The University of California Botanical Garden in Berkeley
200 Centennial Dr, Berkeley, CA 94720
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The Botanical Garden of the University of California is a 34-acre (13.7 ha) botanical garden on the University of California, Berkeley campus, in Strawberry Canyon. The Garden is set in the Berkeley Hills, within Oakland's city limits, with views of the San Francisco Bay. It is one of America's most diverse plant collections, and famous for its large number of rare and endangered species.
History
On the site currently occupied by the Moffit Library in the 1870s by Dr. Eugene W. Hilgard (1833-1916), founding Dean of Agriculture, a small garden of economic plants was built on the Berkeley campus. In 1890 E formally founded the University of California Botanical Garden. L. Greene, the first chairman of the Department of Botany to establish a living collection of the State of California's native trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants, with the goal of collecting those of the surrounding Pacific Coast states as quickly as possible.
The collection numbered 600 species in two years' time. It expanded to 1500 in the following decade, but then started expanding both its reach and range to include plants from all continents and some 10,000 species.
The original official Garden was situated on the north side of campus near Haviland Hall, based around a large glass conservatory modeled after the London Crystal Palace.
Mission
Their aim is to establish and sustain a diverse plant life collection, to support teaching and worldwide plant biology studies, to further conserve plant diversity, and to encourage public awareness and appreciation of plants and the natural environment.
Collections
The garden has over 20,000 accessions, including 324 families of plants, 12,000 distinct species and subspecies, and 2,885 genera. In general, outdoor collections are geographically organized, and almost all specimens were collected in the wild.
Cactus (2,669 plants), lily (1,193 plants), sunflowers (1,151 plants), erica (897 plants), and orchids (950 plants) are the major family collections. Certain families include around 500 varieties of ferns and fern allies, Chinese medicinal herbs, economically important plants, old rose cultivars, and native plants in California. Greenhouse sets include succulents, epiphytes, ferns, carnivorous plants, and tropical substances.
By Jeffreymendel Jeffrey Nash - Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=50308966
This amazing landmark is located near the following amazing must-see sites in Berkeley, California:
- Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
- Lawrence Hall of Science
- Indian Rock Park
- Tilden Regional Park
- Berkeley Rose Garden
- César E. Chávez ParkÂ
- Adventure Playground
- Codornices Park
All of these wonderful points of interest are located just a short distance from our location, conveniently located just down the freeway at 1261 Locust St, Walnut Creek! Stop by for a visit anytime!
