Botanical Gardens
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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