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University
of Birmingham Botanic Garden 2008
BPS
Fern Display
 Ray
Smith and Matt Busby were invited to put on a fern display at the University
of Birmingham Botanic Garden Open Day which took place on Sunday 15th
June, 2008. Unfortunately, since Ray and Matt have stopped exhibiting
at flower shows, they no longer have such a good selection of potted ferns
for such events; however, they decided to have a go and take the opportunity
to publicise the BPS and hand out our application forms.
During 1991, local BPS members donated lots of ferns to this garden and
it was designated the BPS Centenary Collection of Ferns. It was reported
in the Bulletin of that year. Sadly in the late 1990s, a storm washed
away the entire contents of the Centenary Garden. Happily, the present
Head Gardener, Lee Hales, is keen to have a major collection of ferns
again for the visiting public to see. Matt has supplied them with a large
quantity of BPS application forms which are available to the public in
the entrance foyer and garden shop.
 For
the display, Ray and Matt were going to restrict ourselves to using only
hardy ferns but could only muster some 16 potted ferns and quickly realised
that they would have to utilise several indoor ferns to furnish the stand
to a reasonable standard.
Matt
managed to find Athyrium nipponicum 'Silver Falls', Athyrium nipponicum
' Red Beauty', Osmunda regalis 'Purpurascens',Polystichum setiferum 'Divisilobum'
and Onychium contiguum.
Ray did even better and managed to find good examples of Adiantum raddianum
'Auntie Betty', Adiantum raddianum 'Kensington Gem' , Adiantum raddianum
'Supreme', Adiantum raddianum 'Micropinnulum', Adiantum matthewsii, Adiantum
subpumilum, Athyrium filix-femina 'Axminster', Athyrium filix-femina 'Cristata
multifidum', Blechnum penna-marina, Cheilanthes argentea, Gymnocarpium
dryopteris, Polystichum setiferum 'Ray Smith' and Humata tyermanii, the
latter draped over the front of the table attracting many comments from
the visitors.
(Editors note: Matt Busby and Ray & Brenda Smith have been stalwarts
of the BPS for well over thirty years.)
Report and photographs by A R (Matt) Busby.
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Link
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 Winterbourne
Botanic Garden at the University of Birmingham
is a six acre Edwardian Arts and Crafts style garden on the university's
Edgbaston Campus. The garden is a haven of peace and tranquillity
only 15 minutes from the city centre.
They
hold three National Collections and have lots of interesting features
to see including colour themed borders, a pergola, Japanese bridge
and unusual sandstone rock garden. Winterbourne
Botanic Garden displays plants from all around the world with
collections of plants from Madeira, China, North and South America
and the Alpine areas of the world.
More>
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