KBBS Report of the Month

Our Bursary Scheme, funded by  a generous legacy from Mr Kenneth Black, provides small bursaries to students and people who are employed in horticulture.  You can find details of the scheme and how to apply on the main bursary scheme page.  Here we regularly feature a report from one of the beneficiaries:

A Botanical Culture Tour of Southwest
China’s Yunnan Province
30th May – 16th June 2019
Christopher D G Brown

Meconopsis pseudointegrifolia and Primula amethystina subsp. brevifolia

China has some of the richest diversity of temperate flora in the world, and for centuries, and still to this day, native plants have played a major role in Chinese history and culture. How is it then, that so many of these wild Chinese plants have become rooted as integral parts of our Gardens here in the UK?
Whether it is the beautiful spring Magnolias, Rhododendrons and Azaleas, or the Paeonies, Camellias and Chrysanthemums, all can be found growing in the wild in China, as well as being commonplace in gardens here in the UK.
Over the years plant hunters have introduced more than ten thousand Chinese plant species to the UK. That’s over three times our native flora. Each of these plant introductions tells a story, one of travel, hardship and endeavour, one of an individual whose exploration has personally brought nature’s stowaways back to the UK. These plants were not just collected for the purpose of science, but also as things of beauty, for us all to cultivate and admire.

Read the full report here

A selection of other reports may be found here