Tag: Kew
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The Jodrell Lab (Week 6, Wednesday)
If it looks like a freezer it’s because it is one. But it’s a freezer unlike any other. It operates at temperatures around -80°C and contains 7.5 million samples of plant DNA, the largest collection of its kind. The genetics team in the Lab select plant material, they shake it up so that the cell walls break…
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IDing plants (Week 6, Tuesday)
I was in only in the morning today, and we did some more filling of the pits left behind by the Nash sculptures. I am not going to talk about that today, however: there’s more to be done and I’m sure the topic will pop up again. Instead, I’m going to blabber on about plant…
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Taking stock (Week 6, Monday)
The plants in our area are in need of stockchecking, so I volunteered to do it: I will learn more about the area, the plants and stockchecking – what’s not to like? Besides, a bit of light work will give some rest to my wrist, which need it. When plants are accessioned – I talked…
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Weed or not weed? (Week 5, Friday)
Have been around the Japanese gateway a lot in the last couple of weeks, as we were taking care of it temporarily. As I described in previous posts, we mowed the lawn, edged the beds and raked the gravel. Some weeding needed doing too. We’ve been talking about weeds, me and my colleague. How “botanical…
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Corporate teamwork on azaleas (Week 5, Thursday)
An unusual day, today: I joined in to assist a colleague who was leading the activities of a team of corporate volunteers on a teamwork day. The azaleas are coming into flower and we forecast the Azalea Garden will major as an attraction for tourists at the weekend, so the volunteers were asked to help weed and…
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Kew Fungarium (Week 5, Wednesday)
After a visit to the Herbarium, we couldn’t miss the Fungarium. What an amazing place! A fungarium is a collection of dried specimens, and Kew collection was recently complemented with a donation by CABI, to create one of the largest collection in the world. It contains 1.25 m specimens, including plenty of types – ca 45,000,…
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Dips and bumps on the way (Week 5, Tuesday)
The David Nash at Kew exhibition has just closed, so sculptures and installations throughout the gardens are being dismantled, leaving behind rather large pits in the ground that need filling. So I am learning the art of filling holes, as part of our team days 🙂 The main issue with filling holes is to make…
About Me
M.Paola Andreoni
I got the first allotment in 2007 (in the UK) and started growing my own food for the first time. Learning as I went along was not enough, so I studied some horticulture. I am striving to abide by organic principles. Brexit gave me a new life in the Netherlands, and two new plots by a nature reserve.
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