BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE MASTER PLAN REPORT WITTUNGA BOTANIC GARDEN DRAFT - V04 MAY 2012 BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 1 BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE MASTER PLAN REPORT WITTUNGA BOTANIC GARDEN MAY 2012 OXIGEN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS AND URBAN DESIGNERS BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 2 CONTENTS BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 3 BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 4 CONTENTS EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 PURPOSE OF THE MASTER PLAN 1.2 STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT 2.0 SITE CONTEXT 2.1 PURPOSE OF BOTANIC GARDENS 2.2 MANAGEMENT 2.3 BOTANIC GARDENS STRATEGIC PLAN AND POLICIES 3.0 SITE HISTORY 3.1 PRE-EUROPEAN 3.2 GARDEN DEVELOPMENT 3.3 CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE 4.0 SITE DESCRIPTION 5.0 GUIDING PRINCIPLES 5.1 BOTANIC GARDEN PRINCIPLES 6.0 KEY ISSUES AND OBJECTIVES 6.1 GARDEN COMPOSITION 6.2 COLLECTIONS AND INTERPRETATION 6.3 VISITOR FACILITIES 6.4 MANAGEMENT 7.0 STRATEGIC RESPONSES AND ACTIONS 7.1 GARDEN COMPOSITION 7.2 COLLECTIONS AND INTERPRETATION 7.3 VISITOR FACILITIES 7.4 MANAGEMENT 8.0 WITTUNGA BOTANIC GARDENS MASTER PLAN 8.1 OVERALL PRINCIPLES 8.2 MASTER PLAN 8.3 GARDEN PRECINCTS 9.0 APPENDIX 9.1 REFERENCES 9.2 CONSULTATION SUMMARY BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 5 EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW TBC BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS   This Master Plan was commissioned by the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide under the direction of the Botanic Gardens Project Team Group. The consultant team gratefully acknowledges the input and assistance of the following people: BOTANIC GARDEN STAFF: Stephen Forbes BGA, Executive Director Mary Yeates BGA, Project Leader Andrew Carrick BGA, Manager , Collections and Horticulture Trevor Christensen BGA, Deputy Director John Sandham BGA, Collections Development Officer Michael Shanahan BGA, Manager Communication, Education and Public Programs Kate Punshon BGA, Manager Business Development and Strategic Partnerships Tony Kanellos BGA, Cultural Collections Manager Nicole Reynolds BGA, Events Manager Graeme Burdett Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Curator Mark Oborn Wittunga Botanic Gardens, Horticultural Supervisor REFERENCE GROUP John Barrie President, Australian Plant Society, SA Nan Davies Vice President, Blackwood Action Group Stewart Mitchell Chair of BBDCA’s Parks, Reserves and Vegetation s/c Blackwood & Belair District Community Association Veronica Lowe School Services Officer, Blackwood High School David Deer Manager, Design and Technical, Mitcham Council Ross Oke Manager, Urban Biodiversity Unit Helena Jenkinson President, Friends of the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide Merilyn Kuchel President, Mediterranean Garden Society Geoffrey Fuller Chief Executive Officer, Nursery & Garden Industry Association of South Australia Enid Robertson Resident, Sherbourne Road, Blackwood and member of the Ashby Family Graham Hicks Sales & Marketing Manager, State Flora Chris Daniels Professor of Urban Ecology, University of South Australia Christine Elstob Board of the Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 7 BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 8 1.0 INTRODUCTION BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 9 1.1 PURPOSE OF THE MASTER PLAN   The purpose of this Master Plan for the Wittunga Botanic Garden is to outline the future direction for the operation and function of Garden. Improvements to the Garden will reflect a desire to promote and educate the community about sustainable horticulture. Coupled with this the master plan, in time, will provide improved public facilities and ‘open up’ the Garden to the community. Opened to the public in 1975, the Wittunga Botanic Garden is one of the three gardens managed by the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide (BGA), the others being the Adelaide Botanic Garden and the Mount Lofty Botanic Garden. Originally a farming property owned and operated by the Ashby family, Wittunga is recognised for its collection of Southern Australian and South African plant species, with its setting providing a backdrop for recreation and appreciation of the collection. Wittunga also has a fascinating history of perseverance, experimentation and innovation that adds an important cultural layer to the Garden and meaning to the local community. After taking over the Garden in 1965, the period to 1975 was spent developing and implementing a garden design for Wittunga in readiness for opening to the public. Modifications and improvements have occurred incrementally since then but a formal master plan for the Garden has never been set in place. Guided by the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide Strategic Plan and operating instructions, the master plan will: • Provide a framework and staged directions for future improvements to Wittunga Botanic Garden; • Reflect the legislation outlined in the Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium Act (1978) and Regulations (2007); • Reflect the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide and State Herbarium Strategic Plan; • Illustrate achievable outcomes for Wittunga Botanic Garden; • Identify future projects and priorities; • Provide a basis for infrastructure planning and funding. BOTANIC GARDENS OF ADELAIDE | Master Plan Report DRAFT V04: Wittunga Botanic Garden | Oxigen | 18.05.2012  Page | 10