About Scotland

Heritage

Scotland's Gardens

"The Gairdner wi his Paiddle" - is the title of a song by Robert Burns and doesn't the Scots sound more poetic than the English version - the gardener with his spade? By Burns day in the late 18th century the fame of the"Scotch Gardener" was already established and most of the big houses in England employed one to look after their policies. Again, the access to education for the labouring classes was significant…they could study botany and horticulture as well as learning by practice…the renowned plant collector David Douglas (of Douglas Fir fame) is a classic example.

Scotland's links with Europe were also important…Holland and Flanders were historic trading zones, and the University of Leyden attracted a huge number of Scots especially in the 17th century. In addition to studying law and medicine, they became aware of new developments in the study of plants and this led to the establishment of the first botanical gardens in Edinburgh

All over the country you can see this great tradition flourish in the Botanical Gardens of the towns and cities, in the formal gardens of historic houses like Pitmedden and Crathes in Aberdeenshire, and Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, or in the splendid quasi tropical abundance of Inverewe Gardens in Wester Ross.