Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
A historic botanical garden in Hobart, Tasmania, known for its plant collections, conservation work, education programs, and public displays.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
The Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens (RTBG) is a historic botanical garden located within Hobart’s Queens Domain in Tasmania, Australia. Covering approximately 14 hectares, it is one of Australia’s oldest botanical gardens and was established in 1818, two years after the Sydney Botanic Gardens. Its long history gives it a dual role: it is both a public cultural attraction and a centre for horticultural knowledge, plant conservation, environmental education, and the interpretation of Tasmania’s distinctive flora. The gardens occupy land with a much older human history than the European institution itself. The site was used by Aboriginal people before European settlement, and archaeological investigations have identified shell middens and stone artefacts associated with occupation more than 5,000 years ago. This pre-colonial history forms an important part of the broader context in which the gardens operate, even though the present institution developed through colonial-era horticultural and civic planning. The RTBG’s landscape includes historic plantings, mature trees, formal and working garden areas, and collections of significance to Tasmania and the wider southern hemisphere. Many of the notable trees date from the nineteenth century. The gardens also maintain conservation collections of Tasmanian plants, including the unusual King’s lomatia, a species of particular botanical interest. Another distinctive attraction is the Subantarctic Plant House, described as the world’s only facility of its kind. It recreates the cold, wet, misty conditions of high-latitude subantarctic islands and displays plants collected from Macquarie Island by gardens staff and associated scientists during field expeditions. Public horticulture is presented through a mixture of display gardens, specialist collections, seasonal planting, interpretive exhibits, and demonstration areas. The Patch, a working display garden established in 1996, is designed to show practical gardening approaches and has received visibility through the Australian television program Gardening Australia. Visitor facilities include a visitor centre, restaurant, souvenir shop, gallery space for changing displays by local artists, and exhibition areas devoted to the gardens’ own activities and collections. Education and community engagement are central to the organisation’s public role. The gardens provide opportunities for visitors and students to learn about plants, horticulture, environmental stewardship, and Tasmania’s natural heritage. Programs such as Growing Your Future have connected students with horticultural careers, training providers, organisations, and businesses. The gardens have also participated in Growing our Future, Growing the NBN, a partnership intended to support horticultural training for students across Tasmania. The RTBG additionally functions as a venue for community exhibitions and cultural programming. Examples include a 2011 exhibition of photographs produced by students from OAK Community Services and Power Plant, a sound-and-light event presented during the Ten Days on the Island 2011 festival after a successful season in Hong Kong. These activities illustrate how the gardens extend beyond plant display to provide a public setting for education, art, performance, and civic engagement. Its overall positioning combines heritage tourism, living plant collections, conservation, horticultural learning, and accessible community programming.
History
The Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens were established in Hobart in 1818 and developed into one of Australia’s oldest botanical institutions. Their foundation came two years after the creation of the Sydney Botanic Gardens, placing the Tasmanian garden within the early Australian tradition of establishing horticultural and scientific landscapes in colonial settlements. The institution is located in the Queens Domain, a prominent open-space area near Hobart, and today occupies approximately 14 hectares. The land has a human history extending thousands of years before the botanical garden. It was traditionally used by Aboriginal people, and archaeological work has identified shell middens and stone artefacts dating back more than 5,000 years. These remains demonstrate that the site was part of a much older cultural landscape before its later use as a European-designed public garden. The gardens’ modern history therefore sits within a layered setting that includes Aboriginal occupation, colonial settlement, civic development, horticulture, and contemporary public education. Over time, the gardens accumulated historic plant collections and significant trees, including specimens dating from the nineteenth century. Their landscape combines formal displays with collections intended to demonstrate plant diversity, horticultural practice, and the character of Tasmania’s natural environment. The gardens have increasingly developed conservation collections focused on Tasmanian plants. One notable example is King’s lomatia, an unusual and conservation-significant plant represented within the collections. A major specialist feature is the Subantarctic Plant House. It provides a climate-controlled environment for plants from subantarctic islands in the high southern latitudes. Chilly fog and mist are used to reproduce the cold, wet conditions associated with those island environments. The collection includes plants from Macquarie Island gathered through field trips involving gardens staff and associated scientists. This facility gives the public access to plants that would not survive in Hobart’s ordinary outdoor conditions and connects the gardens’ visitor role with field research and conservation. The gardens have also developed practical and interpretive horticultural facilities. The Patch, created in 1996, is a working display garden intended to demonstrate gardening ideas and techniques. Its appearance on Gardening Australia helped extend awareness of the gardens beyond visitors to Hobart. The visitor centre provides additional public infrastructure, including a restaurant, souvenir shop, gallery space for changing presentations by local artists, and areas for exhibitions produced by the gardens. Education has become a major part of the institution’s continuing public mission. The RTBG uses its collections and landscapes to teach visitors about plants, horticulture, environmental responsibility, and Tasmania’s botanical heritage. Its Growing Your Future event has brought students into contact with horticultural organisations and businesses, helping present plant-related work as a career field. The gardens have also participated in Growing our Future, Growing the NBN, a partnership aimed at providing horticultural training opportunities for students from around Tasmania. The institution has repeatedly used its grounds for community and cultural programming. In 2011 it hosted a photography exhibition created by students from OAK Community Services. During the same year, Power Plant, a sound-and-light production that had previously had a successful season in Hong Kong, was installed at the gardens as part of the Ten Days on the Island festival. Such activities show that the gardens operate not only as a collection of living plants but also as a civic venue capable of supporting art, performance, education, and community participation. In its present form, the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens brings together heritage landscape management, public display, conservation collections, horticultural demonstration, scientific and field-based interests, visitor services, and education. Its identity is rooted in Hobart and Tasmania, while its subantarctic collections and botanical subject matter give it a wider scientific and cultural relevance.
- 2012
Growing Your Future education event planned
[1]The annual event was planned to connect students with horticultural organisations and businesses and broaden awareness of related careers.
- 2011
Community photography exhibition hosted
[1]The gardens hosted an exhibition of photographs made by students from OAK Community Services.
- 2011
Power Plant presented during Ten Days on the Island
[1]A sound-and-light production was installed in the gardens as part of the Ten Days on the Island 2011 festival.
- 1996
The Patch working display garden established
[1]The gardens added The Patch, a working display garden focused on practical horticultural demonstration.
- 1818
Botanical gardens established in Hobart
[1]The institution was established in Hobart, becoming the second-oldest botanical garden in Australia according to the cited reference.
Products and positioning
A heritage botanical institution combining public horticulture, Tasmanian plant conservation, environmental education, cultural programming, and tourism in a historic Hobart setting.
Specialist botanical collection
Subantarctic Plant House
A climate-controlled facility displaying plants from subantarctic islands in the high southern latitudes. Its cold, wet, foggy environment is designed to approximate island conditions that differ substantially from Hobart’s ordinary climate. The collection includes plants from Macquarie Island gathered during field trips by gardens staff and associated scientists, linking public interpretation with specialist collecting and conservation interests.
Working display garden · 1996
The Patch
Established in 1996, The Patch is a practical demonstration garden within the wider botanical gardens. It presents horticultural ideas through a working landscape rather than a purely ornamental display and has received national visibility through appearances on Gardening Australia. The area supports the gardens’ educational role by showing visitors how horticultural concepts can be applied in an accessible setting.
Conservation collection
Tasmanian plant conservation collections
The gardens maintain an expanding set of important collections focused on Tasmanian plants. These collections support public understanding of the state’s flora and provide a living horticultural context for conservation. King’s lomatia is identified as one of the unusual and notable plants represented in the gardens’ conservation work.
Botanical garden collection · 1818
Historic plant and tree collections
The landscape contains historic plantings and significant trees, including many dating from the nineteenth century. These collections embody the gardens’ long institutional history while also serving as public displays of mature specimens and horticultural development in Tasmania.
Visitor offering
Visitor centre exhibitions and services
The visitor centre supports the public-facing operation of the gardens with a restaurant, souvenir shop, gallery space for regularly changing exhibitions by local artists, and display areas for exhibitions produced by the gardens. Together these facilities extend the visitor experience beyond outdoor plant collections.
Marketing campaigns
- 2012Growing Your Future
Tasmania
An annual education and careers event designed to connect students with horticultural organisations, businesses, and related opportunities.
Outcome. The initiative aimed to broaden students’ understanding of horticultural careers and educational pathways.
- 2011Power Plant
Hobart · Tasmania
The gardens hosted a sound-and-light production that had previously enjoyed a sold-out season in Hong Kong. It was presented at the gardens within the Ten Days on the Island 2011 festival, using the botanical landscape as a setting for cultural programming.
Outcome. The event expanded the gardens’ role as a venue for festival performance and contemporary cultural activity.
- 2011OAK Community Services student photography exhibition
Hobart · Tasmania
The gardens provided exhibition space for photographs created by students from OAK Community Services, supporting community participation and public presentation.
Outcome. The exhibition demonstrated the gardens’ use as a community arts venue.
- Growing our Future, Growing the NBN
Tasmania
A partnership involving the gardens that aimed to provide horticultural training for students from across Tasmania.
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