Join the Oxford Botanic Garden’s 400th anniversary celebrations

Oxford Botanic Gardens. Green garden with a large, stone building in the background.

Oxford Botanic Garden is delighted to welcome Oxford University staff and students to its anniversary fortnight. The celebrations will recognise plants and nature, and will include family-friendly activities, talks, tours, and performances.

On 15 July 2022, the bells of Oxfordshire’s churches and towers will ring across the county to launch two weeks of celebration marking the 400th anniversary of Oxford Botanic Garden, the oldest botanic garden in the UK. This exciting fortnight of events will welcome visitors of all ages to enjoy activities, performances and more.

With over 30 events and 13,000 tickets, the anniversary fortnight is the Botanic Garden’s most ambitious public-facing project to date. It supports the Garden’s mission to ‘share the scientific wonder and importance of plants with the world’, by inspiring visitors to connect with nature in different ways. 

The Finale Week, running from 25-30 July, is free of charge to Oxford University staff and students. The week comprises six back-to-back themed days with local musicians set to perform around activities, bringing a festival ambience to the 400-year-old Walled Garden. A community run plant-based street food fair will coincide with a birthday party for the Garden and will bring its year of celebrations to a close. 

25 organisations and individuals are behind the anniversary celebrations, including: the critically acclaimed Oxford Lieder Festival; the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE); world-renowned chef, Raymond Blanc OBE; Oxford Professor of Poetry, Alice Oswald; Zucker Art Books; and the Oxford Artisan Distillery. 


For the full programme of events and ticket details, please visit the Oxford Botanic Gardens website.