Celebrating 150 Years
Your Botanic Gardens of Adelaide is celebrating its 150th anniversary and you can join in the celebrations. The Botanic Gardens Committee first convened on 5 March 1855 and the Adelaide Botanic Garden officially opened on 4 October 1857. To celebrate the 150th anniversary, a range of events are being held in the Gardens with several new building projects currently under construction. For information on the Gardens 150 Icon Projects, read below. The exciting 'Gardens 150' events program outlined below is being scheduled from March 2005 until October 2007 to correspond with the 150th anniversary of the convening of the Botanic Gardens Committee and the official opening. Gardens 150 Icon ProjectsA clear vision for the future of the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide is set out in a comprehensive Site Master Plan Report. The Master Plan includes detailed plans for the future management and development of both the built environment and living collections. The Gardens 150 icon projects are part of this broader vision for the Garden's future. These are steps towards ensuring the Gardens remain vibrant and relevant for the next 150 years. More than $10 million in works are being rolled out over the three years. The projects include:
Museum of Economic BotanyThe Museum of Economic Botany is one of Adelaide Botanic Garden's historic icons. This intriguing building has high ceilings, ornate Victorian detail, historic cabinet displays and classical Greek-style exterior.
A preliminary report on concept proposals for refurbishment work within the Museum is available here. MEB Concept Proposals (992Kb PDF). This was followed by a more specific Final Concept Proposal (707Kb PDF). Further consideration and implementation of any works arising from this latter report are awaiting funding. Further works canvassed in that report include:
The rich and varied collections housed in the Museum form the foundation of exhibitions and displays celebrating the Museum's unique history and purpose. The quality and calibre of these exhibitions and displays will be accentuated by the proposed works. Schomburgk Pavilion
As part of the Garden's 150 program, a new raised terrace, known as the Schomburgk Pavilion, has been built to the rear of the Museum of Economic Botany, offering a variety of visitor services and reinvigorating the area as the cultural heart of the Garden. Its elegant contemporary glass design complements the Museum of Economic Botany building and in part realises a vision to restore the Museum's former energy and purpose. The Schomburgk Pavilion houses a central space for displays and exhibitions, T he Botanic Shop, Café Fibonacci a+nd the Visitor Information Centre. SA Water Mediterranean GardenNew SA Water Mediterranean Garden web page here The SA Water Mediterranean Garden showcases plants from mediterranean climates around the world, including regions such as south-western Australia, South Africa, Central Chile, California, and the Mediterranean Basin. The plants that live in these places are well adapted for climates just like southern South Australia: seasonally dry, with mild climates and frequent fire. Many of them have features that enable them to conserve water during dry times and take advantage of the rain when it falls. Wandering through this garden, visitors will discover the diversity, resilience and beauty of these plants. People visiting the SA Water Mediterranean Garden will see the forms that enable these plants to survive and thrive in their mediterranean landscapes. We hope that visitors will learn about these plants and their environments, the connections they have with people from different cultures and how they can help us live more sustainably in our environment. Go to the new SA Water Mediterranean Garden web page
Amazon Waterlily Pavilion
The giant Victoria amazonica waterlily is an iconic plant of the Adelaide Botanic Garden. A native of South America, it was collected by the brother of the Gardens' second Director Richard Schomburgk, and has been displayed in the Garden's purpose built Victoria House since 1868. The waterlily flowered in that year, watched by throngs of fascinated visitors. As a key project of the Gardens' 150 program, the former Victoria House and attached Schomburgk Range of glasshouses built in 1957, in poor condition, is being replaced by a contemporary energy efficient glasshouse to be known as the Amazon Waterlily Pavilion. The Pavilion will be smaller in area than the glasshouses formerly on the site, and the original heritage listed pond, built for the waterlily in 1868, will be incorporated in the centre. In addition, the Garden's terrestrial bromeliad collection will be re-established on the site to complement the new glasshouse. The Amazon Waterlily Pavilion will rival the glasshouses of botanic gardens internationally and will add to the vibrancy of this central area in the Garden. Western Entrance
Creation of the Western Entrance will establish a major East-West route through the Gardens, from Frome Road to Hackney Road, to complement the existing North-South route. The Western Entrance will also form a link through to the University of Adelaide and the rest of the cultural and institutional precinct along North Terrace. As part of the design for a new Western Entrance, design work is
being undertaken on a proposed physic garden to demonstrate the
early historical role of botanic gardens. In preparation for the
development of the new Western Entrance and associated physic garden,
design and construction is progressing on the relocation of the
cacti and succulent collection from its current location to the
northern and western banks around the Palm House. Click
here for Concept Plan for Western Entrance area. Gardens 150 Events ProgramAs part of the ongoing Gardens 150 celebrations,
a range of events and exhibitions are coming up. Gardens 150 - the Celebrations so Far (Past Events) |
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