Glasgow Wins Gold at Gardening Scotland

Glasgow's Kibble Palace has moved to Edinburgh - but don't fret - it's not the real glasshouse.

Miniature versions of the Kibble's famous steel arches feature in a Glasgow City Council exhibit at the Gardening Scotland festival.

The Glasgow display marks the bicentenary of the city's much loved Botanic Gardens and measures 30sqm. It pays homage to botanists throughout the ages who travelled the world collecting new plants and seeds.

It was created by the council's Parks Development Design team and features a slate river as well as flora which can be viewed at the Botanic Gardens, in glasshouses and parks throughout the city. Almost 600 plants were used in the design and much of the planting highlights the council's tropical and arid collections as well as the national collections of begonias and tree ferns which Glasgow holds.

The council team, which includes five apprentices and staff from Glasgow Flowers, spent two and a half days putting the display together in the run up to the show and their preparation was meticulous. They even went so far as to use a make-up brush tied to a stick to dust tiny specks of dirt from 35 white orchids - ensuring they were pristine for the judges.

All their hard work paid off when they learned today (Fri) that the stand had won a coveted GOLD medal from the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society.

Visitors to the three day show, which opened today at the Royal Highland Centre in Edinburgh, are invited to view the Glasgow display which is in the Highland Hall.

Wayne Travis, Landscape Officer, said: "We've had a wonderful response to the exhibit since the show opened and were over the moon to win a Gold medal. People have been taking loads of photographs and asking us questions. The slate river has been really popular, as people want to try it in their gardens at home.

"It was quite stressful putting it all together. A few of  the plants had gone past their best, so we had to swap them out and juggle things about a bit. You're never satisfied, because you want it to look its best and now we have to keep watering it and misting the plants to ensure it stays that way throughout the show."

All the plants from the exhibit will return to Glasgow where they'll be used to beautify the city's parks and greenspaces.