Dawyck Botanic Garden

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Dawyck Botanic Garden is a 25-hectare garden and arboretum in Stobo, on the B712, about 8 miles southwest of Peebles in the Scottish Borders. It sits in the Upper Tweed Valley, a National Scenic Area, and is open from 1 February to 30 November. Dawyck is one of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s regional gardens, together with Logan and Benmore.

The name has also appeared as Dawic and Dauwic. It may come from Gaelic for ox and Old English for camp or dwelling.

History: The Veitch family planted the garden at Dawyck House in the 1600s. The Naesmith family took over in 1691. Sir John Murray Naesmith supported plant-hunting trips, especially those of David Douglas. In 1897 the Balfour family bought the Dawyck Estate, and in 1978 they gave the Garden to the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, with Dawyck House and chapel remaining privately owned. The private Dawyck Chapel, built in 1837, sits on the site of the ancient Dalwick Chapel within the gardens.

Heritage Trees: Three of Scotland’s Heritage Trees are at Dawyck. The Dawyck Silver Fir stands about 35 m tall, with a trunk about 1.72 m in diameter and a girth of about 5.4 m. The Dawyck Larch, planted in 1725, is about 33 m tall with a girth of 4.46 m. The Dawyck Beech, planted in 1860, has an upswept branch form.