Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney

Brief information

The garden began with an unsuccessful first farm at Farm Cove: the soil was considered relatively infertile, but it continued to be cultivated until a way was found to make the plot more productive. From this experience grew the botanical garden, founded in 1816 as part of the governor's estate. That is why what matters here is not only a green space in the center of Sydney, but the transformation of a difficult plot into a place for growing, studying, and selecting plants.

The garden's location also helps tell its history. It lies on the shore of the shallow Farm Cove, opposite the Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay, and Macquarie Street. Within a short urban distance, water, the colonial agricultural past, scientific work with plants, and the modern center of Sydney come together.

What to notice first

It makes sense to compare the old trees with the later park layout. Some of the trees were growing here even before the arrival of Europeans; alongside them are Swamp mahoganies, described in the source as Australia's three oldest street trees, and trees planted in 1820-1828. These plants show that the garden was not created from scratch in a single gesture: early trees were preserved there, and new plantings were gradually added.

A separate clue is the Moreton Bay fig trees. They appeared after the grounds were redesigned, when Sydney's first zoo was moved from the garden to Moore Park, the old vegetation around the park was removed, and new plants were planted. These figs still dominate the landscape, so they should be understood as a trace of a major redesign, not simply as striking trees.