A tropical stroll

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In a cold February a walk in a tropical jungle seems awfully appealing. We decided to do one, but there were a few minor difficulties. Probably the most significant issue is that we are not to leave our mission area without official permission. However this minor problem can be circumvented by touring the Royal Botanical Garden greenhouses, about three miles from our flat in Edinburgh.



The gardens have a series of ten greenhouses, which can be toured for a small fee. Each greenhouse represents a different type of terrain. All of them are warm and many are tropically steamy. It was a delightful tour amidst lush foliage.

Here are a bunch of pictures to warm you up vicariously.
Hanging moss


Uncoiling Fern Frond 




Scattered through the richly coloured foliage are a few sculptures like this dragonfly and these glass bubbles.

The colours and textures were startling. Look at these puff-balls, about the size of a tennis ball.

A couple of pictures of us with some amazing plants.


And special mention should be made of this fellow, who plays such an important part in our lives
Yes, that is a cocoa pod, the source of all things chocolate.

We were also charmed by this garden bench. It made me (Richard) itch to get my hands on my woodworking tools and see if we could possibly make something like that for our own garden.



On the way out we stopped to admire a pair of monkey puzzle trees. That skinny little thing and that big lush tree are both the same species.

And just to remind us in the cold weather that warmth will come back to Scotland we found a lovely bed of snow-drops. The dark plant in front of them, by the way, is not dying, but is very healthy purple grass

It was a warm and soothing interlude and a lovely way to spend a couple of hours on a P-day. After that it was back home for lunch and necessary chores.


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