greatly enjoyed. Uponreturning to the gardens team, I soon realised Iwanted to pursue a career with grassmanagement, so it was perfect when this jobat the Botanic Garden was advertised, and tomy surprise and delight, I got it! It is not thatoften that a job comes along that contains allthe things that you love.

Horticulture

� The spectacular flowering of the jade vine,Strongylodon macrobotrys, in March wasfollowed by an equally spectacular crop offruits. We usually set one or two by handpollination, but this year around 45enormous fruits were produced, resemblingan outsize mango. We thought that perhapsit was mice running up the jade vine to getat the nectar-filled flowers that had becomeunwitting pollinators (in the absence of thebats that do the job in the vine’s nativePhilippines). But, it turned out to be one ofour trainees, who had developed the knackof pollinating the flowers early eachmorning! It was Jane Adams’ first job as PAto the posts of Director and Curator to sendout the fruits in jiffy bags to colleagues atthe Eden Project, Bristol Botanic Garden andGlasnevin in Ireland! The seeds have to besown fresh in long pots, and germinateeasily in a warm propagator.

� By the end of August, with the hugethunderstorm of 25 August contributing49.4mm, the rainfall total had reached550.5mm, well surpassing the 2011 rainfalltotal of 380.4mm. Remembering the harsh-13.5ºC frost of 13 February, we have beennoting some interesting phenomena in thisyear of extraordinary weather. The whitemulberry, Morus alba, and the exoticChinese tree, Toona sinensis, barely leafedup, but there are now late signs of life. Thestands of bamboo that line the StreamGarden were scorched hard in the frost and

we have cut them right down to theground to regenerate. The beautiful myrtle,Myrtus luma, in the Glasshouse Bays wastotally defoliated, but is just now producingnew shoots, whereas the autumn-floweringcherry, Prunus subhirtella, in the WinterGarden has not made it through. TheKentucky yellowwood, Cladrastris kentukea,which has flowered spectacularly with usfor the last two years has not a bud on it,and yet, the Emmenopterys henryi is aboutto flower (see news pages) for the first timeever with us.

� In late July, the Pinus nigra subsp. salzmanii,one of the pair of black pines on the MainWalk, lost a large lateral limb in a case ofsummer branch drop, a poorly understoodphenomenon whereby major branches fallunexpectedly. It is associated with certainsummer weather conditions, either heavyrainfall following a period of drought or onhot and calm summer days, as experiencedin the last week of July. The damage wasmade good by the Trees & Shrubs team, andother branches removed to rebalance thetree and ensure its longevity. The didacticstrength of the clear differences in formbetween the two pines has been somewhatdiminished, but nevertheless, the Pinusnigra subsp. salzmanii from Spain does stillhave a more open and spreading canopycompared to the downward-slopingbranches of the Pinus nigra subsp. nigra,opposite, from snowy Austria. This pairingby the Garden’s founder, Professor JohnHenslow, shows the extremes of variationacross a distribution range within species.

� Five new tree ferns, Dicksonia antarctica,have been installed into the green groverecently developed at the eastern end ofthe Glasshouse Range to extend the LifeBefore Flowers display. Arriving asunpromising chunky lengths of trunk, theywere upended and planted just deeplyenough to stay stable. The Demonstration& Display team have been pouring a gallonof water a day straight into the crown toencourage the fronds to quickly stretch outand unfurl – you can practically watchthem extending!

� The Grass Maze, grown from the NewZealand bunch grass, Anemanthelelessoniana, was re-opened just in time forthe school holidays, with the designchanged from a labyrinth to a double spiral.This has gained us an entrance, plus wehave chosen to mulch the paths with barkchip. Both amends, we hope, will improvethe durability of this very inviting racetrack,perennially popular with children.

The geranium picture included in Clippings & Cuttings,May 2012, was incorrectly identified as Geraniumphaeum. It should have been captioned Geraniumreflexum, a closely related species.

Clippings and cuttings

Who’sWho in the Garden: Adrian Holmes Landscape & Machinery Supervisor


Following on from the success of lastsummer’s book The Magic Brick Tree, a groupof young carers from Centre 33 returned thissummer to participate in another workshopunder the Community Arts Programme,funded through the Percent for Art levy on theSainsbury Laboratory. The workshops took thetheme of nonsense botany, in celebration ofthe bicentenary of the birth of Edward Lear,and were led by storyteller Marion Leeper andartist Alex Hirtzel.

Edward Lear is perhaps most famous for TheOwl and the Pussycat. However, he was also atalented landscape painter, cartoonist, travelwriter and zoological illustrator. Amongst hismany works is Nonsense Botany, written in1870 to delight readers with illustrations ofProfessor Bosh’s botanical discoveries in theValley of Verrikwier, near the Lake of Oddgrow.These beautifully bizarre pen and inkillustrations of fictitious plants became thestarting point for the summer workshops.

On the first day, the children found out a littlebit about Edward Lear, his difficult childhood

and how he liked to draw, make up words andwrite poetry. After looking at his bizarreillustrations of plants such as Armchairiacomfortabilis, Manypeeplia upsidownia andPiggiwiggia pyramidalis, the children set outto find plants that resembled everyday objectsand everyday objects that resembled plants.They also discovered some real life curiositiesamongst the carnivorous plants, and agreedthat nature could definitely be stranger thanfiction when they heard the story of thepitcher plant, Nepenthes species, from Borneothat have evolved to be ‘shrew loos’.

Through the week, the children enjoyeddrawing, creating stories, book making,painting, printing, paper marbling, poetry andsimply being out in the Garden. By the end ofthe workshops, each child had created a greatbig concertina book containing collages oftheir own work, found images, shared poemsand shared prints. Once all final touches hadbeen made, the week was finished off with acelebratory picnic on the Main Lawn.

Dr Sally Lee, Education Officer

We have been very busy in the Schools’Garden this year. New gravel pathwaysbetween the growing beds make accessmuch easier, and new raised beds, seating anda pergola are in place. This has been achievedwith enormous help from some dedicatedhorticultural staff, keen School’s Gardenvolunteers and parent helpers.

A new group of school children from St.Alban’s RC Primary School have worked herethis year, as well as the Gardening Club. Half ofthe Year 4 class has visited the Garden withtheir teacher, Miss Montague, on alternateweeks so that everyone did every task –digging, sowing, planting, weeding. The plothas been bursting with colour and somehealthy looking vegetables, presided over bysome handsome scarecrows made by thechildren to help keep birds and squirrels offthe crops. St. Paul’s Year 5 and 6 classes alsobuilt insect hotels for the Schools’ Garden –they will come back to inspect for residents inthe autumn!

Simon Wallis and Alistair Cochrane of thehorticultural staff have taken on responsibilityfor maintenance of the Schools’ Garden,supplied expertise and advice, plus the eye-catching flowers for the hedge bed. A hugethank you to them both.

Dr Judy Fox, Education Officer

Education

First SaturdayFamily FunNo need to book, just drop-in anytimebetween 11am – 3pm on the firstSaturday of every month for plant-inspired fun. £2 per child, plus normalGarden admission for accompanyingadults. Locations change, so do checkdetails at the ticket office on arrival.

Autumn ColoursSaturday 6 OctoberHave fun collecting fallen treasures in theGarden and use these as inspiration tocreate colourful autumn artworks.

Perfect PumpkinSaturday 3 NovemberCreate your own squashy pumpkin usingfelt or fake fur fabric, a plastic shoppingbag as 'stuffing and a twig for a stalk.

Christmas DecorationsSaturday 1 DecemberCome and make some pine cone fairiesand twiggy stars, to decorate yourChristmas tree at home.

Flat-packed NestsSaturday 5 January 2013Build your very own flat-pack nestbundles, and then watch as the birds pickup materials to make their new homes.

For the half-termholiday….Dance a storyTuesday 30 and Wednesday 31 October,11am-12pm or 2pm-3pmUsing the Garden and plants as inspirationfor your characters and movements, learnhow to tell a story with dance.£5 per child per session, pre-bookingessential on 01223 331875

Nonsense in the Garden PoemFurry and soft, the zebra plant lurks

In the shadows of the African bush,

Smelling of hot sunset and dead grass.

Black and white caterpillars and stripypoisonous snails

Suck moisture from the funnelsof its leaves,

Blown by the wind it rustles,grumbles, jiggles

Tiny zebras fall from the seedhead,

Sweet as mint humbugs.

Nothing else like it in the world.

Schools’Garden developments

We enjoyed a rare, beautiful, hot summerevening back in May when we celebrated theFriends 30th anniversary with a party on themain lawn. Thank you to those whosupported us at this event where we enjoyeddrinks, canapés, music and good company.

Once again the Friends summer outings wereenjoyed by many Friends and their guests.This year we explored Hidcote & Kiftsgate,Cottesbrooke Hall Gardens and Plant FindersFair, Kelmarsh Hall & Coton Manor and MarksHall & Beth Chatto Gardens. ElizabethRushden and Jenny Leggatt organised allthese trips for which we are very grateful.There has been wonderful feedback fromthose who participated and everyone isalready looking forward to next summer’sprogramme.

The Volunteer Committee continue to workhard putting together a programme oflectures, tours and events for Friends, as wellas concentrating on the requirements of ourvolunteers in the education department andour garden guides. I would like to thankElizabeth, Jenny, Richard Price and PamNewman for their dedicated work on yourbehalf during 2012. We must also thank theteam of nine volunteers who give their time

to stuff over 3,500 newsletters andaccompanying forms into envelopes threetimes a year.

Replacement cards, a quick reminder - whilstwe do not currently charge for replacing lostor stolen membership cards there is a costburden each time this occurs and we wouldbe grateful if Friends would consider makinga donation towards the replacement cost. Asa charity, the Botanic Garden is reliant onyour support. Thank you.

I do hope to see lots of you at the AnnualLecture this November. It is a great privilegeto be able to hold it in the SainsburyLaboratory Lecture Theatre, and we aredelighted that Associate Director of SLCU,Professor Ottoline Leyser, will be asking us to‘think like a vegetable’ – see the details right,and return your booking form as soon aspossible!

With very best wishes,

Emma Daintrey – Outreach Administrator01223 [email protected]

Friends’Events


Dear Friend

The Botanic Garden Shop will take on a WinterWoodland theme for Christmas this year andwill be a treasure trove of beautiful gifts in allprice ranges, from little wooden wildlifedecorations to berry garlands. The BotanicGarden Shop will be offering Friends of theBotanic Garden a 10% discount from1 November – 24 December, so don’t forgetyour card!

The Garden Café now has a brand new websitewhere you can peruse the menus and specials,and to keep up-to-date with the latest, you cannow follow them on Twitter and Facebook. Youcan even pre-book the best spot in the house,the Gilmour Table, for a special celebration ormeeting. Plus, the Garden Café now offers freeWi-Fi – just collect the password from thecounter with your coffee!

From 26 November – 22 December, the GardenCafé will again be offering a special seasonalmenu and tables can be pre-booked forChristmas lunches. Mouth-watering highlightsinclude spiced hot fruit punch on arrival,prosciutto-wrapped crostini with Garden Cafespinach pesto and fresh figs, roasted fennel andtangerine salad with almonds. Roasted leg ofchicken with a fresh plum and chilli sauce andbrussel sprout rosti, and salmon fillet servedwith a watercress and chestnut potato cake areamong the main course selections. And theicing on the Christmas cake – the delectable,utterly delicious sharing boards of panettone,figs, mince pies and more will be making awelcome return.

For more, visitwww.thegardencafecambridge.co.ukand see the special insert enclosedin this Friends’News.

A booking form with full descriptions,details, times and prices is enclosed.All places are allocated on a first-come,first-served basis. To book a place,please complete and return theenclosed booking form. Please take careto note the new cancellation and refundpolicy outlined on the booking form.

Trees for small/medium gardensThursday 25 and Sunday28 October, 10.30amThis new tour focuses on the treesamongst the Garden’s superbcollections that could be of interestto your own garden, at just the righttime of year to get out plant them! Wewill of course make the most of theautumn fruit and colour. Tours end atthe Café for coffee and cake.

Annual Lecture:Thinking like a vegetable –how plants decide what to doThursday 8 November, doors open from7pm. Sainsbury Laboratory LectureTheatre.Professor Ottoline Leyser FRS,Associate Director of the SainsburyLaboratory Cambridge University givesthis year’s Annual Lecture looking athow plants continuously monitor theirenvironment and adjust their growthand development accordingly, forexample balancing growth betweenthe root and shoot in response tonutrient availability.

Gardens of CornwallResidential trip, 19-24 May 2013Think of Cornwall and you think oflarge and famous gardens; ambitiousrestoration projects and the hi-techbiomes of Eden. Yet tucked away downthe green lanes, hidden behind thehigh hedges, are a multitude of lesswell-known gardens, worthy of a closerlook. This exclusive tour uncoverssome of the hidden gems of Cornwallincluding Burncoose Nursery andwoodland garden and the gardens ofHomefield, Bonython, Trewidden,Trengwainton, Trebah, Lamorran,Minack Theatre and Trelissick, as well asa ferry trip from Trelissick to St Mawes.There is great variety among thesegardens, in style, content and size.

Accommodation throughout is at the4-star Royal Duchy Hotel, Falmouth.You will find full itinerary details on theenclosed registration form which mustbe returned to Emma Daintrey in theOutreach Office at the Botanic Gardenby 1 November please.

Christmas at the Shop and Café

Documents

Friends@ News September 2012