The Royal Botanical Gardens of Edinburgh (RBGE) reported “devastation” and “severe damage” following storm Éowyn last week.
The Gardens, located in Inverleith, saw the felling of Edinburgh’s tallest tree – a 29-metre-tall Himalayan cedar, which was planted 166 years ago, in 1859, by Albert, the eldest son of Queen Victoria.
14 other trees also fell in the Botanical Garden during the storm, and 27 faced severe damage or uprooting.
The RBGE also reported over 100 panels of glass smashed in their greenhouses due to the storm, which saw wind gusts over 90mph and caused a rare red weather warning across Scotland.
“The storm has had a devastating impact, both in terms of financial cost and the loss of some of the cherished National Botanical Collection,” Simon Milne, Regius keeper at RBGE said in a statement.
“It is especially heartbreaking to lose treasured trees like the Cedar, which stood tall for over a century before I was even born,” the statement continued.
Efforts quickly began after the storm to repair the damage caused, and the garden reopened on Sunday 26 January, with damaged areas kept closed to the public for safety reasons.
The RBGE has begun an appeal for donations to their Storm Damage Appeal, aiming to “enable and ensure our quick and effective response to future incidents of extreme weather damage.”
“Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh 02” by byronv2 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.