Birds and the Bees at Lambeth
28/05/2010
Who was on the throne when the fig tree was planted? How many fruits grow in the garden?* Just two of the questions for visitors following the Archbishop's nature trail and quiz at today's Open Garden event at Lambeth Palace designed to reveal the wealth of wildlife in the historic gardens and grounds.
Designed by head gardener Alistair Cook the trail was part of the worldwide celebrations for the UN's International Day for Biological Diversity. Visitors were able to win a bottle of fair-trade wine (donated by Traidcraft) by successfully answering a range of questions on birds and bees, fruit and trees, and even foxes.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams sent a special message to visitors: "My family and I very much enjoy living here at Lambeth Palace - a unique oasis so close to the centre of London. I am especially delighted that the garden is playing its part in the UN's International Year of Biodiversity supported by the Church of England's Shrinking the Footprint campaign. We hope that you can take a moment or two to follow our biodiversity trail and quiz and enjoy the wonderful garden, wildlife and historic surroundings."
Lambeth Palace has one of the oldest and largest private gardens in London -the site has been occupied by Archbishops of Canterbury since the end of the 12th Century.
Ends
Notes
http://www.shrinkingthefootprint.org/ the Church of England's national environmental campaign, is one of more than 380 organisations across the UK supporting the UN's international campaign. http://www.biodiversityislife.net/Lambeth open gardens is part of the National Gardens Scheme which raises money every year for a range of charities by opening thousands of mainly private gardens to the public. http://www.ngs.org.uk/
Fairtrade wine - http://www.traidcraft.co.uk/
*Answers - Queen Mary, around 45
