Botanical Gardens of Singapore
Even though Singapore is a small country, it still has done a terrific job to
preserve its natural beauty. The best example of it are the Botanical gardens of
Singapore which is among the world's largest botanical reserves. It
opens from 5:00 AM till midnight everyday and there is no admission fee ( except
for the National Orchid Garden). The total size of these gardens is 52 hectare
and
has an amazing diversity of Flora and Fauna with more than 600,000 plant
preserved specimens. It consists of about 3000 tropical and subtropical
plants species. Due to its large area, visitors who want to thoroughly explore it
should be ready for a long walk. A 35-million Singapore dollars enhancement plan
is currently being worked on to make the park's huge collection of plants more
accessible to the Botanical Garden tourists.
BRIEF HISTORY OF BOTANICAL GARDENS:
Sir Stamford Raffles started this garden in 1822 but later due to financial reasons the gardens were closed in 1829. They were re-founded in 1859 to grow plants which have economic importance and a significant achievement was made in 1877 when the cultivation of the first rubber plantation in the region was achieved here. A large section was founded by the British in the 19th century.
BOTANIC GARDEN ATTRACTIONS:
National Orchid Garden:
Orchids are the most diverse flowering plant and their immense beauty has attracted us for centuries. National Orchid Garden which opened in 1996 has a collection of more than 1,000 orchid species and about 2,100 hybrids. You will also find the national flower of Singapore (Vanda Miss Joaquim). Important sections of this garden are Burkill Hall & VIP Orchid Garden, Orchidarium, Tan Hoon Siang Misthouse, Lady Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad House and Coolhouse.
At the visitors center of Orchid garden there is a souvenirs shop where you can even buy some orchid plants and related items.
Area: 3 hectare approximately.
Admission: Adults 2 SGD; seniors and children 1 SGD.
Open Hours: 8.30am-7:00 pm daily with last ticket sale at 6:00 pm.
As the name suggests this 1.5-hectare garden provides some unique evolution experiences of the plant kingdom from 4,000 millions years ago till today. Evolution Garden is located near Cluny Park Road close to Cluny Hill, within the Central Core. Tree of Stone section which has petrified trees whose organic matter has been replaced by silica cell by cell. You will also find plants and specimens of old ferns, first flowering plants, pine savanna and more.
Rain Forest:
This 6 hectare rain forest is older than the garden themselves. More than half of the species here are unique to Singapore only. The tallest canopy trees are almost 40 meters high. Its bigger cousin at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is also located within the Singapore's city limits.
Ginger Garden
This 1 hectare garden is located near the Orchid Plaza and opened in 2003. It also has a waterfall and a cave behind it which the kids specially love. A restaurant called Halia Restaurant is also located within its premises.
Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage:
It hosts many free music concerts over the weekends in Botanical Gardens.
Other attractions include the , Saraca Stream Walk, Palm Valley, Bandstand area, Botany Centre, Tanglin GateGreen Pavilion and Sundial.
Getting There:
Get down at the Orchard MRT Station (NS22) along Orchard Boulevard then take SBS bus 7, 105, 106, 123 or 174 to Botanical Gardens (do check their latest schedules and routes). You can also take taxis or cars to reach here.
