The National Botanical Gardens Of South Africa
With ten National Botanical Gardens covering over 1,350 hectares of natural vegetation and indigenous plants, South Africa is every plant enthusiast’s heaven. These gardens are under the care and supervision of the South African National Biodiversity Institute. They focus on growing, conserving, and raising awareness on South Africa’s indigenous plants.
One of the most prominent of South Africa’s National Botanical Gardens is the Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden. Niched on the eastern slopes of Cape Town’s Table Mountain, this garden of Eden extends to about 36 hectares of vegetation with thousands of indigenous South African plants, each one even more exotic than the other. The diversity, the colors, the fragrance, and the view is a feast to the senses.
Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden houses the Botanical Society Conservatory, and many smaller garden’s dedicated to specific plants, for example the Medicinal Garden, Water-wise Garden, Protea Garden,Water-wise Garden, and Van Riebeeck’s Hedge. Within its grounds are retail outlets and coffee shops you can stop at to recharge after a morning of exploration.
Free State National Botanical Garden is another highlight, it is located at Bloemfontein and is home to over 400 plant species. It is famous for its picturesque landscape and brightly coloured flowers against a backdrop of green woodland.
