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April
The Origins and Evolution of Plants
A series of 10 weekly Wednesday evening talks to help answer the question we all want the answer to! This is a group of 10 Wednesday evenin A series of 10 weekly Wednesday evening talks to help answer the question we all want the answer to! This is a group of 10 Wednesday eveningA series of 10 weekly Wednesday evening talks to help answer the question we all want the answer to! This is a group of 10 Wednesday evening…
Find out more »May
Open Garden
Enjoy our garden as the spring unfolds Our garden is open! Booked visitors only please Delighted to say our beautiful botanical garden is open to the public in four slots of 45 mins each and we hope to continue our bookings on further Thursdays. You will be able to spend the time in the garden enjoying the plants, birdsong, pond plants and creatures.Our gardener will be on hand for any questions you may have and there will also be plants for sale, card…
Find out more »A Tree Walk in Kennington Park
An inner-city walk discovering more about trees Discover more about the wonderful trees that grow amongst our urban sprawl Kennington Park opened in 1854, it was South London's first park and has a wide variety of now mature and historic trees including some cork oaks. Roy is a renowned botanist specialising in plant-lore and also president of the SLBI, as well as the author of Vickery’s Folk Flora. NB Participants are limited to the numbers currently permitted by…
Find out more »Brilliant and Intense: Structural Colour in Marine Algae
Some conclusions around why the structural colours of seaweeds are the colours they are and what they mean If you want to know more about all those beautiful colours of seaweeds, look no further Structural colour is found in red, green and brown seaweeds, yet the phenomenon is largely unexplored. The functional purpose of structural colour is also largely unknown but we have hypothesised that it is a photoprotective mechanism to mitigate the harmful effects of uv…
Find out more »Open Evening in the SLBI garden
Enjoy a spring evening in our garden with a glass of wine We are delighted to be able to open our garden in the evening - first time since 2019! Come for a wander around the garden with a refreshment, meet our gardener and find out more about our planting and our events - or just spend a peaceful hour in our tranquil green surroundings. There will be plants for sale, card payments or exact cash please. All prices in…
Find out more »A Tree Walk in Margravine Cemetery
A cemetery walk full of interesting trees and flora A little-known cemetery that houses a varied amount of flora and spectacular ivy trees Margravine Cemetery (also known as Fulham Old Cemetery) comprises some 16 acres in the middle of London. It is apparently at its best in May. Roy is a renowned botanist specialising in plant-lore and also president of the SLBI, as well as the author of Vickery’s Folk Flora. NB Participants are limited to the numbers currently…
Find out more »Plant Gall Survey on Tooting Common
Take a closer look at those lumps and bumps found on plants and trees and find out more! The fascinating world of the plant gall - and the organisms that form them Join Roy Vickery to look for early season galls on Tooting Common, including hopefully some of the early season sexual phase wasp galls on the oaks (Q.Robur & Q.Cerris) and some of the aphid galls on hawthorn. Roy hopes to be joined by Tommy Root of the British…
Find out more »Scarce Clovers – A walk in Blackheath
A South London walk discovering wild flowers A gentle walk to look for Blackheath's clovers and allies, which only appear at the end of May, plus other flora and fauna. Joe Beale ACIEEM is a London-based naturalist and an experienced tutor. He organises lichen surveys in London and worked on the lichen collection at the Natural History Museum while on the Identification Trainers for the Future programme. Joe has extensive experience of recording wildlife and plants in London’s parks and…
Find out more »Field Botany Skills: Identifying Wild Plants # 1 (6 in series)
Six Sessions over 5 months learning about wild plant families NB This session is now sold out This will be run in person at the SLBI. Session 1: Carrot, Cabbage and Rose Families One of six sessions, each of which will focus on 3-4 common wild plant families. You will be introduced to each family and their main vegetative and floral characteristics and then practice identification skills, using keys, and examine the plants in the field. This session will be…
Find out more »June
Edible Plant Trail – Children’s Half-Term Activity*
What can you eat that's at your feet!There are edible plants all around us – we just have to notice them. Come and explore the SLBI garden, follow our Edible Plants Trail and see if you can crack the clues. How do the plants grow? Do they have a smell? Which parts can we eat? We’ve got fruits and roots, berries and vines, flowers and secret powers. We might also have tea and biscuits!Timings: The trail starts and finishes in…
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