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Only useful for those near London... but a good programme, especially the talk by ethnobotanist Nancy Turner. Talk: Herbal Medicines at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: past, present and future Celebrating Kew's 250th at the Royal College of Physicians, Regent's Park Monday, 28 September 2009, 16:30 - 21:00 Royal College of Physicians, 11 St Andrews Place NW1 4LE To help celebrate the 250th anniversary of Kew Gardens you are warmly invited to attend a lecture, display and tour at the Royal College of Physicians on Monday 28 September 2009. Medicinal plants have been central to the role of the Gardens. The 18th and 19th centuries saw the collection and introduction of plants such as cinchona (the source of quinine); the 20th and 21st centuries have emphasised plant conservation, ethnobotanical fieldwork, and laboratory research. At this event at the Royal College of Physicians, guests can visit the Colleges extensive Physic Garden (with over 1000 species) and take a historical tour of the Grade I listed building situated on the edge of Regent's Park. After tea, Professor Monique Simmonds and Dr Mark Nesbitt will survey Kew's work on medicinal plants, drawing both on Kew's historic collections and on current research by the Jodrell Laboratory. After the lecture there will be an opportunity to examine historic material medica from Kew's Economic Botany Collection, and rare herbals and other items in the Royal College of Physicians' collection. Tours will start at 4.30pm with tea from 5.30pm. The lecture starts at 7pm and guests can arrive at any time up until then. The evening will end at 9pm. Tickets are £5 per person (includes afternoon tea) & must be pre-booked, if possible by 14 September. The booking form is online: www.rcplondon.ac.uk/history-heritage/exhibitions/Pages/Kew-Gardens.aspx Queries: [log in to unmask] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talk: Bringing the food back home indigenous foodways, nutrition and biodiversity in western Canada Annual distinguished Ethnobotanist lecture, 2009: Prof. Nancy Turner Tuesday, 20 October 2009, 17.00-18.30 Jodrell Lecture Theatre, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Entry via Jodrell Gate on Kew Road, TW9 3DS. 10 minutes walk from Kew Gardens and Kew Bridge stations. Nancy Turner is one of the most influential (and charismatic) ethnobotanists working today. She is best known for her collaborations with First Nations peoples of western Canada, and has published extensively on wild foods and nutrition, materials, and many other topics. This is a rare opportunity to hear her speak at a European venue. Admission is free but must be prebooked: www.eventbee.com/view/nancyturner/event?eventid=62117 Queries: Mark Nesbitt [log in to unmask] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talk: Plants, empire and exploration - Historic art and artefacts in Kew's Economic Botany Collection A talk by Mark Nesbitt, presented by the Kew Mutual Information Society Monday 14 December 2009, 18.00-20.00 Jodrell Lecture Theatre, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Entry via Jodrell Gate on Kew Road, TW9 3DS. 10 minutes walk from Kew Gardens and Kew Bridge stations. In Victorian times Kew Gardens was the hub of a worldwide network exchanging plant products, knowledge about plants and, of course, actual living plants. The 90,000 specimens in Kew's Economic Botany Collection capture the extraordinary diversity of personalities, plants and source communities involved in this imperial project. Using treasures from the Collection - some of which will be on display for the evening - we'll explore what they tell us about Kew in the past 150 years, and what we can learn for today. Coverage will range from Maori cloaks to Amazonian cassava squeezers; Japanese paper hats to African poison arrows. This event is part of the Kew Mutual Improvement Society series. Admission is £2, payable at the door. Queries: Mark Nesbitt [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Behind-the-Scenes Tours: Economic Botany Collection Wednesdays in October and November 2009, 11.30 and 14.00 The Economic Botany Collection contains 90,000 plant raw materials and artefacts, and is the largest of its kind in the world. It demonstrates the fundamental role of plants in daily life, from ancient Egyptian times to the present. This tour will explore the Collection (seen right in its former home), both as a tangible record of Kew's 250 years of history, and as part of Kew's new Breathing Planet programme. In an hour the tour will cover three continents and 4000 years. These special behind-the-scenes tours start in front of the Nash Conservatory on Wednesdays in October and November at 11.30am and 2.00pm. Tours cost £5 per person and last 1½hrs. Places are limited; pre-booking essential - phone 020 8332 5604 or email [log in to unmask] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Exhibition: Fabulous fibres 1 December 2009 - 9 January 2010 Haslemere Museum, Surrey To mark Kew's 250th anniversary & the International Year of Natural Fibres, the Haslemere Educational Museum is organising a special loan exhibition from Kew's Economic Botany Collection. The exhibition will feature a global survey of artefacts made from plant fibres, and the plant raw materials from which they are made. As well as showing important 19th century collections, from Europe, Africa, Amazonia and the Pacific (many not previously displayed), the exhibit will also look at current issues of sustainability and poverty alleviation through the use of natural fibres. Admission to the Museum and exhibition is free. The Museum is family-friendly and has impressive displays of natural history, history and archaeology, and geology. Haslemere is a very attractive market town, easily reached by train or car, and well worth a visit. Open 10am - 5pm Tuesday to Saturday. Please check holiday hours on the Museum website or call 01428 642112. Haslemere Museum website: www.haslemeremuseum.co.uk