Is this the biggest Den ever built?

Here's a group pic taken on Saturday July 19 when everyone was invited to roll up their sleeves and attempt to build the biggest den ever.

Den building is the theme of Eden's 2008 summer season, and to kick it off in spectacular fashion, visitors, our Den Challenge Team and local scout and guide groups worked together to fill the arena with the biggest den possible in just two hours.

Watch the timelapse film of us building what might be the world's biggest den.

Think you can do better? Everyone who comes to Eden from July 19 to September 4 can take part in den building fun and build their own den. You can also learn all sorts of survival skills such as knot-tying, making fire without matches, family trails, treasure hunts, an orienteering challenge, kite-making workshops and there will be a magical base camp to explore.

Sustainability in Surfing

Don't be surprised to find a 1960 VW Westfalia camper with surfboards and wetsuits trailing out of the back alongside the exotic plants of Eden’s Mediterranean Biome this summer.

The striking artwork is by acclaimed artist Ben Cook and underlines the fact that many surf-related objects are non bio-degradable and toxic to the marine environment.

Alongside this exhibition there are lots more "The Core" of Eden, where wall mounted abstract landscape paintings, made of eco-friendly surf related materials are on show, proving the surf community is taking environmental issues more seriously in the 21st century.

Puya berteroniana flowers for the first time at Eden

A rare and spectacular “carnivorous” plant from South America has flowered in our outdoor landscape for the first time since it was planted seven years ago.

The Puya berteroniana, which originates from the Andes mountain range in central Chile, is a member of the bromeliad family and related to the pineapple. It has distinctive turquoise and orange flowers which give off a rich, burnt-sugar fragrance.

At its base, the Puya berteroniana has barbed leaves which can make lethal traps for small mammals and even, it is claimed, larger prey such as sheep and cattle. An animal that is trapped may die of dehydration and fertilise the soil the plant is growing in as its carcass decomposes.

The Puya berteroniana can be found in the Plants for a warmer climate exhibit in the outdoor landscape at Eden but isn’t expected to last beyond July so you'd better get down here quick if you don't want to miss it.

Eden gardeners in a fizz over first-ever Kola nut

Our Horticulturalists are dead chuffed to find that the cola nitida plant has produced fruit for the first time since it was planted in the Rainforest Biome eight years ago.

We also believe that it's the first time the fruit has flowered in the UK.

Green and lumpy, the fruit, originally found in West Africa, has several medicinal purposes. It's most commonly used for its high caffeine properties and as a flavour for popular soft cola drinks.

By chewing the seed, the caffeine in the plant gives you a natural high, making you more sociable and chatty. Other effects of chewing the fruit include loss of appetite and the ability to work harder for longer. It has medicinal properties to relieve diarrhoea and symptoms of malaria.

The plant, two metres tall by three wide, is fruiting now in the West Africa area of the Rainforest Biome. If you want to see it, you'll need to rush down to Eden in the next two weeks before the fruit drops.