News

Glasgow Botanic Gardens – Glasgow City Council introduction of entry charges to Glasshouses

Response by the Friends of Glasgow Botanic Gardens

At this time, the Friends have no information from the City Council other than the press information suggesting charges to the Glasshouses will be introduced raising a reported £185,000, presumably annually.

To date, there has been absolutely no consultation with the Friends, who are major supporters of the Botanic Gardens including a very recent agreement to contribute financially to the upgrading of facilities in the Gardens.

We are not aware whether the charges will apply to all the glasshouses including the Kibble Palace and the Main Range. Equally there has been no indication as to how the charges will be practically implemented nor whether there are to be concessions to any of the City Council’s designated groups of special need.

We require full information on the likely charges and indeed the cost incurred by managing the process of taking income ie the net income after administration costs for collection, security etc.

Notwithstanding being provided with the above information, the Friends are implacably opposed to the introduction of any charges to this Internationally recognised centre of botanical and environmental excellence.

Only recently Glasgow’s Greenspaces were being described as “the Natural Health Service” due to the value placed on open spaces during the Covid pandemic. To exclude unfettered access to the valuable plant collections and the demonstration of their globally economic value will strike a major blow to Glasgow’s promotion of environmental awareness and climate change information.

The Friends of Glasgow Botanic Gardens

Opening Hours January 1, 2, 2023

As always the Gardens are open from 7am with the last gate being closed (Main Gate) at 5pm. (These are the gate times until 31st January)

The Glasshouse opening times including Kibble Palace are 10am until 4pm.

Glasshouses are free entry, no booking required and managed by Glasgow City Council

The Tea Rooms are closed until the 1st April 2023

The Public Toilets are closed on the 1st and 2nd of January 2023 but reopen on the 3rd January 2023

Thank you and we hope you have wonderful 2023

Friends of Glasgow Botanic Gardens (A.S. 30/12/2022)

The Tea room at the Botanics will be closed from 23/12/2022 until 01/04/2023

We hope to bring you further details of the reopening and revised menu when we have it.

thank you

The Botanic Gardens’ Weeping Ash, the tree that travelled from the original site at Sandyford, Sauchiehall Street in 1841 to the present day Great Western Road site, has finally fallen victim to Ash Die Back Disease. Early on the morning of 24/08/22 it was felled by GCC arborists.

The tree had been showing signs of disease for several years and was on a scheduled programme of inspection. The weeping forms of ash (Fraxinus excelsior ‘Pendula’) seem to be particularly prone to the disease. The tree was gifted by Robert Austin (a nurseryman) to the original site in 1817 so was certainly over 205 years old.  

The decision has been taken to leave the stump and part of the main trunk to allow for interpretation explaining the history of the site, the tree disease and about the active process of decay.

Unfortunately another 7 large ash will be removed over the next few months as the City Council takes steps to identify what trees pose a risk to visitors to the Gardens. Normally, where possible, other species of trees would be reduced to a monolith to provide a habitat for insects and birds but ash timber becomes very brittle and is prone to collapse.

Replacement planting will take place informed by the garden’s design plan, species resilience to pests and disease and also the changing climate. I wonder what a visitor to the Gardens will encounter in 205 years time?

A lot of the River Kelvin corridor is naturally oak/ash woodland so the wider changes in the landscape caused by this disease will soon become apparent. (AS 2022)

For more information please visit the Forest Research pages

On Friday 2nd September the wonderful people from Butterfly Conservation and Clyde Bat Group will be leading the engagement at the Moth and Bat night at Glasgow Botanic Gardens.

It is one of the highlights of the events calendar.

Volunteers from Butterfly Conservation will be there to show you some of the marvellous moths that have been trapped using a light trap in the gardens. This will be followed by a bat walk around the grounds, listening and looking out for the bats hunting insects as they fly overhead.

You must pre-book and to get a space please use the link.

*****UPDATE*******as of 25th August this event is SOLD OUT******************************

Visiting the Gardens in Summer 2022.

• The Gardens are currently open from 7am.
• The Gardens are locked at night. The Main Gate closes at 9pm until 10/05/22, when closing time moves to 9.30pm.
• From 24/05/2022 to 25/07/2022 the Main Gate closes at 10pm.
• Please be aware that other gates will close before the Main Gate as staff clear and secure the Gardens and Arboretum.
• Glasshouse opening times are 11am to 5pm (Glasshouses are free, no booking needed). The one way system is no longer in place and seating is now available in the Kibble Palace.
• Please follow Scottish Government ‘Covid Sense’ guidance.
• The public toilets are open from 10am.
• The Tea Room at the Botanics is fully open.
• Photography for groups and wedding photography requires to be booked in advance
• Thank you for your continued support

Visiting the Gardens in November and December.

• The Gardens are currently open from 7am.
• The Main Gate closes at 5pm and the other gates sequentially close from 4.30pm
• Glasshouse opening times are 12 noon to 4pm (Glasshouses are free, no booking needed), please follow the one way sytems.
• We support NHS Test and Protect and have Check in Scotland QR Codes.
• Please note that in Scotland face coverings are still required to be worn in public buildings (Exemptions apply)
• The public toilets are open from 10am till 4pm
• The Tea Room at the Botanics is closed until Spring 2022
• Photography for groups and wedding photography requires to be booked
• Thank you

GSF at the Glasgow Botanic Gardens
Venue: Glasgow Botanic Gardens, Great Western Rd, Glasgow, G12 0UE
Date: 4th to 12th Sept 2021
Time: Daily between 11.00 – 2.00pm
Booking: No booking required

Meet research staff and students from the Universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde and Edinburgh, Glasgow Caledonain University, University of the West of Scotland and the Open University. As well as partners from BOOM Community Arts, Aerial Edge circus school and The Laser Garden.

Please find full timtable of all the Glasgow Science Festival Events at

http://www.glasgowsciencefestival.org.uk/

See the timetable for the Botanic Gardens at the link below

Timetable Media_809040_smxx

The Garden grounds are open from 7a.m. till 9pm at the moment (times may vary for operational reasons. Where this happens we will try and post advance notice)

The Kibble Palace and the Main Range Glasshouses have reopened and the operating hours are 12noon until 4pm. This altered service allows horticultural staff to conduct all essential maintenance and horticultural duties in a safe and distanced manner. We hope that the opening hours will be extended as restrictions ease. You do not need to pre book to visit the Glasshouses.

The Tea Room at the Botanics has reopened.

The Tea Room will be operating at a reduced capacity due to social distancing guidance.

Trading hours are 7 days a week 11am-5pm

Last orders 4.45pm.

All the team look forward to welcoming you back to the Tearoom!

Other items of note:

The public toilets are operating from 10 till 7.30 Please follow staff instruction and observe local guidelines.

Please note that due to one way systems in place inside glasshouses and reduced capacity we are unable to accomodate large weddings or hire requests for large numbers indoors.

thanks again for your support, we are nearly there!!

#staysafe