ABGF

Monday, September 21, 2009

Gardening presenter and writer Sophie Thomson’s earliest memories of the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide lie in the Hills where as a young girl she explored the “weird and wonderful plants grown by former Gardens director Noel Lothian and his wife Viv”, and remembers joining them at the opening of the Mount Lofty Gardens, a place she loves still. 

“I’ve always responded most intensely to the sensory aspect of the Gardens,” she says, “the moist, rainforest smell that lingers beneath the avenue of Moreton Bay Figs; wriggling my toes in the Gardens’ soft lawn, the incredible scent of the magnolias at Mount Lofty.”

“When I lived on Carrington Street in the city I would walk to the Gardens at least once a week and just follow my nose,” Sophie laughs, “if you saw a bottom sticking up in a garden bed it was mine; I always had my nose in some plant or other. Even today, if I have a work commitment at the Gardens I arrive half an hour early just so I can check out what is in flower.” 

As a young mother with a busy career, Sophie still makes time to visit the Gardens on weekends, generally for family picnics.

“To me, a visit to the Botanic Gardens, whether it is Adelaide, Mount Lofty or Wittunga, is food for the soul,” she says, “from the tallest tree to the smallest ground cover or bulb; the smells, from sweet bouquets to musty earthy scents; and the multitude of sounds all nourish me in quite a profound way.”

“I recommend you acquaint — or reacquaint — yourself with the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide; smell the wafting scents; walk bare foot; hug a tree…get carried away.”