Ventnor Botanic Gardens (I of Wight)

Ventnor Botanic Gardens “lies in the remarkable microclimate at the heart of the famous ‘Undercliff.’ Its climate means that “The Garden is unrivalled for its collections of subtropical plants grown unprotected out of doors.” That all sounds lovely, but do the many visitors who go through the doors every year support hunting, because its Director is John Curtis, who has been a Master with the Isle of Wight Foxhounds since the 2014-2015 season and its Director since 2107? The Gardens share a postcode with another business which also lists John Curtis as its Director, Hill Hassal Botanics, which states that it sources its eucalypt leaves from Ventnor Botanic Gardens “the former site of Dr. Hassall’s hospital, the birthplace of Hill Hassall Botanics, and the home of our Eucalyptus trees.” While technically not the same business, the two are of course intextricably tied with support for fox hunting through Mr Curtis…