Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Don't Miss
John Hope Gateway
The garden's new
visitor centre
is housed in this striking, environmentally friendly build-
ing overlooking the main Arboretum Pl entrance. There are exhibitions on biodiversity,
climate change and sustainable development, as well as displays of rare plants from the
institution's collection and a specially created biodiversity garden.
Glasshouses
A cluster of around 25
glasshouses
(Inverleith Row; adult/child £4.50/1; 10am-5.30pm Mar-
Sep, to 4.30pm Feb & Oct, to 3.30pm Nov-Jan)
in the garden's northern corner houses a huge
collection of tropical plants. Pride of place goes to the ornate
Victorian Palm House
,
built in 1834 and home to vast rainforest palms, including a Bermudan palmetto that dates
from 1822. The
Front Range
of 1960s designer glasshouses is famous for its tropical
pond filled with giant Amazonian water lilies.
Rock Garden
Since it was first created in 1871, the rock garden has been one of the RBGE's most popu-
lar features. Boulders and scree slopes made from Scottish sandstone and conglomerate
are home to more than 4000 species of alpine and subarctic plants from all over the world.
Sculptures
Pick up a map from the visitor centre so that you can track down the garden's numerous
sculptures, ranging from a statue of Swedish botanist and taxonomist Carl Linnaeus
(1707-78) by Scottish architect Robert Adam, to modern works by Yorkshire sculptor
Barbara Hepworth and landscape artist Andy Goldsworthy.
Top Tips
›
Guided tours of the gardens (per person £5) depart at 11am and 2pm daily from April to Octo-
ber.
