Botanical Garden Definitions

Discussion in 'Plants: Science and Cultivation' started by mesosaur, Mar 23, 2005.

  1. mesosaur

    mesosaur Member

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    Hi,
    I am a plant enthusiast and a member of the local Friends of the Botanical Gardens here in Penang,Malaysia.

    Our Botanical gardens as far as I know was started by the British and administered by them and from Independance was then handed over to the state government.
    In the ensuing years however the Gardens seem to have lost their direction and we are now very much in danger of becoming just a recreation park.

    Pretty plants,lots of visitors both local and foreign,lots of joggers and picnickers...the Friends was started by a group of concerned citizens,all laymen and garden enthusiasts,who were appalled at the direction our Gardens have headed.

    I am looking for a website-or perhaps some kind soul who is qualified-that can tell me concisely the functions of a Botanical Garden as opposed to a park or a recreational ground.

    We meet with representatives of the local government and we feel it is time to draw up a charter to at least set the curator on the right path,but we don't quite know where to begin.

    Any pointers would be very much appreciated.
     
  2. Eric La Fountaine

    Eric La Fountaine Contributor Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Hello mesosaur,

    I think botanic gardens have many purposes. Originally they were created to grow collections of plants for taxonomic study and to promote economic use of plants. (Botanic Gardens of Adelaide)

    I read the mission statements of several botanic gardens on the web. Gardens are repositories for plant collections, plant research centres and education centres. Most also wish to be beatiful places for the public's enjoyment of the plant world (parks).
    (UBC Botanical Garden Mission Statement)

    It is great that your garden is popular with the public. You already have an eager audience. It is a problem if the park users are endangering the collections, however. I guess you have to assess what the significance of your garden is. Do you have rare collections to be preserved? Do you want to be an education centre for the community, promoting the value of plants? Does the garden have significance to local agriculture?

    It sounds like the garden has a strong recreational use. I would think you would want to incorporate that into your plan. You will have to figure out a way to maintain this use while promoting the more botanical aspects of a botanic garden.

    Those are my initial thoughts. I am not an expert on the topic, but would like to see conversation on what people think a botanic garden should be in the modern world.

    Mesosaur,

    How big is the garden? Is admission to the garden free? Who funds the garden?
     
  3. Eric La Fountaine

    Eric La Fountaine Contributor Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    The recent weblog entry Committee Report on Royal Botanical Gardens offers a lot on insight into this issue. Mesosaur if your are still around take a look. The report would give you a lot to work with in deciding what issues are imortant to a botanic garden. (It is a 1MB PDF so if you are not using highspeed internet service be forewarned.)
     

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