Important Darwin plants unveiled at the Botanic Garden

Two important plants connected with the life of naturalist, Charles Darwin, will be unveiled at the University of Bristol Botanic Garden today [Friday 3 March].

Visitors to the Garden will be able to see Lachenalia aloides, a tender, winter growing, South African bulb, which was grown at Darwin’s family home, The Mount in Shrewsbury, when he was a small boy, and Morus nigra, the black mulberry, connected with Darwin’s own home at Down House in Kent.

Nick Wray, Curator of the Botanic Garden, said: “For a long time I have been fascinated by a plant that can be seen held by a seven-year-old Charles Darwin in a portrait of him drawn in chalk by artist Ellen Sharples in 1816.

“I have long thought that this plant was Lachenalia aloides, because of the shape and colour of the inflorescence, particularly the distinctive green-blue markings at the tip of the flower tube.  One can imagine the young Charles and his sister Catherine Emily being asked to sit for their portrait around the time of Charles’ birthday.  When grown in a cool glasshouse the plant flowers in February and is often in full bloom around the time of Darwin’s birthday on 12 February.”

Confirmation of the plant came last month [11 February] when Nick was asked to give a talk at the annual Shrewsbury Darwin Festival on ‘The evolution of flowers’.

Darwin’s mother Susannah Darwin (née Wedgwood), a Unitarian, worshipped together with her young children at the Shrewsbury Unitarian Church.

David Wood, Editor of the Shrewsbury Unitarian Church newsletter, wrote: “Nick concluded his talk by showing us a chalk drawing of Charles Darwin as a young boy holding a pot of Lachenalia aloides. This non-hardy plant from South Africa would have been quite rare in the early 1800s and would have to have been glasshouse grown. To connect us to this picture of Darwin, Nick had brought up a pot of the same flower.”

One of the few young plants established from Darwin’s original black mulberry, which had fallen into decline and was in danger of dying out, has been propagated by Rowan Blaik, former Head Gardener at Down House, will be presented to the Botanic Garden by Christopher Weddell, Senior Gardens Advisor at English Heritage.

Nick Wray said: “I am very pleased that we are fortunate to be able to receive one of these special young black mulberry trees from the original plant once grown by Charles Darwin. We do not currently have this species in the Botanic Garden and this valuable addition to our collections will help enrich our plant displays both botanically and culturally’.  

Christopher Weddell added: “It is important to keep propagating plants like these to ensure their genetic stock continues for the next generation. I am delighted to be able to offer a plant to the University of Bristol Botanic Garden, a Garden well-known for its evolutionary theme, strong links to teaching and where I worked as a trainee horticulturist in 1994.”

The propagation project has taken two years to complete and the new plant at Botanic Garden will form part of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Display.