There may be snow on the ground but the first flowers of spring are bursting through. Over at the University’s Botanic Garden in Oadby, the Crocus tommasinianus is on the march and by a week on Sunday there should be a magnificent display.

The Friends of the Botanic Garden are holding two ‘Crocus Sundays’ on 19 and 26 February with the garden open between 10.00am and 4.00pm. Alongside the brief but impressive carpets of crocuses, there should be a few other plants that are flowering early or late, plus some weather-proof displays of greenery in the Alpine House and the Cactus House.

Tea, coffee and home-made cakes will be on sale in the adjacent Beaumont Hall where you can also enjoy an exhibition about the botanical significance of crocuses, courtesy of our Department of Biology.

Entrance to the Botanic Garden on Crocus Sundays is by donation to the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance.