Gardening blog: Chloe marvels at the wonder of the small
A few weeks ago i bought myself a new toy – a digital microscope. These things aren’t expensive and they really do open up a whole new world. One of the most beautiful things i’ve seen so far is the embryo of a french bean seed. Here i go – humanising the plants again, but it’s so fresh and innocent and ready for life, i can’t help being in awe when i look at it.
On the microscope’s highest magnification things are even more wonderous. One of my favourite plants is Wild Garlic or Allium ursinum. It’s a staple wild food around these parts with springtime bringing much consumption of wild garlic and nettle soup, wild garlic fritters, with a bit of wild garlic salad on the side (if you like garlic anyway). The flowers are over now and the seed are forming – here you can see the developing seed, and a close up of the seed inside the “fruit” (which used to be part of the flower).
We often use a one of these gadgets on the CAT gardening courses to get a good look at what’s going on, but it’s great to have one on hand at home, just for wonder and curiosity.
Chloe is a tutor on the CAT Gardening for a Sustainable Future course in Late July
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MSc Renewable Energy and the Built Environment
The course aims to explore the theory and practice of renewable energy technologies with special reference to the built environment. The course would benefit those who wish to increase their knowledge in the major renewable energy technologies and further their careers in this sector. The theory and practice of renewable energies are examined through both practical work and academic study. The lecture programme enables students to critically analyse the benefits and drawbacks of renewable energy systems.