The Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens is set to thrive in 2018 after being named one of the top 10 regional gardens in the country.
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Coming in sixth place in a recent Australian Geographic ranking, the Shire’s own gardens blitzed fierce competition from more than 100 regional gardens across Australia.
Included in the rankings were the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden in Port Augusta, South Australia and the heritage-listed Flecker Botanic Gardens in Cairns, Queensland.
Gardens manager Michael Anlezark said it was an honour for the 42-hectare site to receive such recognition.
“Australian Geographic is such a respected magazine and getting a listing that has such integrity is really important and shows that botanic gardens are valued,” Mr Anlezark said.
The listing kicks off a significant year for the gardens, with a major redevelopment of the site’s visitor centre expected to be completed by December.
Mr Anlezark said the gardens were flourishing in every sense of the word and more than 70,000 visitors were estimated to walk through the gates this year.
“We’re noticing more and more overseas visitors due to things like the Canberra Airport becoming international and the harbour in Eden expanding,” he said.
“There’s a lot of visitors who love botanic gardens and they’re interested in seeing what each area has to offer.
“This listing in the magazine shows we’re right up there with the very best gardens.”
As well as being a tourist hot spot, the gardens boast an expanding conservation, education and cultural agenda, making it “far more than just a place for plants”, Mr Anlezark said.
For more than 30 years, the site has aided in the conservation of threatened plant species from across the South East region.
Today, there are more than 14,000 plant specimens in the gardens’ herbarium.
With the help of 120 volunteers, Mr Anlezark hoped the gardens would continue to proper.
“This is our backyard and what a better way to look after it than by protecting it and growing plants that are found within it,” he said.