It’s not often you find a garden that was founded in 1673. Which is when the Apothecaries’ Garden was formed. Ann was on a trip to Europe recently and dropped in on the beautiful Chelsea Physic Garden. Situated on the side of the River Thames in London. The gardens original purpose was to train apprentices in identifying plants. With the gardens location close to the river creating a warmer microclimate. This significantly increased the many non-native plants that could be grown.
   
In 1700 the garden had started an international botanic garden seed exchange system, which continues to this day.


The gardens cover some four acres and are leased on what is known as a peppercorn ( very low) rent in perpetuity.
They are with out doubt one of London’s secret ‘gems’ and thoroughly worth a visit.

The gardens mission  ” Linking people with plants and nature”
The interview starts with Ann talking for around 8 minutes to a group of school children on a field trip, the gardens have over 100 such visits a year.  Ann then talks to Michael a very knowledgeable and extremely helpful member of staff. We kept all the typical inner city sounds on the recording – the enthusiasm of the children is very heartening.
Integrated pest management is the preferred method of bug control…
They have a project called “Shelf Life’ it is just an incredible way to show children where their food comes from
You can also listen to Ann’s interview on iTunes at Growing Trends
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