#cambridge botanic garden

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Wednesday 10 January 2024

The epiphytic cactus Rhipsalis baccifera (mistletoe cactus) is native to South American rainforests. It needs a well-draining compost that is slightly acidic and should be watered thoroughly but allowed to dry out slightly between watering. Overwatering can lead to root rot, so it's essential to make sure the compost is not constantly wet.

Jill Raggett

[plantswithhands]

A bunch of cool nepenthes are enjoying the spring sunlight

[photodka]

Cambridge Botanic Gardens - winter forms

[burkh4rt]

[clarasteam]

Turning Newton’s Apple Tree into Gold

[princesscatherineblog]

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge visiting the Singapore Botanical Gardens on day 1 of the Diamond Jubilee tour on September 11, 2012 in Singapore.

[littlestpartofmyphotocollection]

Lost among the flowers

[cha-mij]

I'm a simple woman. I see a mini Darwin, I buy a mini Darwin.

[abstractsimulator]

2 August 2023

[unsubconscious]

Anne-Marie Butlin, Cornflower Meadow (Cambridge Botanical Garden) Oil on linen, 60 x 60cms

[jillraggett]

Plant of the Day

Tuesday 9 January 2024

In the moist atmosphere of the Fern House, Cambridge Botanic Gardens, a specimen of Huperzia goebelii (tassel fern) is thriving. This unusual epiphyte is a native of the tropical rainforests of South-East Asia.

Jill Raggett

[plantswithhands]

The Cambridge botanic garden sarracenia are getting massive!

[nualaofthefaerie]

Hexquad Cambridge University AU! Moodboards/Headcanons ✨️

A/N: A fun Au, but I'm too lazy to write it so instead I made some moodboards for each of the four pookies and some headcanons. 🎓🏫

Viktor, 26, an honourable Eastern European mix (Czech/Polish mom, Serb/Bulgarian dad)

Position: PhD in Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, minor in Philosophy

Last name too difficult for Westerns to pronounce, so he is known simply as Viktor with a k at the university

He has been a prodigy since he was a child, winning innovator competitions left, right and centre

The State supported his education up until university. When his scholarship got rejected, his long-term tutor, the Dean of the Physics department, Professor Doctor Cecil B. Heimerdinger in combination with a letter of recognition from Sky's father (a prominent academic) paid his tuition in full

He offered some lectures to the Master's students and that's where he met Jayce and took him on as a research assistant to his project - Hextech.

He has certain insecurities as a result of how people viewed his disability as a child (Eastern Europe is not for the weak of heart) but with time he comes to accept it was not his business to educate or accept other people's remarks in regards to himself

Is highly respected among his peers

Also often hit on by students (can be quite oblivious to flirtations unless he knows or is interested in the other parties. For example, he always knows when Sky and Jayce are hitting on him)

Still, that level of attention from strangers annoys him so he takes his breaks in the botanic garden, pestering Sky who often could do without her crush looking over her shoulder and asking "How do these species interacts?"

His hobbies include silence, reading and sewing, believe it or not (rare, only when he has the time to really focus on it)

Jayce Talis, 25, Latino as far as he cares (his mom is Mexican, his father was supposedly English, he wouldn't know)

Position: Master in Experimental Physics

Raised by a single mom

The guilty money of his deadbeat dad paid for his tuition

Was not the brightest student in Elementary school but something just shifted in middle school and since then has acquired the moniker "Golden Boy" - valedictorian of his high school and bachelor program

Has crippling ADHD (on and off meds)

Is a big fan (has a crush) of Viktor's theories so he followed him around until the latter agreed to take him on as a research assistant (even pays him a bit)

Needs to create with his hands when he is overwhelmed so he found the only blacksmiths in Cambridge and works there on the weekends (loves it, sometimes Viktor or Mell will show up to encourage him or pass him a warm tea in the winter)

Is taken on extravagant vacations with Mel, whenever brands allow her to get a plus one and as a result has traveled a great deal of the world

Likes glitz and glamour just as much as he likes physics and getting dirty in the forge

Finds Sky Young and her passion for the outdoors difficult to understand but also hides in the botanic garden whenever a panic attack knocks on the door (they butt heads a lot but their hatred for a lot of other people unites them into an unstoppable force)

Doesn't get hit on a lot because everyone is scared of Mel (rightfully so)

Mel Medarda, 26, American heiress (both of her parents are American)

Position: PhD in Politics and International studies

Has a substantial online following and likes to nurture it. Wouldn't call herself an influencer but people do gawk and stare at her at campus.

Has never in her life known what it means to fail. Excels in every exam, every picture and every schedule she sets her sights on.

Picky with people, but charming to strangers

Likes to spend time in the lab with the boys whenever she has the time. Absorbs knowledge like it's nobody's business. Often offers a different perspective to their problems.

Her parents sent her off to England when she was 10 to a boarding school so she wouldn't grow too attached to them (they have never been a strong presence in her life). That built up a level of insecurity and anxiety within her that whenever they DO show up they're always disappointed she is not hanging out with those that could elevate her status.

Is close with her brother however (he is an aspiring politician). He likes all of her lovers/friends.

Due to everyone's attention always being on her, she TOO hides in the botanic garden to spend time with the human version of lily flowers. Also has a crush on Sky Young as much as Jayce has a crush on Viktor (they are excelling at bisexuality). Sky put a Marigold behind her ear once and told her everything will be alright and Mel's heart never quite recovered from that.

Also enjoys spending time just with Viktor. Jayce can be overwhelming at times. Viktor provides a slower pace and a more structured conversation. Brings him to galas where her parents have some level of involvement. He provides her with a lot of emotional support due to his DNA's idgafism.

Any attempt to hit on her falls flat. It's the equivalent of "baby...we couldn't even get a drink together."

Sky Young, 25, Mixed (Eastern European mom, British dad. Her mother's genes didn't even put up a fight, they just resigned)

Position: Master in Biological Studies with a focus on Plant Science

Has a full scholarship from the university. Also chose to assists the dean of bio studies (makes good money out of it) as to not burden her parents

Sky's and Viktor's moms were close when they were young so Viktor and Sky grew up relatively close whenever Sky traveled "home" for "vacation". She'd throw stones at anyone who had something to say about Viktor's disability (she never understood how they could be so mean to someone so inspiring)

Her parents nurtured her love for anything she wants to be (she's very emotionally healthy)

A shy extrovert. Needs a minute to get going. She makes acquintances very easy and can't quite figure out when sweetness borders on flirtations with those she truly cares for. (Doesn't understand how counting the moles on your childhood friend's face while holding it, putting flowers in the hair of the most gorgeous woman and hugging someone through their dark episode, is not something anyone would do)

Assigns flowers names in the garden.

Collects old volumes of classical literature

Writes short stories in her free time and bakes from time to time (designated birthday baker)

Can't drive, always walks or takes the bus (Mel would pick her up from time to time)

The only one of the four with a proper, clean apartment (they all hang out there, she makes them keys at some point)

Gets hit on a lot (she genuinely thinks people are just being nice and polite to her because she is to them)

A/N: I actually love that Au so much, if anyone has more thoughts, I'd love to hear.

[rjzimmerman]

The Complicated Ecology of Cemeteries (Sierra Club)

Excerpt from this story from Sierra Club:

Cemeteries are a paradox in the modern Western world. On one hand, they are widely seen as calm and comforting spaces, places to grieve but also quietly contemplate in a world that offers few such chances. But their association with death—and decades of horror films and suspenseful TV shows using them as backdrops—can make them unnerving places. This same complicated relationship extends beyond the human experience of grave sites. For the nonhuman world of plants and animals, cemeteries can be sources of both refuge and danger.

Itescu, along with Jonathan Jeschke of the Freie Universität Berlin, published a paper earlier this year reviewing the biodiversity value of cemeteries and comparing it with other urban spaces like parks and botanical gardens. They found that cemeteries tended to host more native species than city parks, which were often landscaped with non-native or even invasive plants. Parks had their own advantages and contained slightly more species overall, but cemeteries proved to be important plant and animal havens in urban areas, including for endangered species like orchids. It’s one of the first global reviews of the biodiversity of cemeteries, with data from 50 cities in 27 countries.

A high-level study like Itescu and Jeschke’s can tell us a lot about the overall value of cemeteries to wildlife, but there is so much variety in the size, age, and management of individual sites that further inspection can provide even more insight into these unnaturally natural urban oases.

The rural cemetery as we know it, with its parklike landscaping and winding walking paths, is a relatively modern concept, only about 150 years old. Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of the oldest and most visited burial sites in the United States. It was among the first in the country to embrace this new type of design. For its architects, Alexander Wadsworth and Jacob Bigelow, the cemetery was not just a place for the deceased to rest. Rather, it could also be a destination for loved ones and others to visit.

Their design is rare among cemeteries not only for its age and claim to fame but also because it employs a full-time ecologist—Paul Kwiatkowski. When he first came to Mount Auburn in 1999 to work in the greenhouse, the cemetery’s president allowed him to experiment with improving the water quality in their ponds and then collect rainwater to reduce their groundwater usage. Over time, those small steps added up to a more conservation-minded way to manage the whole site, drawing the attention of other experts who wanted to help.

“We invited ecologists, biologists, hydrologists, landscape designers, and herpetologists,” Kwiatkowski said, “and we got everyone together to walk around the cemetery, to have conversations and evaluate where we stood with what we had been doing to improve habitat and create a balance between natural and manipulated areas.”

Today, the 175-acre cemetery is home to a huge variety of wildlife and hosts researchers from around the country studying its flora and fauna. Animals like bats, coyotes, foxes, and raccoons frequently roam the grounds. And it’s become one of the most diverse birding sites in the Boston area, enticing warblers, owls, flycatchers, and other resident and migratory species.

[world-of-wales]

DIAMOND JUBILEE TOUR : DAY I - 1 SEPTEMBER 2012

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived at Changi Airport in Singapore, where they received an official welcome to kick off day one of their royal tour in celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

For their first official engagement on tour, William & Catherine visited the Singapore Botanic Gardens, and later, in the evening attended a reception and state dinner at the Istana Presidential Palace in Singapore.

[princesscatherineblog]

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge during a visit to the Singapore Botanical Gardens on day 1 of the Diamond Jubilee tour on September 11, 2012 in Singapore.