Berry Good for You: Berries and Human Health.

Sunday 5th March 2017

Gordon McDougall of the James Hutton Institute.    The talk will cover work from the Institute and its collaborators which suggests that berries have beneficial effects on cardiovascular health, type 2 diabetes, cancers, neurodegenerative diseases and infections.  Berries have an ancient, almost mythological association with health and have been used as cures in Scottish folklore and from other cultures.  Dr McDougall examines the accruing evidence for health benefits from berries such as raspberries, black currants and strawberries, which have been bred at his institute for many years.  Education Centre in the Garden at 2 p.m. Free to members of the Friends; others – donations welcome.

Sunday 12th February 2017

We regret this event has had to be cancelled. We hope to reschedule later in the spring or summer.

Daryll Archibald, of the Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research, and Policy at Edinburgh University will talk about his research on Green Gyms for Older People.  Education Centre in the Garden at 2 p.m.  Free to members of the Friends; others – donations welcome.

Some hard digging going on in the tropical glasshouse on Thursday as Clare and Kevin remove a date palm.

Plant of the month February 2017

Rhododendron dauricum
Family : Ericaceae
Origin: N & E Asia
Accession: 1987
Location: Asian area at the far end of the Garden

This rhododendron species, introduced to Britain in 1780, is a compact, deciduous shrub growing to 2 metres with some of its leaves persisting overwinter. It is native to Eastern Siberia, Mongolia, and the north of China and Japan. The specific name relates to the area of collection - Dauria in south-east Siberia, present day Transbaikal. Due to its hardiness, with reports of plants surviving to -32^oC, Rhododendron dauricum has been used widely for plant breeding. It requires a moist, well-drained, acid soil.