Covering an area of about 37 hectares the garden dates back to the French period of Mauritian history. In 1736, the French Governor, Mahe de Labourdonnais, chose to set up his domain around the present main gate of the garden. In 1767 the French Intendant Pierre Poivre, the creator of the garden, introduced vegetables, fruits, flowers and spices from all over the world.
Today the garden is famed as being the oldest Botanic Garden in the southern hemisphere. The garden has a collection of rare and magnificent plant species brought in from around the world and also plants native to Mauritius. Several areas of the garden have been created to house medicinal plants, endemic flora, spices and ferns, as well as orchids.
There are over 80 species of palms throughout the garden.
One of the main attractions is the water lily pond which features the giant water lily - Victoria amazonica. which was first introduced to the garden in 1927.
Native to tropical South America, Victoria amazonica was first discovered in Bolivia in 1801 and named Eurgale amazonica . It was subsequently moved to a new genus named in honour of Queen Victoria (originally as Victoria regia ). In South America it grows in the backwaters of rivers in the Amazon basin, the Guianas and the Pantanal.
The enormous circular leaves, which grow to over 2.5 m across, have upturned rims and are anchored by long stalks arising from an underground stem buried in the mud of the river bottom.The spectacular flowers are relatively short-lived, lasting only 48 hours or so.
Another pond features the Indian lotus - Nelumbo nucifera
The garden attracts around 250,000 visitors annually and is one of the main attractions of the island. Its shady paths and quiet pools are a welcome respite from the heat of the busy streets. If you visit Mauritius you certainly must add it to your list of places to visit.
Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you have enjoyed this little look at the garden. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.
You might also be interested to know that there are several endemic species of hibiscus in Mauritius, and these colourful plants are a favourite in Mauritian gardens.
You can learn more about the giant water lily here - Kew Science - Plants of the world online
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Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.
If you are a blogger you can also link your blog to Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global.
So lovely and unique! I love these views you have shared.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful garden and wonderful plant specimens. It's so great to keep a record of them isn't it - and your experiences too. How wonderful blogging is for that. I'd forgotten you'd been to Mauritius. Would love to read more about it. Somewhere I'd love to visit.
ReplyDeleteJill - so glad you went back to your photo archives for this collection. I adore water lilies, and the Victoria specimen is gob-smacking, indeed! I was amazed at the distant shot, but really bowled over by the close-ups. Awesome. Enjoy the rest of your week!
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful garden photos. We have water lilies on our lake but none that look like that! SO neat.
ReplyDelete