Botanic Gardens

DMAF and I arranged to catch up after her weekend away in Europe (far less middle aged than my local trips) and meet at Oadby’s Botanic Gardens.  Although the Botanic Gardens are fronted by the very busy A6, once you’re inside you feel you’re somewhere quite secluded and away from the city and we stroll along the pathways lined with borders of flowers and for those in the know, many of the plants and flowers are rare and specialist. 

Outside of term-time the 1920s house becomes a café with tables set out underneath the trees on the lawn and a pretty setting for our cappuccinos, with cakes, lunch and breakfast available depending on time of day.  

It all sounds rather sedate but an antidote to that is that you’ll be walking around the gardens and out of the blue see a pair of legs or an industrial sort of structure in the middle of a lawn as since 2002 the gardens have hosted an annual Sculpture in the Garden exhibition. 

Apparently, this year’s theme for the sculptures is ‘A Change of Heart’.  I researched this fact for you dear blog readers and must go back to the gardens to see if my middle-aged brain can make more of the sculptures with the theme in mind.

The good: The sculptures add more interest.

The not so good: Café only open for two months of the year (as the rest of the time the house is inhabited by students) so check if you’re planning a visit.

Go again : An easy convenient place to get to, plenty of on-street parking and would definitely go again particularly when the cafe is open.

University of Leicester Botanic Garden, Stoughton Drive South,Oadby, Leics.LE2 2NE
botanicgarden@le.ac.uk