Event information
Kirstenbosch was established in 1913 to promote, conserve and display the diverse flora of Southern Africa, and was the first botanic garden in the world to be devoted to a country's indigenous flora.
Kirstenbosch displays a wide variety of the unique plant life of the Cape Flora, also known as fynbos. Plants from all the diverse regions and biomes of southern Africa are also grown at Kirstenbosch, including a near-complete collection of cycads (Encephalartos spp.). The Botanical Society Conservatory is a custom-built glasshouse to grow and display plants from the arid regions that cannot survive outdoors. There are over 7 000 species in cultivation at Kirstenbosch, including many rare and threatened species.
The 36-hectare garden is part of a 528-hectare estate that contains protected mountainside supporting natural forest and fynbos along with a variety of animals and birds. In 2004 the Cape Floristic Region, including Kirstenbosch, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site: another first for Kirstenbosch. It is the first botanic garden in the world to be included within a natural World Heritage Site.
Kirstenbosch is the largest of a country-wide network of nine National Botanical Gardens administered by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI).
