Tag Archives: orchids

Jungling with Lady Charlotte…

A few years ago I spent a month in Burma, and one of the highlights of the trip was to see  the  National Botanic Gardens at Pyin Oo Lwin, way up in the hills near Mandalay.    It was rather … Continue reading

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Orchids, Ferns, Fossils and the Great Flood

We often hear that grand gardens cost money: it’s as true as the old cliché which says “money talks.” But there is a world of difference between a grand garden and a great one.  Great gardens develop when that money meets … Continue reading

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How Orchids became a Librarian’s Nightmare

It maybe a strange title but this is really the story of a rich young man and his passion for plants or rather one particular kind of plant.  James Bateman was the grandson and son of rich industrialists who had … Continue reading

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William Caparne : painter and plantsman

The love of plants runs in the blood, or so it might appear from the life of William Caparne  teacher, painter, plantsman and iris fanatic.   A very private man, but who travelled widely in Europe and met and was … Continue reading

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On Don and Don and Don and Don…

I know Monty may be the only Don you’ve heard of but this is not  a post about him. Instead its about some of his 18th and 19thc ancestors who were also well-known horticulturists and botanists.  The family came from the … Continue reading

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