The Palmetum Botanical Garden (Palmetum) in Townsville is a land of palm trees. The garden is nestled in the Annandale neighbourhood, close to the Ross River, James Cook University and Townsville Hospital. Opened in 1988, the garden now covers an area of 17 hectares, with around 300 species of palm trees, including some of the rarest - the largest collection of palm trees in the world!
Palmetum is evolving every day: the garden's management regularly acquires and grows new species of trees, walkways and viewing platforms are built for tourists. But this botanical garden is famous not only for its palm trees, but also for its large variety of birds - birdwatching enthusiasts will not be disappointed. In the garden you can also see a memorial dedicated to the memory of 18 soldiers who died during a Black Hawk training flight."
Anderson Park Botanic Garden Anderson Park Botanic Garden is a favourite recreational spot for Townsville residents.
.The park's arboretum features an amazing variety of tropical ferns, palms, fruit and economic plants and one of the world's largest collections of pandanus. Most of the plant specimens come from the tropical rainforests of the Cape York Peninsula and North Queensland. The pandanus collection includes most of the pandanus species growing in Australia, as well as plants from New Guinea, South East Asia, the Western Pacific Island and Madagascar. The greenhouse has a collection of tropical plants such as bromeliads, ginger, nepenthes and palms. The tropical orchard features exotic lychees, persimmons, azimina, breadfruit, dates, coffee, cinnamon and other "gourmet" specimens.
In 1932, the park was named in honour of William Anderson, the park's first curator. That same year, the first plantings appeared on the grounds. In 1956 and 1963, the grounds were expanded and the park took on its current appearance. Today, Anderson Park covers more than 20 hectares and is an example of innovative landscaping and a true gem of the city.
Queens Gardens is Townsville's third botanical garden and is the smallest (at just 4 hectares). It is located at the foot of Castle Hill, close to the town centre and Strand seafront. The garden is divided into quadrants, with a fountain in the centre of each quadrant. Special areas include a rose garden, flowerbeds, 2 small hedge mazes and an avenue of 'pea trees'. The garden also has a small aviary which is home to peacocks, small lory parrots and cockatoos.
The Royal Gardens were formally established in 1870, but at that time they served to supply food and agricultural development to the local community. The original 40.5 hectares of land were intended for planting exotic plant species such as coconut, mango, and oil palm. Some of the 'pea trees' and araucaria planted at that time still grow in the garden and are probably the oldest cultivated plants in Australia. In the late 19th century, the garden slowly began to transform from an "industrial" garden to a real recreational area for city dwellers. But the Second World War slowed down this process: during the war, the Royal Gardens served as a military base for 100,000 American soldiers. It was only in 1959 that the garden began to fulfil its modern functions, although its territory was reduced 10 times.
