Trees have been used throughout history and up to the present day for a vast array of purposes utilising almost every part of them. Looking at twelve trees as examples, this half-day workshop will explore the lives of trees through a selection of their uses including as materials, to provide food and as sources of medicinal compounds, considering the history of and the science behind these uses. Our interactions with trees can tell us a lot about ourselves and we’ll consider some of the folklore we have attached to them and also their importance to us.
Humphry Repton (1752–1818) ambitiously styled himself Capability Brown’s successor: the century’s next great improver of landed property. Developing a new aesthetic, which he termed ‘Ornamental Gardening’, his landscapes were laced with flowers and crammed with exotic features. Immortalized in Jane Austen’s novel Mansfield Park, Repton turned his hand to everything from ghoulish garden mausoleums to George IV’s seaside palace, Brighton Pavilion.
Half remembered names from childhood lead us back into a lost garden world where Rose of Spain lay next to the Rose of the Indies, Soldiers and Sailors marched through the borders, and Melancholy Gentleman joined with Mourning Widow in the shady nooks. A Ladder to Heaven might rescue you from an Impudent Lawyer or should you put your faith in a Spangled Beau? Join us to explore the origin and identification of these traditional garden flower names and many more, as we celebrate the joy of Summer Sottekins and Steeple Bells!
Right plant, right place… we’ve all heard that before right? But what does it mean and how can we achieve it in our own gardens? Join Paul Herrington for an informal, relaxed morning session. You’ll go away with a greater understanding and appreciation of micro-climates, soil types, plant choices and planting styles. And have a clear framework how to apply all of this to your garden borders whatever their size, and wherever they may be. NB this is a core component of my longer garden design courses.
Many plant-derived compounds have been used as drugs, either in their original or semi-synthetic form, but plants also have an unexpected role to play in drug development. Despite the advances in drug discovery aided by molecular modelling, combinatorial chemistry, and other synthetic chemistry methods, natural product derived compounds are still proving to be an invaluable source of medicines for humans.
Dr Julia Mackenzie, Anglia Ruskin University - pre-recorded talk
The breeding success of blue tits and great tits has been studied for over 15 years in the Cambridge University Botanic Garden by scientists from Anglia Ruskin University. The Garden, being full of trees and plants appears to be a great place to raise a brood of chicks, but all is not as it seems. The parent birds often struggle to find the caterpillar food needed by their nestlings, lay fewer eggs and have fewer young fledge the nest when compared to their woodland counterparts.
Dr Chris Whitewoods, Sainsbury Lab, University of Cambridge
Dr Johannes Kromdijk Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge
Prof David Coomes, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge
The UK’s woodlands store 1.1 billion tonnes of carbon and act as a "net carbon sink" that currently removes 5% of the country’s CO2 emissions from the atmosphere. However, we are one of Europe's least wooded countries and the carbon sink is gradually declining over time. The government's response is to establish over 30,000 hectares of new woodlands per year by 2025, providing a nature-based solution to the climate crisis whilst benefitting biodiversity and human wellbeing.
Crafting materials at the ready – join us in an online craft club as we create nests together using different techniques, and find out from expert Dr Jenny York how different species of birds create their nests. Share your creations with us after the event! We will be using materials you can find at home, recycling materials where possible, to create a nest you could use as an Easter decoration. We will send information about materials and equipment as well as joining instructions when you book.
This event is suitable for ages 8+
