From the moment the First Fleet came ashore in 1788, the site on which the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney is now located was central to the hopes, aspirations and survival of the colonial community.

As the site of the first European farm in Australia, early attempts at food crops and other agriculture on the site failed, and resulted in near ruin for the colony.

Governor Lachlan Macquarie, however, saw the potential for the site and set aside the land - despite a lack of public support - for Sydney’s own botanic garden.

Two hundred years later, The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney is the oldest botanic garden in Australia, and Australia’s oldest continuously operating scientific institution.