Botanical Garden visits (1)

Recently one of our Trustees, Aaron Bertelsen who works at Great Dixter, travelled to Israel with two of their interns.  Here’s what Henry wrote …

Spending a year as the scholar at Great Dixter gardens has presented me with a wealth of opportunities, but none have filled me with as much excitement and will live as long in the memory as our recent trip to Israel.

A landscape with an unrivalled catalogue of native flora; as diverse and rich as the cultures and communities that inhabit it. From inner city courtyard gardens brimming with colour, botanical gardens of international acclaim to fields of Echinops on the shores of the Galilee. Our few days was always never going to be enough!

Perched quietly amidst the arid Negev desert, a biblical setting overlooking the Dead Sea, sits the oasis of the Ein Gedi Botanical Gardens. A Kibbutz of magical quality, lovingly tended by the community that created it. Seldom does one visit a garden of such impact and contrast. With a mouth-watering array of species, fed by the mineral rich soils, irrigated by a natural spring and inhabited by its custodians, made this a stand out highlight and a must visit.

No horticultural trip to Israel would be complete without a visit to the JBG. Found in the heart of the city, it is a wonderful and easily accessible resource for the community. We were fortunate enough to have a tour from a current intern. What a privilege it was to see the workings of the nursery and to hear the passion and expertise of the staff we met. Finishing touches were being made to the Tropical Conservatory which I cannot wait to return and see.

I was once told ‘when you find a place you love, always leave something to come back for.’ Whether by design or consequence there will always be endless things for me to come back for.

Many thanks for the generosity and warmth we received from all who we met but mostly to my dear friend, colleague, JBG Trustee and inimitable guide Aaron Bertelsen for making it such an unforgettable and exciting trip.