Richard Baines, the 60-year-old curator of Logan Botanic Garden, has been named as the man who died after being hit by a falling tree during Storm Boelo in Dumfries and Galloway.
Mr Baines was pronounced dead at the scene after the accident near his home on Sunday, when gale-force winds battered the area.
Logan Botanic Garden, in Port Logan, confirmed that its curator had died in what it described as a “tragic accident”. The garden operates as part of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s Living Collection.
David Knott, the organisation’s director of horticulture, said Mr Baines had been responsible for several major developments during his time at Logan, including the UK’s first “all green” public conservatory powered by renewable energy.
Logan was voted the Best Garden in the UK by Which in 2021. It also became the first garden in Scotland to receive a gold Green Business Tourism award and to install electric vehicle charging points, before being awarded five-star visitor attraction status by VisitScotland.
Mr Knott said Mr Baines would be remembered for his “passion and enthusiasm for plants”, as well as for significantly expanding Logan’s plant collection.
He also took part in and led fieldwork in China, the Canary Islands and Vietnam. Seven plant species collected during that work are currently being published as new to science, Mr Knott said.
Gusts of between 60mph and 70mph affected northern parts of Britain early on Sunday, with the most extreme conditions recorded in coastal areas. Wind speeds of up to 85mph were recorded in Machrihanish on Scotland’s west coast.
A second death linked to Storm Boelo was confirmed on Sunday after a man in his 20s was killed when a falling tree struck his car in Mill Hill, north London.
