The Peradeniya Botanical Gardens in Sri Lanka, which is on the banks of the Mahaweli River and just 6km from Kandy, is one of the best and beautiful botanical gardens in Asia. The garden is among the finest tropical gardens in the world and is spread on a 147 acre land.
The Garden dates as far back as 1371 however the ground work for a Botanical Garden was formed by Mr Alexandar Moon in 1821. The Garden was formally established and plants from Kew Garden at Slave Island in Colombo and from the Kalutara Garden in Kalutara were moved up until 1843. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Peradeniya was made more independent in 1844 and the gardens came under the administration of the Department of Agriculture when it was established in 1912. The garden has a comprehensive collection and open every day.
The plants in the garden are grouped together and have different types of palms, bamboos, orchids, etc. The flowers are in bloom all year round in the garden which also contains the tallest bamboos in the world and the oldest tea plant in Sri Lanka. The orchid house in the garden has more than three hundred varieties of superb orchids blooming in profusion. The spice garden in the park has trees and plants used for preparing traditional Ayurvedic medicine. The magnificence of the garden is heightened by the Mahaweli River which flows through its outer edge.
To mark their visits to Sri Lanka, many distinguished visitors, including royalty and heads of governments, have planted trees at the gardens.
