The Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney, set on 30 hectares adjoining the magnificent Sydney Harbour, is a much loved and well frequented haven from city bustle. Within seven months after the First Fleet sailed into Sydney Cove in 1788, convicts had cleared 9 acres of land to create a Government Farm at Farm Cove. This marked the commencement of horticultual and botanical activityon a site which, though commanding beautiful views, was hardly ideal for practical gardening purposes. The area lacked a reliable water supply, it was exposed to spray-laden north-easterly winds and was set on stony land, part of which was subject to tidal flooding. The early Colonial Botanists found the establishment of the Gardens required a constant battle to be waged with the elements, not to mention the often unsympathetic colonial administrators. Insulated by a futher 34 hectares of adjoining parkland in the Domain, the Gardens have survived and flourished. The opening of the new herbarium building in 1982 signified government acknowledgment of the priceless botanical, literary and scientific resources of the institution...