The Eden Project

Described as the Eighth Wonder of the World, the Eden Project is owned by the Eden Trust, a registered educational charity (charity number 1093070). It was built as part of the Landmark Millennium Projects, marking the year 2000 in the UK and erected on the site of a depleted china clay quarry close to St Austell, Cornwall.

The site attracts over one million visitors every year and runs several projects, campaigns and programmes on what they see as critical issues both in the UK and internationally including 'The Big Lunch' and 'The Eden Climate Fund'. The Eden Project is even in the Guinness Book of Records for having the largest conservatories in the world.

Construction of the Eden Project

During the construction in excess of 83,000 tonnes of soil was made specifically for the Eden Project, with the help of Reading University, using mineral components from local mine waste; IMERYS china clay works provided the sand, while the clays were from WBB Devon Clays Ltd.

43 million gallons of rainwater drained into the pit during the first two months of construction prompting the engineers to come up with a subterranean drainage system, collecting all the water coming on to the site averaging around 20,000 baths full a day. This equates to 43% of The Eden Projects water needs, used for flushing toilets and irrigating the plants. The waterfall in the Rainforest Biome also uses recycled water.

Species and Plants at the Eden Project

There are roughly one million plants at The Eden Project and very few of these are rare. If there is a rare plant it has been included to help spread the message regarding the need for conservation. Most plants were grown in the nursery from seed while others came from research stations and botanical gardens in and around Europe. The Biomes have birds and lizards to help with pest control for the plants.

Eden Project Biomes and Facilities

Rainforest Biome

The temperature ranges from 18ºC to 35ºC and has a humidity of around 90%.

There are around 16,000 individual plants from over 1,100 different species and cultivars in the Rainforest Biome. The Rainforest Biome also houses the Balsa (Ochroma lagopus) which was grown from seed and stands at around 30m tall.

The water that falls on the biomes is used to create the mist in this biome.

Mediterranean Biome

The temperature is kept at a minimum of 9ºC in winter and a maximum of 25ºC in the summer.

It is over half a hectare in size and contains 1015 different species and cultivars.

Gardens

Over ten years ago this was a bare landscape with no level ground, no soil or plants and 15 meters below the water level.

Now there are 1,890 different species and cultivars in the Eden Project Gardens, over three-quarters of all their plants taking up the space of over 30 football pitches (13 hectares).

The Core

The core is one of the most sustainable buildings in the world, designed to minimise its impact on the environment during construction and future use. The Eden Project's Education Centre is spread over three floors connected by stairs and lift. The ground floor is reached by children outside the building through a tiny door and then down a slide. The second floor is used for exhibitions, films, seminars and children's workshops while the third floor has a 'superfoods' cafe with views of the biomes.

Events

The Eden project has hosted the groundbreaking 'Live 8 Africa Calling' and one-day live music festival the 'Eden Sessions' with big name performers such as The Verve, Kaiser Chiefs, Oasis, Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen and Basement Jaxx.

Hotel and wedding packages are available with the Mediterranean Biome, The Gallery, Rainforest Biome, The Core, The Stage and The Link Building all available for the wedding ceremony.

The Eden Project Official Website