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Food Fair
There are tasty treats a-plenty to cheer up the long, cold month of January at the National Botanic Garden’s Food Fair weekend.
The event takes place in the stunning surrounds of Lord Foster’s Great Glasshouse on January 20-21 and offers a mouth-watering array of delicious local produce – and entry to the Garden is just £4 per person.
Event organiser David Hardy said: “This is your chance to try and buy anything and everything from raw chocolate to rare breed meat, chilli sauce and cheese; special gin, Spanish tapas, muffins, marshmallows, fruit vinegars and faggots. And there will be plenty of fresh, warm Welsh cakes, too. What’s not to like?!”
The Garden’s stunning (and tropical!) Butterfly House is a must-see, boasting as it does hundreds of exotic, rainforest butterflies from around the world.
Gates open at 10am and close again at 4.30pm (last entry 3.30pm). There’s no additional charge for the Food Fair and there is plenty of free parking for everyone.
Don’t forget: admission to the Garden is FREE on weekdays in January – perfect for a winter stroll in the wonderful Carmarthenshire countryside.
For more information about this and other Garden events visit our website, email info@gardenofwales.org.uk or call 01558 667149.
Keep Fit – For FREE!
Take advantage of FREE entry on weekdays in January to keep fit with a choice of walks, with plenty of plants and wildlife to enjoy on the way. Pick up a ‘Fit For Free‘ trails leaflet at the main entrance on your way in, or take a look here to plan your visit beforehand.
Why not crack on with those new year resolutions and burn some unwanted calories against the stunning backdrop of 568 acres of National Botanic Garden?
We have created a series of trails around the Garden – some on flat paths to suit strollers, pushchairs and wheelchairs; and some more rugged, off-road routes around the estate.
The various trails are clearly way-marked and there’s a free map to accompany you on your journey – and each route has a ‘cupcake’ rating that indicates the degree of difficulty.
If you enjoy this way of staying healthy, think about taking a year’s membership so that you can keep coming in for free for the rest of the year.
Antiques Weekend
A vast cornucopia of curios and collectibles is set to transform the National Botanic Garden of Wales – as the Derwen Antiques Fair prepares to return – as well as BBC’s Bargain Hunt returning to film over the weekend.
Antiques, collectables, retro and vintage will take centre stage among the rare and endangered blooms here on Saturday and Sunday 27th and 28th of January.
It’ll also be a Doggy Weekend, so bring your pet pooch for some of Carmarthenshire’s best fresh air!
Free Lunchtime Talks
There’s a chance to cheer up the chilly winter days of January by hearing tales of botanical derring-do from around the world.
International modern-day plant explorers will be giving talks at the National Botanic Garden of Wales on three consecutive Fridays at 12 noon – the talks are free and admission to the Garden is free, too.
On the 19th, it’s the turn of Tom Christian, Project Officer at the International Conifer Conservation Programme. His talk ‘Travel in search of Conifers’ will draw on his many travels in search of conifers both at home and abroad, and will help to present this extraordinary group of plants in a new light.
Guardian columnist Robbie Blackhall-Miles completes the trio of intrepid horticultural hunters on January 26 with a talk entitled ‘Hunting Shapeshifters: the search for Proteas in the mountains of South Africa’. Robbie is a plantsman and conservationist. Fossil Plants, his backyard botanic garden in North Wales, houses a collection of early evolutionary plants.
The talks start at 12 noon in the Garden’s Theatr Botanica. For more information, call 01558 667149, email info@gardenofwales.org.uk or visit https://gardenofwales.wpenginepowered.com
Volunteering at the Garden
Are you looking for something new to do this New Year? How about volunteering at the National Botanic Garden?
If you have some spare time to give, contact our Volunteering Department to discuss possible volunteering roles available – jane.down@gardenofwales.org.uk
Reflexology at the Garden
Did you know the Garden has a reflexology studio?
Based within the Wallace Garden, Llawenydd is run by experienced refloxoligst, Jody Evans.
Reflexology is the science that deals with the principle that there are reflex areas in the feet and hands that correspond to all glands and organs of the body. Stimulating these reflexes properly can help many health problems in a natural way.
Reflexology treatment normally lasts an hour, with a medical consultation taken before treatment.
For more information including appointment availability, please contact Jody Evans on 07766043237 or llawenyddjody@gmail.com