Education
The collections at the Botanic Garden are used extensively for undergraduate teaching in the School of Biological Sciences where courses are available in Botany, Biology and Zoology. The Evolution Collection and Useful Plants Collection are important for teaching first year plant-based modules such as: Evolution of Land Plants, Plant Evolution in Action, and Evolution and Exploitation of Crops. The Flowering Plant Phylogeny Collection and Floral Diversity Collection (both sub-collections within the Evolution Collection) provide living plant examples to illustrate topics covered in the third year course on Flowering Plants. Other courses on Plant Growth and Development, Ecology, and Evolution also utilize specific elements of the collections.
Courses on Chinese Herbal Medicine and Chinese Herbs are run by The Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine utilizing the Chinese Medicinal Herbs Collection (part of the Useful Plants Collection)
Courses at the University Botanic Garden
- An Introduction to the Alexander Technique for Gardeners
- A Beginners Lichen Identification Course
- Learning more about Lichens: an intermediate course
- Lichens on Limestone: a more advanced course
- An unique opportunity to draw and paint tropical and exotic plants from the glasshouses of the Botanic Garden
- Setting up an Allotment - An Introduction for Beginners
- An Introduction to Bee Keeping
- Health, Healing and Well Being with Medicinal Plants
- An Introduction to Picture Framing
- An Introduction to Plant Identification
- Digital Photography for Beginners and Improvers
- Royal Horticultural Society (Level 2) Certificate in Horticulture
- Royal Horticultural Society (Level 3) Advanced Certificate in Horticulture
- Learning how to paint and draw using watercolour. Two study days in the Botanic Garden
- Plant explorers and the magnificent trees and shrubs they introduced
- Train to become a professional garden designer
An Introduction to the Alexander Technique for Gardeners
The course will provide an introduction to the benefits of the Alexander Technique. Digging, bending and working at ground level are just some of the activities which can cause wear-and-tear leading to aches and pains. Using the Alexander Technique we can achieve what we want using less effort, and enjoy even the simplest tasks. Looking at everyday gardening activities, you will learn this practical skill through discussion and gentle hands-on guidance, applying it to your benefit right from the first session.
The course consists of an introductory class in November followed by a series of six sessions in early Spring. Teaching will be in small groups to facilitate effective learning. with STAT-registered practioners.
For further information about Alexander Technique see www.stat.org.uk
- Course Fee: £105
- Tutor: Bethan Evans BVSc, MSTAT - www.TechniqueForLife.com
A Beginners Lichen Identification Course
This course is for people who are interested in natural history and for whom the study of lichens in detail is new to them. The course will cover the basic principals of lichen biology and identification. The course will go through the topics step by step giving a brief introduction to a variety of different aspects of lichens. The aim of the course is get students to a position where they can identify common lichens and continue to study them on their own with the help of some guides and books. Students will be asked to bring in lichens to study for the second Saturday and are asked to bring in a x 10 hand lens if they have one.
- Course Fee: £45
- Course Code: SITGLN021
Learning more about Lichens: an intermediate course
This course will introduce participants to aspects of studying lichens for the purpose of identification and understanding their biology and ecology. This will enable you to use the latest edition of the recently published full standard lichen flora and to tackle the smaller crustose species as well as the larger ones. The techniques and topics include microscopy of the vegetative structures and reproductive structures, chemistry of lichens and the structure and function of the various special organs that lichens have evolved. Although some lichen material will be provided, you are encouraged to bring your own specimens of lichens for examination and identification. (It will be assumed only that participants will know what lichens are and to have had a previous introduction to them; the ability to name species previously encountered is not expected.)
- Course Fee: £45
- Tutor: Dr David Hill
Lichens on Limestone: a more advanced course
The course will help lichenologists who want to get to know the lichen flora of limestone areas better and become more confident at finding the species present and identifying them reliably. The emphasis will be on linking an ecological understanding to the habitats in the field with laboratory work on material collected. The programme will start with an introduction to sites we will visit in the field (possibly Cheddar Gorge or Burrington Combe). Then we will consider how the habitats can be divided up into niches and their ecological characteristics with examples of the key species to be found. In the field we will learn how to approach these habitats in practice with the provisional identification of characteristic species that occur in these niches. In the field, we will learn how to collect small samples for laboratory study back for the purpose of confirming identities of field determinations or complete identification of unknowns. We will be using the new Lichen Flora and learning the new features of this work as improvements on the first edition. The laboratory work will include training in microscopic examination and where appropriate any other methods such as those for lichen substances. The intention is a theme of developing specific skills rather than a general field meeting.
- Course Fee: £25.00 (excluding any board and lodging and catering) payable to the British Lichen Society.
- Tutors: Dr B J Coppins and Dr D J Hill
- Further details will be sent out to all those expressing an interest by email to d.j.hill@bris.ac.uk.
An unique opportunity to draw and paint tropical and exotic plants from the glasshouses of the Botanic Garden
A unique opportunity to capture the beauty of tropical and sub-tropical plants growing in the Botanic Garden. This friendly introductory course which will help you interpret what you see and express yourself in pencil and watercolour. Because of the way this course is taught it is suitable for all levels of experience from complete beginners to those with more experience in watercolours. Annie Morris is a member of the Society of Botanical Artists and has taught classes and workshops since 1998, many for the Friends of the Garden. She has exhibited widely including, at the RHS Vincent Square, London, the National Botanic Garden of Wales and the Hillier Arboretum. Materials are not provided. The lecturer will be able to advise you on what to bring. The lesson time will be split between the glasshouses and the study room with plant material available in the study room for close work.
- Course Fee: £90
- Tutor: Annie Morris
Setting up an Allotment - An Introduction for Beginners
Growing vegetables is hugely rewarding with more people taking on an allotment for the first time. In this short course Tim Foster will explain the basics of setting up a growing space, including ground clearing, bed construction, siting of perennials and fixtures, soils, fertility, crop planning and rotations. The course will give first time allotment owners enough information to get them started and achieve success within the first year.
- Course Fee: £40
- Tutor: Tim Foster
An Introduction to Bee Keeping
An introduction for those intending to keep bees which will cover the technical aspects of beekeeping including bee behaviour, necessary equipment , setting up and managing a hive, swarm control, bee health and diseases, products, processing and marketing.
Numbers strictly limited.
- Course Fee: £70
- Tutor: David Maslen
Health, Healing and Well Being with Medicinal Plants
This course will explain the numerous ways in which plants are used medicinally and for our well-being. Ann Freeman has many years' experience in teaching the traditional use of plants. She has travelled widely collecting and studying traditional ethnobotanical uses of medicinal plants. This short series of evening classes is an introduction to the subject. As well as studying in the classroom, students will work in the Botanic Garden making particular use of the European Herb Garden and the tropical fruit and medicine plants within the glasshouses. This is a repeat of last year's popular course which has been planned to take place when the Herb Garden is looking its best! The main reference source for the course is David Hoffman's The Holistic Herbal which was used as the basis for the development of our European Herb Garden.
- Course Fee: £96
- Tutor: Ann Freeman
An Introduction to Picture Framing
The workshops will cover simple techniques for frame making at home. You will acquire skills in glass cutting, cutting and pinning mouldings and simple mount-cutting etc. Your tutor will be on hand to give advice on choosing colour and styles. Week one will cover everything you need to frame a small picture and in week two you will achieve completion of at least one framed image. All tools and materials are provided. Just bring some small pictures or photographs, no larger than 10 x 8 inches, from which to choose your selected subject for framing. Places available are limited.
- Course Fee: £70
- Tutor: Aza Adlam
An Introduction to Plant Identification
Good plant identification is a useful skill for any gardener serious about knowing what plants they grow. Knowledge of plant morphology and plant anatomy is important to carrying out correct plant identification. This course will enable students to understand the principles of plant classification and nomenclature and the origin of the binominal naming system.
The aim of the course is to equip the student with the necessary skills to successfully identify a range of common plants that they might find in the average garden or in the British countryside. Students will learn plant anatomy and morphology, the correct techniques for identifying plants and for recording their names. This course is timed to include wild flowers at their best and is aimed at the both the amateur and semi-professional. No previous experience necessary.
- Course Fee: £60
- Tutor: Emma Smith
Digital Photography for Beginners and Improvers
Your digital camera de-mystified. A chance to learn how to get the best from your digital camera, and to get the images you want, whilst photographing the beauty of the Botanic Garden.
What to expect
This course is aimed at those who can't quite get the hang of their cameras through to those who are interested in photography and want to improve their skills. An introduction to the importance of the digital darkroom will be covered plus how we can enhance our images with simple improvement methods on our computers. There will be trips around the Botanic Garden during the workshop giving an opportunity to practise the topics taught and where an interest in the Botanic Garden or gardening in general will be an added bonus. Your successful images will be projected and discussed.
Topics covered will include: Understanding your camera and its icons; Camera set-up; Mega pixels demystified; Image Composition; Artistic approach; Aperture Priority; Depth of Field; Shutter Priority; White Balance; Macro Photography; Getting correct exposure; How to improve natural light; Resizing your image for printing; Images for E-mail, web etc.; Software Introduction: Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements; The Digital Darkroom; Special effects; Filters; Image and file storage and retrieval; Creating a slideshow; Printing tips.
What you will need
Your camera, (a 35mm digital camera that allows you to switch off ' auto' is preferable, but not imperative); your camera's memory card; a fully charged battery; your camera's instruction book if you have it; your USB camera connector.
What else could you bring?
A tripod is very important in landscape and botanical photography - if you haven't got one a few will be available to use. You are quite welcome, in fact encouraged to bring your own laptop if you wish.
Examples of found images which you would like to replicate, bearing in mind the available facilities at the Botanic Garden.
- Course Fee: £40
- Tutor: Alan Drew
Royal Horticultural Society (Level 2) Certificate in Horticulture
This popular theory based course covers all aspects of horticulture including propagation, pest and disease recognition, plant biology, garden layout and design, ornamental horticulture, fruit and vegetable growing, soil science and general horticultural practice. Plants from the new Botanic Garden will be used in the weekly plant identification exercise. The course requires no prior knowledge and is suitable for amateur gardeners as well as those beginning a career in horticulture. Examinations in February and June 2010.
Royal Horticultural Society (Level 3) Advanced Certificate in Horticulture
Consisting of four modules over two years, in the first year you will study Module A (Plant Propagation, Growing Media and Plant Nutrition) & Module C (Practical Horticulture). Year Two, commencing September 2010, will cover Modules B (Plant Taxonomy, Morphology, Anatomy, Physiology and Plant Health) & Module I (Planning Layout & Construction of Ornamental Gardens). This course is a natural progression for those students who have studied the RHS (Level 2) Certificate in Horticulture (formerly the RHS General Certificate in Horticulture) at the Botanic Garden or elsewhere.
Learning how to paint and draw using watercolour. An intensive course of study at the Botanic Garden
These two days offer a rare chance to work in the beautiful surroundings of the Garden to create works of art inspired by the plants around you. The tutor, Annie Morris will lead you through techniques using a digital camera, pencils and watercolours to produce your individual artistic response to the garden.
- Course Fee: £120
- Tutor: Annie Morris
Plant explorers and the magnificent trees and shrubs they introduced
Our gardens are full of plants from around the world. The story of how they reached our shores is one of exploration, exploitation and determination of plant collectors who risked their lives to bring back plants over huge distances. Today our gardens are a cosmopolitan mix of trees and shrubs from around the world. In this short course Tony Titchen will introduce the key plant explorers, where they travelled and illustrate how to identify the beautiful plants they introduced. The course will give students the opportunity to spend time with the plant collections in the Botanic Garden and Wills and Churchill Halls.
- Course Fee: £55
- Tutor: Tony Titchen
Garden Designer Course
One of the country’s leading colleges of garden design – Garden Design School - is repeating its award-winning Diploma Course to the University of Bristol Botanic Garden in September 2010. The one year, intensive, part-time course teaches all of the key skills needed to become a professional garden designer and attracts students of all ages and from all walks of life. Now in its seventh successful year, the course is led by two of the UK’s leading garden designers - Moira Farnham and Robin Templar Williams - who have over 32 years teaching experience between them and run their own successful garden design consultancy businesses.
No prior experience or qualifications are needed to take the course; just a passion for gardens and garden design. And because the class is restricted to a maximum of 16 trainees, everyone is guaranteed plenty of individual attention and support from the tutors.
For more information call 01380 728788, e-mail: info@gardendesignschool.com or visit the college’s website: www.gardendesignschool.com.
For further information or to request a place on the waiting list for either of the RHS courses please contact:
- Courses/Tours Administrator
- University of Bristol Botanic Garden
- Hollybush Lane
- Stoke Bishop
- Bristol
- BS9 1JB
- Tel: 0117 331 4906
- E-mail: botanic-gardens@bristol.ac.uk
To book on one or more of these courses, please complete the Enrolment form.
Please forward with your payment to the address above.
A list of courses that have previously been run at the Botanic Gardens is available.