118 Hälsoträdgården (the Health Garden) in Kristianstad lies right next to the Helge å river. Across the river, beyond the slowly flowing water and reeds and wetland willows, lies naturum Vattenriket, the visitor’s center in the Kristianstad Vattenrike Biosphere Reserve. A long wooden bridge, with one base at the corner of the Health Garden, connectsContinue reading “Kristianstad (ii)”
Author Archives: Katja
Kristianstad (i)
117 Next to the (mostly) calm waters of Helge å river, a stone’s throw from Kristianstad railway station, lies Hälsoträdgården, or, the Health Garden. Small, and not a botanic garden per se, but systematic and well-kept. Organized, a little, like I can imagine a monastery kitchen garden could have been, with flower beds and herbsContinue reading “Kristianstad (i)”
Edinburgh (iii)
116 Botanic gardens are systematic. Sometimes that makes them feel stiff and constraining. Not Edinburgh Royal Botanic Garden. It is vast, but it is planned around thematic areas, surrounded by patches of trees, which creates surprise and a sense of adventure. Every time you walk around a bend in the path, a new creation ofContinue reading “Edinburgh (iii)”
Paris (ii)
115 I think the botanic garden in Paris very much follows the French style, more so than the Montpellier garden does – although, admittedly, I don’t really know what I’m talking about. What I mean with the French style is pictures I’ve seen from French castle gardens, especially the ones at Versailles. The open spaces,Continue reading “Paris (ii)”
Montpellier (ii)
114 There was no entrance fee to the botanic garden in Montpellier during my visit in 2016, and the opening hours were long, making it a place that locals and tourists alike seemed to enjoy visiting for a calm evening stroll. There were birds, and cats everywhere! I spent several hours walking around on theContinue reading “Montpellier (ii)”
spring rain
113 I love what the spring rain does to the colors outside my windows. It is raining in Stockholm today and I was sitting in a meeting, listening to a colleague complain about the weather, and I thought: I can’t understand this. Yes, with the non-stop clouds and rain in November, but now? The moistureContinue reading “spring rain”
Oaxaca (iii)
112 There is definitely a point to having a guide explain things in the ethnobotanic garden of Oaxaca. There were no signs, but the guide was very knowledgeable and explained all about the wild and the cultivated, the native and the species that were brought here by the Europeans. The state of Oaxaca, according toContinue reading “Oaxaca (iii)”
Oslo (ii)
111 The greenhouses in the Oslo university botanic garden are not large, no, quite small actually, and old. Two beautiful metal, wood and glass structures, one tropical with three separate wings, and the other a temperate palm house. When I first entered the wing with the water lily pond in the tropical green house, IContinue reading “Oslo (ii)”
Barcelona (ii)
110 Visiting new cities can be a tiring exercise. Maybe that’s a contributing factor to why I fell into the habit of visiting botanic gardens. Except for maybe Kew in London and Jadin des Plantes in Paris, my general experience is that botanic gardens are places in otherwise busy cities where you can get aContinue reading “Barcelona (ii)”
stories about sheep
109 I’m reading a book about sheep. “A Short History of the World According to Sheep” by Sally Coulthard. I love how it meanders through the centuries, touching upon everything from the incredible properties of wool to how we started making cheese. Did you know that we have the domestication of sheep to thank forContinue reading “stories about sheep”
Katja Malmborg 