A New Era In Alpine Horticulture and A New Alpine House For RBGE
The world of alpine plant horticulture is changing. We now have a rare opportunity to translate these evolving trends in cultivation techniques into a special new feature giving us the opportunity to care for a much wider diversity of alpine plants.
RBGE has
built up expertise over 140 years as a centre of excellence in the research and
conservation of alpine plants, which have special and complex needs. Built in
1975, our existing Alpine House, situated in our Edinburgh Garden,
is dedicated to the care and cultivation of alpine species that resent winter
dampness and thrive in pot cultivation.
Now, thanks to much-needed support from sources including Scottish Government grant-in-aid, and anticipated funding from grant proposals, we have the opportunity to establish a spectacular, modern, new Alpine House at RBGE.
The new Alpine House will showcase a contemporary method of growing and showing alpine plants in the 21st Century. It will stand next to the existing Alpine House where the plants are grown and displayed in traditional pots plunged into sand beds. The new structure will complement the existing house by demonstrating how to cultivate alpine plants in a more naturalistic way, offering a contrast to the traditional style.
This new
method involves growing the plants in tufa, a soft porous rock of calcium
carbonate. 
Growing plants in tufa has
been proven to improve the quality and survivability of species and will allow
us to grow a much more diverse range of alpines. It also forms a more
natural and pleasing landscape. The new Alpine House will be the first in a British Botanic
Garden to be fully dedicated to growing
plants in this way.
Help bring this exciting new development to life today:
A donation of just £20 will fund the fieldwork costs of collecting seeds and then cultivating 1 alpine plant for the tufa wall
£40 will fund 1 square metre of the tufa needed
£80 will fund 2 square metres of the tufa needed
£200 will fund the fieldwork costs of collecting seeds and then cultivating 10 alpine plants for the tufa wall
Donate Online Now
Cheques made payable to RBGE can be posted to the Membership Office, 20A Inverleith Row, Edinburgh, EH3 5LR alternatively phone 0131 248 2855.
