The Original Botanic
Garden was founded by the University of St. Andrews
in 1889 in the precincts of St. Mary's College by a
group of enthusiasts led by Dr John Wilson. The original
garden was about 0.1ha (0.25 acres) in size and consisted
of 78 regularly-shaped beds laid out according to the
Bentham and Hooker plant classification. By 1960 the
garden covered 2.8ha (7.8 acres). In addition, plants
were grown in a variety of soil and climatic conditions
in other parts of the University.
The Present Botanic Garden of 7.5ha (18.5 acres) was
created from two fields in the early 1960s to cater
for expansion of the collection and release the town
centre lands for other purposes. In 1987, the Garden
was leased to the Local Authority, then N E Fife District
Council, now Fife Council which has been responsible
for management ever since. The Hon. Curator is Bob Mitchell
(formerly Curator) who, together with Jim Mackie, the
present Head Gardener, has designed and developed the
Garden since 1962.
Worldwide contact with other specialist gardens is maintained,
for example, through seed exchanges. The Garden is recognised
and registered by the International Union for the Conservation
of Nature, and botanical and horticultural research
is carried out there.
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