Spring is now in full swing and all of us gardeners are in a flurry of activity preparing the garden for the growing season ahead. With all the growth happening now I don't want to dwell too much over winter hence I'll keep this post short and sweet. Short for a botanical garden visit blog post anyway...
In March we had a long weekend in Copenhagen and naturally we paid their centrally located botanical garden a visit. March is on the cusp of spring already but it still felt wintry when we visited, but at least it was sunny.
As you can imagine winter temperatures are a lot colder there than the UK hence extra efforts are needed to protect some plants. Just look how thick the mulch of their Gunnera is:
But it worked and the Gunnera were already breaking through.
After a quick stroll outside we sought refuge from the cold in the large glasshouse of University of Copenhagen Botanical Garden.
A Victorian era glasshouse, some of the structures inside reminded us of the Palm House of Kew Gardens which was built in the same era too.
The glasshouse is actually divided into different zones, from temperate to tropical. No arid section though as their xerophytes are in a different glasshouse altogether which was closed to the public when we visited. The temperate and tropical areas in this glasshouse were more than enough to entertain us during our visit.
We did spot the odd spiky though, such as this Aloe which I thought was a beauty.
On our way out of the botanical garden we spotted this large swathe of Leucojum vernum...
Spring was just around the corner then. And now it's here!
Mark :-)
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
Now you've got me hankering for some garden travel...
ReplyDeleteAhh same here, all the time!
DeleteAt this time of year photos of winter gardens just make me feel sad, like our summer is almost over already. But big greenhouses with catwalks -- that makes me really happy. I've only ever visited one (in Washington DC) but being able to view the plants from above is so great!
ReplyDeleteIt's just fab! All public greenhouses should have an elevated walkway :)
DeleteIt's amazing how much warmer I felt as soon as that first photo inside the glasshouse appeared. It's an incredible space!
ReplyDeleteIt is Kris. Only thing was it took ages for our camera and eye glasses to adapt to the change of temperature and get rid of the steam!
DeleteThe perfect antidote to a Danish winter.
ReplyDeleteIndeed!
DeleteThe mulch around the gunnera is amazing. I'm still humming and haaing about getting some for here. The bottom of the valley is a bit of a frost pocket..
ReplyDeleteIt never ceases to amaze me to what lengths people in the Victorian age went to in order to bring home plants from exotic locations. These greenhouses are as interesting as the plants they house.
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