Abstract
Singapore has several public gardens of which two, Singapore Botanic Gardens and Gardens by the Bay, are of particular national and international renown. These two gardens have contrasting but complementary ways of enthusing and educating the public about plants and of gaining their support for horticultural excellence, botanical research and conservation. Founded in 1859, Singapore Botanic Gardens is an old and established garden with a long history of horticultural and botanical research, plant exploration and conservation. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2015, the world’s first tropical botanic garden to receive this accolade. Gardens by the Bay opened in 2012 and its focus is on large-scale displays in spectacular settings, thereby attracting huge numbers of visitors since its opening. In their contrasting ways, both gardens enthuse and educate the public about plants and the natural world. This work lays the foundations for public advocacy of conservation efforts in Singapore, resulting in a very high level of public support for greening efforts and the protection of natural areas in land-scarce Singapore.
Highlights
INTRODUCTIONFrom the 1960s Singapore Botanic Gardens was the lead organisation in the greening movement that is manifested in Singapore’s extensive network of parks and tree-lined streets
Singapore is the second most densely populated country in the world (United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, 2013) with a population of over 5.6 million in a land area of only around 720 km2
Primary forest covers less than 1% of Singapore’s land area vegetation covers about half of the country
Summary
From the 1960s Singapore Botanic Gardens was the lead organisation in the greening movement that is manifested in Singapore’s extensive network of parks and tree-lined streets. Nowadays this role is performed by NParks, of which Singapore Botanic Gardens are a part. It is designed to instil awe in visitors due to the spectacular and award-winning architecture of its two enormous conservatories and its grove of ‘Supertrees’ (Fig. 2) These Supertrees are tree-shaped structures, planted as vertical gardens, but which perform a number of other functions, such as lighting, exhausts for the conservatories, collection of rainwater and energy generation. In 2014 and 2016 the Singapore Garden Festival was staged by NParks at Gardens by the Bay
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