Drop in for an afternoon of creativity, discovery, and inspiration at the South London Botanical Institute. Visit our co-learning space and connect to the wonders of plants through art, science, and storytelling in our unique garden and house. You'll also have a chance to see our herbarium cateloguing project in action!
There are activities for ALL AGES and you do not have to book.
This Open Afternoon is free for all. Donations welcome.
Access
The building is not wheelchair accessible, and the workshop takes place on the first floor. If you have any access needs, please contact innes@slbi.org.uk
Other activities at the SLBI on the day. These activities are ticketed and you can book for them through our website.
11am–1pm | Drawing the Flora of London, 1775 and 2025: A Practical Workshop
Discover London’s wild plants past and present with art historian and artist Alixe Bovey. Taking inspiration from William Curtis’s Flora Londinensis (1775), participants will explore 18th-century maps, study Curtis’s exquisite botanical engravings, and create their own pen and wash drawings of plants growing in and around the SLBI today.
Cost: £5-12
3pm–4.30pm | Spells and Science: Writing Workshop
Join writer LiLi K. Bright for a creative writing workshop inspired by urban wild flowers and the plant collections of the SLBI. Learn about the meanings behind Latin plant names and use them as muses to craft spells, stories, poetry, and prose. Guided activities will help you weave science and imagination together, drawing inspiration from botanical fiction and non-fiction alike
Cost-£ 5-10
