The Gardens Trust presents a four part online lecture series with Toby Musgrave beginning April 18. Tickets £16 for the series or £5 each through Eventbrite. For thousands of years peoples and civilizations the world over have adopted belief systems that give a key role to the natural world and the trees, fruits and flowers to be found there. Whether living a primitive existence in a desert land or enjoying the fruits of a richly cultivated soil, man endows his spirit world, his gods and his presumed afterlife with fertile, sweet surroundings that reflect an ideal – a garden paradise. Taking a global perspective and with a chronology of over 5,000 years, Gardens of the Gods examines, explores and interprets the purpose, role, use and symbolism of plants and gardens in more than fifteen belief systems, some still practiced and others not.

The third in the series on May 2 delves into the very different – from a Western mindset – view of the concept of time and reincarnation we will explore the concepts and garden expressions influenced by Taoism, Buddhism and the Immortals in China, the syncretism with Shinto and garden outcomes in Japan, and the floral symbolisms within Hinduism as well as the celestial worlds of Svarga.

Lecturer Dr Toby Musgrave FSA FLS is a garden and plants historian, horticulturist and author. His books have covered a wide range of subjects from head gardeners to heritage fruit and vegetables, plant hunters to paradise gardens, and a biography of Sir Joseph Banks. He was a major contributor to Radio 4’s series “The British Garden” and he has been a consultant for many gardening and garden history related programs on both the BBC and commercial television. He lives in Denmark and when not gardening, teaching or writing he works as a submersible pilot. Tickets £16 for the series or £5 each. Register for this lecture HERE.