![SSR Curepipe Botanical Gardens - Mauritius 5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/SSR_Curepipe_Botanical_Gardens_-_Mauritius_5.jpg)
Curepipe Botanic Gardens (or SSR Botanical Garden of Curepipe) in Route des Jardins,
Curepipe
Curepipe () also known as ''La Ville-Lumière'' (The City of Light), is a town in Mauritius, located in the Plaines Wilhems District, the eastern part also lies in the Moka District. The town is administered by the Municipal Council of Curepipe. ...
, is the second largest botanical garden in
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
.
It has a relatively informal layout, and contains a river, lake and the world's rarest palm tree among other attractions.
History and composition
![SSR Curepipe Botanical Gardens - Mauritius 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/SSR_Curepipe_Botanical_Gardens_-_Mauritius_1.jpg)
The gardens were established in 1870, with the initial goal of cultivating several varieties of plants that could not get acclimatized in the less temperate regions of the island (While still hot and tropical, Curepipe's climate is marginally cooler than that of the coastal territories of Mauritius).
The gardens were initially furnished with a rich collection of exotic plants which have been introduced to Mauritius as ornamentals, especially
Rhododendron
''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...
s, Camphors and a range of exotic fruit trees. Azaleas, on the coat of arms of Curepipe, also grace the garden. However it now also boasts a small but growing collection of the rarest and most endangered endemic plants of Mauritius.
In the mid-1980s, the garden was named "Sir Seewoosagar Botanical Garden" after
Seewoosagur Ramgoolam
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (in traditional Hindi: Shivsagar Ram Gulam) (18 September 1900 – 15 December 1985; often referred to as ''Chacha Ramgoolam'' or ''SSR'') was a Mauritian physician, politician, and statesman. He served as the island's o ...
, Mauritius's first post-independence prime minister.
A similarly named botanical garden to the north in
Pamplemousses
Pamplemousses () is a districts of Mauritius, district of Mauritius, located in the north west of the island, and is one of the most densely populated parts of the island. The name of the district comes from the French language, French word for ...
(
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden
The Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanic Garden (sometimes shortened to the SSR Botanic Garden), commonly known as the Pamplemousses Botanic Garden, is a popular tourist attraction in Pamplemousses, near Port Louis, Mauritius, and the oldest botanica ...
), is also named after the same statesman. However the Curepipe Gardens are significantly smaller and cooler in temperature, with a more informal layout.
Layout
![SSR Curepipe Botanical Gardens - Mauritius 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/SSR_Curepipe_Botanical_Gardens_-_Mauritius_4.jpg)
Entrance to the garden is free.
It covers an area of roughly 27 acres, and is situated about 2 km to the west of the
Curepipe
Curepipe () also known as ''La Ville-Lumière'' (The City of Light), is a town in Mauritius, located in the Plaines Wilhems District, the eastern part also lies in the Moka District. The town is administered by the Municipal Council of Curepipe. ...
town centre in Route des Jardins. The main entrance is on Botanical Garden Street at Les Casernes, and a secondary entrance is located at Camp-Caval.
The gardens are intersected by a river and a lake – set about with Nandia palms. There is also a
gazebo
A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands.
Etymology
The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries (website), Oxford D ...
, at which community events are sometimes hosted. This Victorian-style kiosk has a raised wooden board floor, designed specifically for acoustics to cater for the audiences which attended the early concerts.
The offices of the Forestry Department, from which permission is needed to visit the Nature Reserves of the interior, is located next door to the gardens. In partnership with the Curepipe Municipal Council, it has worked at propagating some of the island nation's rarest native trees and shrubs. Some have been planted in the gardens, including a variety of indigenous "Vacoas" (''
Pandanus
''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names ...
'') species which have been established around the lake.
The world's rarest palm
![Hyophorbe-amaricaulis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Hyophorbe-amaricaulis.JPG)
Curepipe Gardens house the rarest
palm
Palm most commonly refers to:
* Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand
* Palm plants, of family Arecaceae
**List of Arecaceae genera
* Several other plants known as "palm"
Palm or Palms may also refer to:
Music
* Palm (ba ...
tree in the world, the unique specimen of ''
Hyophorbe amaricaulis
''Hyophorbe amaricaulis'' (also known as the "loneliest palm") is a species of palm tree of the order Arecales, family Arecaceae, subfamily Arecoideae, tribe Chamaedoreeae. It is found exclusively on the island of Mauritius, and only a single su ...
''. This individual remains the only specimen of its species, as all of the many attempts to cross-fertilise it have failed.
The unique palm is now surrounded by security fencing for its protection. It is about 12 meters high, with a thin gray trunk and occasional creamy white flowers.
References
External links
Photo
{{coord, 20.3291, S, 57.5244, E, display=title
Curepipe
Botanical gardens in Mauritius
1870 establishments in the British Empire