By. A.C
During the year I like to visit the David Welch Winter Gardens at Duthie Park on a fairly regular basis.
I can take my time, and I certainly use the many seats and benches in the greenhouses there. There are steps at the Arid House and Tropical House, but that should not stop full access as the paths go round them.
The gardeners there do a great job in cultivating, propagating and laying out new beds of plants and flowers, as the seasons change.
At this time of year you will see all different kinds of spring bulbs and flowers, which in turn will be lifted, and the flower beds replanted with Hyacinth, Amaryllis, polyanthus, Begonias, Malaysian Busy Lizzies etc.
The Winter Gardens are one of the largest areas under glass in Europe, and have many exotic, rare and colourful plants, that can only be seen if one visits regularly throughout the growing year.
There are flowers that look like they should be in coral reef:
and some plants that are not vegetarian.
Some that are like dinner plates and sweet scented and in the entrance area.
The Gardens are split up different zones and there are also themed areas.
The zones are: Tropical, Arid,Temperate, Fern and Papyrus House, along with the Victorian Corridor, Abutilon Corridor, and Scented Corridor.
The Fern House is where MacPuddock the Frog lies in wait to bubble to the surface of the pond.
The Arid or cactus House has seen the rebirth of Spike the talking cactus.
There is also a Japanese section, and a traditional external perennial, raised bed and flowering shrub area.
The Sensory Corridor or Perfumed Corridor is a favourite of mine, with its heady scents of Jasmine,Lemon Scented Pelargoniums, and plants that give scent when one takes the leaves between the fingers to feel the texture.
The car parks off Riverside Drive have been reduced in size, so I would advise avoiding visiting on weekends if you require a parking space close to the Winter Gardens. There are spaces off Polmuir Road gate as well. The park will also be very busy when there are shows or other events being staged. First Bus No’s 17 & 17A and 18 do all go past the park gates at Polmuir Road. Stagecoach have route No’s , x6,x7,x8 and 204 also.
See this website for disabled access ratings on many attractions in the North –East.
