Singapore Botanic Gardens
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Singapore Botanic Gardens (Chinese: 新加坡植物园; Malay: Taman Botanik Singapura or Kebun Botani Singapura) is a 67.3-hectare (166-acre) botanical garden in Singapore. It is half the size of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew or around one-fifth the size of Central Park in New York. It is the only botanic garden in the world that opens from 5 a.m. to 12 midnight every single day of the year, and does not charge an admission fee, except for the National Orchid Garden. The garden is bordered by Holland & Napier Road in the South, Cluny Road on the East, Tyersall Ave & Cluny Park Road on its West and Bukit Timah Road in the North. The linear distance between the Northern and Southern end is around 2.5 km.
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[edit] History
The first "Botanical and Experimental Garden" in Singapore was established in 1822 on Government Hill at Fort Canning by Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore and a keen naturalist. The Garden's main task was to evaluate for cultivation, crops which were of potential economic importance, including those yielding fruits, vegetables, spices and other raw materials. This first Garden closed in 1829.
It was not until 30 years later that the present Singapore Botanic Gardens began in 1859, when the Agri Horticultural Society was granted 32 hectares of land in Tanglin by the colonial government, which had obtained it from merchant Hoo Ah Kay or Whampoa, in exchange for land at Boat Quay.
Laurence Niven was hired as superintendent and landscape designer to turn what were essentially overgrown plantations and a tangle of virgin rainforest into a public park. The layout of the Gardnes as it is today is largely based on Niven's design. The Agri Horticultural Society, however, ran out of funds and, in 1874, the colonial government took over the management of the Gardens.
The first rubber seedlings came to the gardens from Kew in 1877. A naturalist, Henry Nicholas Ridley, or Mad Ridley as he was known, became director of the gardens in 1878 and spearheaded rubber cultivation. Successful in his experiments with rubber planting, Ridley convinced planters across Malaya to adopt his methods. The results were astounding; Malaya became the world's number one producer and exporter of natural rubber.
Another achievement was the pioneering of orchid hybridisation by Professor Eric Holttum, director of the gardens from 1925 to 1949. His techniques led to Singapore being one of the world's top centres of commercial orchid growing. Today it also has the largest collection of tropical plant specimens.
[edit] Attractions
[edit] National Orchid Garden
The main attraction within the botanic gardens. Located on the mid-western side of the garden, the hilly 3 hectare site has a collection of more than 1,000 species and 2,000 hybrids of orchids.
Within the orchid garden, there are a number of mini-attractions like:
Burkill Hall & VIP Orchid Garden: Burkill Hall, a colonial plantation bungalow built in the year 1886. It used to be the Director’s House. It was named in honour of the only father and son pair, Isaac and Humphrey Burkill, to hold the post of Director of Singapore Botanic Gardens. Currently, the ground level served as an exhibition area. It showcases information on the different hybrids named after VIPs who visited the garden.
The back of the Burkill Hall is the VIP Orchid Garden, here's the real hybrids of some of the VIP orchids is on display. Some notable ones include: Dendrobium Margaret Thatcher, Renantanda Akihito, Dendrobium Masako Kotaishi Hidenka, Dendrobium Elizabeth.
Orchidarium: The haven for serious orchids enthusiasts. Only the natural species are display here in a tropical setting.
Tan Hoon Siang Misthouse: Unknown to most people, Tan Hoon Siang was a descendant of Tan Tock Seng (founder of Tan Tock Seng Hospital and a philanthropist). The misthouse house a colourful collection of different hybrids. It also has a small collection of fragrant orchids like Vanda Mimi Plamer.
Lady Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad House: Named in honour of its sponsor, the Bromeliad showcases plant from the Bromeliaceae family. Pineapple is a famous member of the bromeliad family. "The unique collection of bromeliads on display was acquired from Shelldance Nursery in the United States in 1994".
Coolhouse: The Cool House tries to recreate the environment of a tropical highland forest. It showcases orchid normally found in the tropical highland areas.
[edit] Rainforest
The Singapore Botanic Gardens has a small tropical rainforest, of around 6 hectares in size, which is older than the gardens itself. The Botanic Gardens' rainforest and its bigger cousin at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve are located well within the Singapore's city limits. Singapore is one of the only two major cities with a tropical rainforest within its city limits. (The other is Rio de Janeiro's Tijuca Forest.)
[edit] Evolution Garden
A new attraction at the botanic garden is the 1.5-hectare Evolution Garden, located within the Central Core. The Evolution Garden tells the evolution story of plant life on Earth throughout the ages.
[edit] Ginger Garden
Located next to the National Orchid Garden, this 1 hectare garden lump together the collection of members of the family Zingiberaceae. The garden also houses a gift shop (Ginger Villa by DFS) and a restaurant (Halia Restaurant). There is also a drop-off point along Tyersall Avenue as well as a waterfall. The garden was officially opened in 2003 and it took over the spot vacated by the previous Orchid Enclosure.
[edit] Botany Centre and Tanglin Gate
The recently re-opened Tanglin Gate was given a new look. Gone was the old cast iron gate, it now sports a more modern sliver colour with a leaf motif as its main design.
The 2 new blocks of offices and classroom in the upgraded Tanglin Core were known as the Botany Centre. It houses the:
- Library of Botany & Horticulture (including the Public Reference Centre)
- The Singapore Herbarium
- Orchid Breeding & Micropagation
- Education Outreach classrooms
The corridors and walkways of the Botany Centre were covered by leaf imprint. And there are also a number of wooden craving that littered the ground. There are also fern covered vertical walls.
The Green Pavilion is the first "green roof" in Singapore. Weed-like or grass-like plants fully covered the pitched roof. It houses the visitor services desk as well as the foodcourt (Taman Serasi Food Garden) at its basement.
The offices of former directors namely Holttum Hall (named after Eric Holttum, Director of the Gardens from 1925 - 1949) and Ridley Hall (after Henry Nicholas Ridley, first director of Gardens from 1888 - 1911) were preserved and now serve as the Singapore Botanic Gardens' Directorate and Visitor Management & Education offices.
[edit] Other Attractions
Saraca Stream walk is another new attraction, tropical plants lined the bank of the stream as it meander its way down a small hill.
Other attractions include the Palm Valley, Bandstand area, Sun Garden and Sundial Garden.
The botanic gardens has three lakes, namely Symphony Lake, Eco-Lake and Swan Lake. The Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage on Symphony Lake occasionally has free concerts on weekends. Notable performers include the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Singapore Chinese Orchestra.
The headquarters of the National Parks Board is located within the grounds of the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Eateries within the garden include a French fine-dining restaurant in a colonial bungalow (Au Jardin Les Amis), a cafe at the visitor centre (Cafe Les Amis), and a restaurant at the Ginger Garden (Halia Restaurant). There are also gift shops for visitors.
[edit] Future developments (2007 to 2010)
After the completion of the Botany Centre and Tanglin Gate, there are still two areas of the Singapore Botanic Gardens that are undergoing extensive redevelopments and upgrading work. They are the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden, and the Botanic Gardens MRT Station, both located at the northen Bukit Timah Sector of the gardens.
The Jacob Ballas Children's Gardens is labelled as "The next new attraction" of the botanic gardens. It will be located near Bukit Timah Road, to be completed in the early half of 2007. It is designed to resemble a fun and fantasy garden, which would future a bright and cheery environment, together with playgrounds and other facilities for children. It aims to provide discovery and learning in a fun garden setting. Children would also be able to learn more about plants and the environment. This garden is said to be the first of its kind in Asia. Another purpose of this attraction is to liven up the comparatively quiet Bukit Timah core of the Botanic Gardens. At present, most of the garden has been completed, except for the children's activities.
Botanic Gardens MRT Station is another future redevelopment. It is to be located at the North-Western part of the Bukit Timah core of the Gardens. The station is part of the Circle Line, due to be open in 2010. With the opening of the station, getting to the gardens via public transport would be made more convenient.
[edit] Gallery
 Palm in Singapore Botanic Gardens |
 Phalaenopsis philippinensis orchid growing in mist house |
 Dendrobium Margaret Thatcher |
 Orchids in Orchid Garden |
 The Tembusu tree (Faraea fragrans) featured on the reverse of the Singaporean five-dollar bill at Lawn E, Singapore Botanic Gardens |
 A shot of the Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad Collection |
 Dendrobium Bae Yong Jun, an orchid hybrid named after the South Korea actor |
 Vanda Miss Joaquim, the national flower of Singapore |
 The Symphony Lake |
 A view of the Palms collection in Palm Valley |
 Cygnus atratus in Eco Lake |
[edit] See also
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[edit] Reference
- National Heritage Board (2002), Singapore's 100 Historic Places, Archipelago Press, ISBN 981-4068-23-3
