What’s on this Spring at Cambridge University Botanic Garden

For Families:

Crazy Cone Caper self-led family trail, ends 24 March
Join us for a fantastic whodunnit mystery and track down who has been stealing seeds from our pinecones! Pick up a free Crazy Cone Caper trail from the ticket office on your way into the Garden and start investigating. Find amazing pinecones from all around the world, discover cool facts and solve puzzles.
Free for children. Normal Garden admission charge for accompanying adults.

Easter Trail – The Lost Eggs, 28 March – 14 April
Butterfly has lost her eggs and needs your help to work out where she’s left them. Pick up a free booklet on your way into the Garden and visit the trail points to learn egg-citing facts and discover clues to lead you to butterfly’s missing eggs. You might even be rewarded with an egg of your own at the end!
Self-led trail. Children must be accompanied at all times. Standard Garden admission applies for adults.
Exclusive sponsor: Mills & Reeve

For Adults:

Science on Sundays
From exploring herbarium uses to discovering the secrets of wildflowers and fungi, come and discover the fascinating world of plant science in just 30 minutes! Science on Sundays is a free, informal and monthly series of talks, sharing the latest discoveries in plant science and research with our visitors.
• 17 March –The many uses of the Cambridge University Herbarium by Dr Anne Dubéarnès, Cambridge University Herbarium
• 21 April –The world beneath a wildflower meadow by Dr Raphaella Hull, Cambridge University Botanic Garden
• 19 May – Uncovering the microscopic world of mycorrhizal fungi by Dr Jen McGaley, Crop Sciences Centre, University of Cambridge
No booking required. Normal Garden entry fee applies. Suitable for adults and children aged 12+. Talks continue through the summer.

International Garden Photographer of the Year Exhibition 2024, 20 March – 7 May
Enjoy exploring a selection of stunning, winning images from the 17th International Garden Photographer of the Year Exhibition (IGPOTY).
The exhibition features a selection of photographs from across the competition’s main categories and highlights from the ‘Discovery in Cambridge University Botanic Garden’ competition, run in partnership with IGPOTY.

New adult trail: Dyes from Plants, launches May
A brand-new trail in collaboration with the Garden’s Artist-in-Residence, Nabil Ali. Dyes from Plants introduces visitors to the plant material used to create dyes, inks and paints. The trail will also provide planting inspiration for dye plants visitors can grow in their own gardens.

Adult Learning Courses
The Garden offers a wide range of workshops and courses, providing a perfect place to develop an understanding of plants, learn more about garden history or get creative. Courses this spring include:
• Growing orchids: theory and practice – 30 March. Learn about this fascinating plant family with Botanic Garden expert Luigi Leoni.
• Beginners’ garden design – 24 April – 5 June. Expert advice from RHS medal-winning garden designer Paul Herrington on designing your own garden.
• Understanding colour in plants – 20 May. Join the Botanic Garden Director, Professor Beverley Glover, for this half-day course to explore the concept of colour in plants.
• Entangled lives: exploring partnerships between plants and fungi – 7-14 May. Join two plant scientists, Alan Wanke and Raphaella Hull, to gain a unique insight into the mysterious world of mycorrhizal fungi.

Cambridge Festival Events:

Student Poetry Trail, 13 – 27 March
Did you know that the word ‘posey’ means both ‘a little flower’ and ‘a little poem’? Explore the Botanic Garden in this self-guided trail and see how many poems you can spot. Student writers have joined with the Garden to give a voice to plants that people tend to walk past or overlook. Each little poem serves as a new kind of label, speaking to those who don’t understand much from a Latin scientific name alone. There is a link on the poem label inviting the reader to reply with their own poems.
This project is part of the Cambridge Festival Student Creative Team, an initiative to encourage collaboration across Cambridge, involving more students in the festival, and encouraging creativity and public engagement.
Normal Garden admission charge applies.

The weird world of carnivorous plants, 23 March, 10.30am – 4.30pm
The Botanic Garden is home to some very weird and wonderful meat-eating plants! Come along and find out more about these strange plants, including what they eat, how they catch their food and where they grow in the wild. See the plants in action, watch videos, ask questions and have a go at making a paper carnivorous plant to take home.
For more details and to book a timed entry slot, see our website.