A summer of celebrations & exciting outdoor activities

It’s gearing up to be an eventful summer – Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, a very special birthday, and then the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in July and August.

Expect a riot of colour in the Gardens this month, as the gardening team transfer the plants that have been carefully nurtured over the past few weeks in the nursery into the display areas.

We’ll start with the summer bedding on the Loudon Terrace, which will be filled with various shades of blue, yellow and green – the colours of the Commonwealth Games. Plants will include salvia, celosia, marigold, ageratum and lantana.

If you love dahlias (who doesn’t?), then be prepared for a gorgeous display of these exuberant colourful blooms. We’ll be planting hundreds of them along the glasshouses border on the Loudon Terrace, creating a 100ft-long kaleidoscope of colour that promises to be a sight for sore eyes.

The cacti and other succulents have already been planted on the Terrace, heralding the start of the warmer months. Not only are these specimens exotic, they show how we can enjoy a touch of the Tropics in the heart of England.

Talking of the Tropics, the Totally Tropical Beds will also be filled with lush, colourful foliage that will surely bring back memories of those more exotic holidays.

Hot colours are in order for the bandstand and we’ll be filling the beds with begonia ‘Megawatt Red’ and yellow marigolds for an eye-popping display that will last until autumn.

I mentioned a special birthday – Saturday, June 11, it is the Birmingham Botanical Gardens’ 190th birthday! The Gardens opened to the public for the first time on June 11, 1832, and since then has welcomed millions of people through the gates. We can’t promise cake and balloons, but the Gardens will definitely put on its best show for you all.

Incidentally, this day also happens to be her Majesty the Queen’s official birthday, which falls on the second Saturday in June.

We’ll be hosting plenty of superb events throughout June – from the Midland Bonsai Society Annual Show on Sunday, June 12, to live music and outdoor yoga – as well as a guided tour of our wonderful Butterfly House on Thursday, June 30. On this tour you can learn all about the tropical butterflies that we have from across the world, as well as the nectar-rich plants in there. If you are looking to take part in some outdoor activities in Birmingham – the Botanical Gardens is the place to be!

And don’t forget it’s Father’s Day on Sunday, June 19. Whether you want to treat dad to tea and cake in the café, buy him a gift in our garden centre, or just enjoy a few hours soaking in the tranquil atmosphere, you’ll be sure of a warm welcome.

If you haven’t visited the Gardens before – or it’s been a long time since you came to see us – we’d love to welcome you to our 15 acres. As an independent educational charity we rely on the generosity of public donations, grants and income we can generate through conferences, weddings and other events. We receive no regular public funding.

If you do pay us a visit, we’d love to see your photos of the Gardens on social media, so please keep posting them on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and let us know what you have enjoyed in particular on your visit here. We look forward to seeing you all this month.