Australian Botanic Garden
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Fast FactsDescriptionThe Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan, est. 1988, showcases Australian flora amongst rolling hills and lakes in Sydney’s suburban south-west. It is the largest botanic garden in Australia. Situated on former farmland, it contains remnant Cumberland Plain Woodland, a critically endangered ecological community of the region. The Trust’s horticultural research facilities are based at the Garden, including the NSW Seedbank that will be a key component of the Trust’s new research and conservation facility, Plantbank, when it is completed in mid-2013. The Garden’s abundant native animal and birdlife, picnic areas, barbecues, lakeside lawns, walking and cycling tracks and large contemporary sculptures make it a popular recreational destination for the local community. Due to its large size, it allows access to cars and bikes. The Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan, has free entry. How to contact usThe Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan Location
The Australian Botanic Garden is about one hour’s drive 57 km south-west of Sydney, between Campbelltown and Narellan. Map of the Garden
FactsSize of Garden: 416 hectares Annual visitation: 325,251 Number of plant species: 2,000+ Number of plant specimens: 63,094 Plant species in the Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan: download alphabetical list (at April 2013) Plant species in the three Botanic Gardens: download alphabetical list (at April 2013) Number of trees: approx. 55,000 (includes 35,000 maintained trees that pre-date the establishment of the Botanic Garden); 2,265 individually mapped Oldest trees: Remnants of Cumberland Plain Woodland over 200 years old: ironbarks (Eucalyptus crebra), western boundary; forest red gums (Eucalyptus tereticornis), northern end of the Eastern Valley; kurrajongs (Brachychiton populneus), Central Valley and south of the Volcano; large grey box (Eucalyptus moluccana), Wattle Garden. PlantBank and Seedbank collections: The NSW Seedbank was originally a facility for collecting seeds to create the Australian Botanic Garden at Mount Annan. It has been collecting, storing and researching seeds as part of global effort since 2003, including important contributions to the Millennium Seed Bank and as a memeber of the Australian seedBank Partnership. Status of the collection as at October 2012: No. seeds stored (estimate): over 10,000,000; Australian plant species (19% of approx. 25,000 species): 4,669; NSW plant species (37% of 5,810 known NSW species): 2,146; NSW threatened species (41% of 636 listed as threatened): 263; Temperature at which seeds can be dried and preserved: -18°C Garden artworks collections (sculpture): 7 Annual temperature range: minus 4 to 40°C Average annual rainfall: 700 millimetres Wildlife: ringtail and brushtail possums, swamp wallabies and wallaroos, over 170 bird species European history of the estateThe Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan opened on 2 October 1988 as a project for the Bicentenary of Australian settlement. The land in one of Australia’s earliest farming areas had been purchased for the Glenlee Estate in 1820 and sold in the 1850s to James Fitzpatrick whose descendants ran a dairy farm until 1978. See also History of the Australian Botanic Garden. Traditional owners & occupantsThe land of Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan has Aboriginal communities whose ancestors - the D’harawal - were the original occupants and who are recognised as the traditional owners. The area around Mount Annan was known as Yandel'ora, 'the land of peace between peoples'. It is where meetings between different tribal nations were held and laws made. Special featuresGo to The Garden Visitor informationGo to Visitor Information for information on Planning your visit
Venue hireMany areas within the Garden, including the Restaurant, are available for weddings, birthdays and corporate events. For information on charges and requirements go to Visitor Information and Venue Hire. ResearchOur scientists undertake research in horticulture. Horticultural research studies the culture, propagation, pathology and selection of plants. Current research focuses on conservation, seedbanking, Rainforest seed research and terrestrial orchids. For further information on research go to Horticultural Research. The Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain TrustVisionThe Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, celebrated as one of the world’s greatest botanic garden organisations, internationally respected for its work in science, conservation and horticulture, safeguarding places of learning and pleasure for all. MissionAs a living organisation, we connect people with plants through imaginative horticulture, beautiful landscapes, transformative learning experiences and cultural events. As a leading contributor and custodian of botanical knowledge and collections throughout Australasia, we will share our discoveries and be at the forefront of international plant conservation. ObjectivesThe Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Act 1980 defines the Trust’s objectives as to:
The Trust is required to give particular emphasis to encouraging and advancing the study of systematic botany and plant conservation. StatuteThe Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust is a statutory body in the State Government of NSW established by the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust Act 1980. It is responsible for the management and stewardship of the Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney and the Domain; the Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan; and the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, Mount Tomah. The Trust also manages the National Herbarium of NSW, the NSW Seedbank and the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Exhibition Centre at each of the three sites, respectively. Organisational StructureView Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust Organisation chart (November 2012). The Trust Board reports directly to the New South Wales Minister for the Environment and has responsibility for all Trust assets and programs. There are seven Trustees. The Chairperson is Ken Boundy. Other Trustees are John Egan, Professor Lesley Hughes, Sibylle Krieger, Tom Pinzone and Vanessa Priest. One vacant Board position remains to be filled. The Trust Directors responsible for management of the organisation are
Staff of the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust are employed by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of Premier and Cabinet. Click here for more information on the Trust, Trustees & Trust Committees. Annual budgetThe annual recurrent expenditure for 2012-13 is $46.2 million, of which $20.9 million, or approximately 45 per cent, is provided by the NSW State Government. In addition, $18.5 million in capital funding is budgeted to be received in the 2012-13 financial year. The Trust also generates revenue through grants, donations, contributions, sales of goods and services and other revenue. In 2012-13 the total earned revenue budget is $25.3 million. The main sources of non-Government revenue are: parking, lease revenue, hire of facilities, retail sales, grants and contributions. Within grants and contributions are grants from State and Federal Government, donations and sponsorships. In 2011-2012, the Trust was granted $275,000 for research in Science and Conservation. The Office of Environment and Heritage provides corporate shared services to the Trust. This includes information technology support, transactional processing for accounts payable, payroll, recruitment and human resource advice. VolunteersIn 2011-12 636 volunteers contributed over 47,000 hours of their time to support Trust programs, including those provided through the Foundation and Friends of the Botanic Gardens. The financial contribution of volunteer hours to the organisation is approximate.y $1 million. Volunteers assit in
Click here for more information on volunteers. Staff numbersThe Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust
Science & Conservation
Horticultural Operations The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney
The Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan
The Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, Mount Tomah
Public Engagement
Development
Total FTE* staff across the organisation = 261.12 *All staffing figures are Full Time Equivalent (FTE). In 2011-12 there were 24 Honorary Research Associates and 27 supervised students working with the Science and Conservation branch. For further information go to Our organisation and Our people. |
April 2013
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