Historic Buildings and Gardens, Nature and Wildlife

Cambridge University Botanic Garden

Cory Lodge, Bateman Street, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB2 1JF

Tel: 01223 336265

website: www.botanic.cam.ac.uk

Opened in 1846 by Professor John Henslow, Charles Darwin's teacher and mentor, this heritage-listed Botanic Garden displays over 8, 000 plant species, including important collections of species tulips, geraniums, lavenders and fritillaries, as well as the finest arboretum in the East of England.

The landscape has been developed with great horticultural vision in two major phases. The majestic Main Walk of towering evergreens forms the backbone of the superb 19^th century Garden that also boasts the flamboyant Glasshouses of tropical and desert plants, and the Rock Garden, which displays the alpine plants of every continent geographically and affords a wonderful vantage point over the Lake. The Woodland Garden is a stunning mix of mature trees and rich herbaceous underplanting whilst the extraordinary, unique Systematic Beds, designed in 1845, display over 95 families of hardy herbaceous plants.

The 20^th century Garden reflects the horticultural and scientific developments of the time: the British Wild Plants collection is unparalleled; the Dry Garden is an on-going experiment to create a gorgeous garden that can survive the dry Cambridge climate without any watering; the Genetics Garden tells the story of the sweet pea experiments undertaken here by William Bateson in the 1900's which led to the modern science of genetics; the ancestry of the modern rose is unravelled in the Rose Garden and the Winter Garden is an inspirational lesson in achieving colour, beauty and scent in the winter months.

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