Description of the attraction
The Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney is one of the three largest botanical gardens in the city, open to the public. The other two are the Mount Anna Botanical Gardens and the Mount Tom Botanical Gardens. The Royal Botanic Gardens are located near downtown Sydney, in close proximity to other important city attractions - the National Library, Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbor and Houses of Parliament. The history of the garden begins in the distant 1788, when, by order of the governor of the colony of New South Wales, Arthur Phillip, a small agricultural farm was laid out, which became the first in the country. For nearly 30 years, local gardeners were engaged in landscaping and fertilizing and moistening the soil, until in 1816 a research center was founded on the site of the farm, called the "Royal Botanic Gardens" and today is the oldest in Australia. In a relatively short period of time, on a plot of land of 30 hectares, an amazing corner of wildlife was created, where you can see an incredible variety of plant species on our planet - more than 7,500! - including those that are on the verge of extinction.
Among the interesting thematic expositions of the garden - a palm grove, a fern greenhouse, a garden of cacti and succulents and a luxurious rose garden. And one of the main attractions of the garden is the Wollem pines - perhaps the oldest plants on Earth, until recently were considered extinct. Only in 1994, Australian botanists were lucky enough to find these pines in one of the continent's mountain gorges, and today they are cultivated in the botanical garden.
Naturally, where there are plants, animals appear sooner or later. And in the Royal Botanic Gardens you can see a variety of representatives of the local fauna, primarily colorful parrots and other tropical birds. Bats and foxes nest in the tree crowns, and possums roam the garden at night. By the way, there are about 22 thousand flying foxes here!
Between the avenues of the garden there are many small ponds, over which you can walk along decorative bridges, and various sculptures are hidden, and in one corner of the garden rises the stately home of the governor of New South Wales - "an outstanding example of Victorian architecture." For tourists, cafes and souvenir shops are provided, a railroad for a mini-tram has been laid, which will ride through the garden for a moderate fee.
