Brenda

The Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh

I wondered a bit about what to share with you first since I’ve done a few things in Edinburgh. I have settled on a beautiful garden – The Royal Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh.

Image shows trees and shrubs with flowerbeds of orange and red flowers in the foreground

There is so much to see in the vast open spaces within the gardens that there was no way we would be able to cover everything in the one day. Enjoy some of the general pictures I snapped as we were wandering and specifically the Chinese Mountain Trek. We were delighted to find the path was a gentle slope rather than the mountain path suggested.

Images of The Gardens

Image shows a garden path with grass to the left side and tree about half way along the side of the path

A Chinese Mountain Trek

Image shows a white pagoda sitting in front of a lily pond. There are 2 people sitting in the pagoda. There are trees in the background

It was lovely just to take the time to relax, enjoy the surroundings: listen to the birds, the waterfalls, and running streams we found. Taking time to sit and to appreciate the nature all around was so special, to be present, watching the birds and the squirrels having fun, chasing each other. I think it’s the first time I’ve ever seen seen a pigeon (admittedly I think it was a wood pigeon) engaging in courtship behaviours rather than the way they usually just chase and pester the female birds.

The squirrel we found in the photograph below was obviously protecting his hoard by chasing away the other squirrels. I guess he didn’t want to share!

Image shows a squirrel upright, sitting on his hind legs, eating.

Sometimes we just need to get back to nature to unwind and relax. With hindsight, what would have made the day even more perfect would have been to have packed a picnic to enjoy in the park. Although we did have lunch in the Botanic Gardens where they serve dishes created from produce grown on site.

I opted not to write about the history of the park, but just to share some snaps. Here are some favourites from the visit.

Image shows grass and trees with a small stream running through the middle
There are water features throughout, not just the Chinese Mountain Trek
The image shows two notebooks. Both covers show flowers. One is multicoloured, the other has a gold background with white daisy-like flowers with green foilage
Something to remind me of my visit to the gardens.
There was just something I loved about this huge tree. 😍
The image shows a gate made of silver metal. It is comprised a structure of metal flowers all connected at their petals to make the gate.
One of the entrances into the Gardens
Image shows trees on a lawn, but around the tree at the front of the image it looks like grass which is overgrown
I held this one back as the gardens are allowing grass and wild flowers to grow to encourage wildlife … we certainly saw lots of happy bees

Covering 72 acres of ground with lots of focused gardens, I’m sure I’ll return, but I hope you’ve enjoyed my first visit.

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54 comments

  9. Great write up and photographs. Looks well worth a visit. I’ve only visited Scotland once. And that was more than 34 years ago. My son was named Arran after a visit there. That’s how I can roughly date the visit. All the best.

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    • I’m glad you liked it. It was lovely to see so much water and looking at the map covering the whole grounds there were more water features. It really gives me excuses for return visits

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    • Thanks Wynne. I think the dog will be Monday when I’ll also be posting to Wise & Shine on a ‘related’ theme

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  20. Great post and so many amazing photos, Brenda! I used to live in Edinburgh for three years and during that time, I found myself heading to Botanical Gardens quite often with a blanket and a book. It is a fantastic place for a peaceful day out spent walking amongst thousands of beautiful flowers or tucking yourself under one of the towering trees and enjoying the fresh, fragrant air while reading in the shade. Thanks for sharing and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx

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