Logan Botanic Garden
Port Logan
Galloway
DG9 9ND
Why We Should Visit
Because of its position, just seven miles from the bottom of the Mull of Galloway, and with sea on both sides, Logan Botanic Garden enjoys the mildest conditions of any garden in Scotland.
This unique microclimate, combined with clean air and long hours of sunshine, allow plants from the southern hemisphere to thrive. The collection includes plants from New Zealand, Chile and South Africa which have been used in innovative ways to create one of the most exciting gardens in the country.
Story of the Garden
The walled garden was once the vegetable garden of nearby Logan House, which was built in 1702, and which has an outstanding garden of its own.
The land which Logan now occupies was gifted to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in 1969 and since then it has been used to house the RBGE’s collection of tender, subtropical and borderline-hardy plants.
New plants are continually being added, including some that are threatened in their natural habitats and the garden is an important resource for the RBGE’s botanists and scientists.
Highlights
Visitors are greeted by a long avenue of cabbage palms and pass through the gates to discover forests of tree ferns and groves of Giant
Gunnera. From early-flowering rhododendrons and camellias to rare trees and an abundance of eucalyptus, this is a garden that always has leaves, bark or flowers to enjoy.
Don’t Miss
Logan doesn’t open officially until March 1, but every weekend throughout February it is holding snowdrop weekends, when the huge numbers of bulbs that are spread out through the garden and woodlands are in flower. The snowdrops at Logan are the first to flower in Scotland and from here the season ripples northwards.
Anything Else to Look Out For?
Ferns, both native and from warmer climates, are a feature of Logan. These grow alongside Chatham Island forget-me-nots and Echiums, which in summer produce towering flower spikes. Water lilies grow on the pond and all kinds of rare and tender shrubs produce flowers over a long period.
Logan also has a visitor centre, an award-winning cafe and its elegant glasshouses were the very first in the UK to be heated using green technology.
Best Time to Visit
Because of the huge range of subtropical species that grow at Logan, there is always something in flower, from daffodils in March right through to the Nerines which are still in flower at the very end of the season.
Any Recommendations in the Area?
The Mull of Galloway Lighthouse sits on the southernmost point of Scotland and from here there are views towards Northern Ireland, the Isle of Mann and the Lake District.
The Lighthouse is open to visitors from March onwards and there is also an RSPB nature reserve which is home to many different kinds of seabird.
Directions
The garden is 12 miles south of Stranraer, off the A716.
Details
Logan will be open on Saturdays and Sundays throughout February and then from March 1 until October 31 from 10am-6pm.
T: 01776 860231
Email: logan@rbge.org.uk
www.rbge.org.uk
Danevale Park near Castle Douglas is a mature garden with woodland walks alongside the River Dee.
It has been holding Snowdrop Days in aid of Scotland’s Gardens Scheme charities since 1951 and this year it will open on Sunday, February 19, from 12pm until 4 noon.
There will be snowdrops for sale and homemade teas and as well as white flowers, the grounds will also be carpeted in yellow aconites.
Other gardens opening for Scotland’s Garden Scheme this month include Stuckenduff in Shandon (February 19) where the snowdrops are spread over three and a half acres; Kirkton Manor near Peebles (February 15 and 22), which has spectacular views over the Manor Valley, and Lindores House in Newburgh (February 25 and 26), which has extensive banks of snowdrops.
Danevale Park
Crossmichael
Castle Douglas DG7 2LP
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