ABOUT

The Government Botanical Garden is in Udhagamandalam, near Coimbatore(Ooty), Tamil Nadu state, India laid out in 1848. The Gardens, divided into several sections, cover an area of around 55 hectares, and lie on the lower slopes of Doddabetta peak. The garden has a terraced layout. It is maintained by the Tamil Nadu Horticulture Department.. The gardens were established by a subscription of Rs 3 per month amongst the European residents for the purpose of supplying vegetables at a reasonable cost. During the time that Ootacamund was under British control, considerable cultivation of vegetables for the market was carried on by the European settlers and others. There were very few horticulturists at that time. Seeds and saplings were not available locally, but were available in nearby jungles. It was proposed to establish a public garden. For this purpose, a wood was selected between Lushington Hall (the Present Hebron School) and General Sewell’s Property (the present Raj Bhavan). Shortly after the formation of the society, the committee requested state aid for providing a scientific and practical gardener and funds to meet his salary. This suggestion was accepted and Mr.W.G.McIvor from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew was sent to Ootacamund by the East India Company. He arrived in March 1848, converted the upper portion, which was a forest, and the lower portion, which was a swamp, into a beautiful garden. He submitted a report at the end of 1848 to the East India Company in London. He took ten years to complete the layout of the Garden.