The main attraction within the botanic gardens. Located on the mid-western side of the garden, the hilly three hectare site has a collection of more than 1,000 species and 2,000 hybrids of orchids.
Within the orchid garden, there are a number of mini-attractions such as:
Burkill Hall & VIP Orchid Garden: Burkill Hall is a colonial plantation bungalow built in the year 1886. It used to be the Director’s House and was named in honour of the only father and son pair, Isaac and Humphrey Burkill, to hold the post of Director of Singapore Botanic Gardens. Currently the ground level serves as an exhibition area. It showcases information on the different hybrids named after VIPs who have visited the garden.
At the back of the Burkill Hall is the VIP Orchid Garden and here the real hybrids of some of the VIP orchids are on display. Some notable ones include: Dendrobium Margaret Thatcher, Renantanda Akihito, Dendrobium Masako Kotaishi Hidenka, Dendrobium Elizabeth, 'Vanda' Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Orchidarium: The haven for serious orchids enthusiasts. Only the natural species are on display here in a tropical setting.
Tan Hoon Siang Misthouse: Unknown to most people, Tan Hoon Siang was a descendant of Tan Tock Seng (founder of Tan Tock Seng Hospital and a philanthropist). The misthouse house contains a colourful collection of different hybrids. It also has a small collection of fragrant orchids like Vanda Mimi Plamer.
Lady Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad House: Named in honour of its sponsor, the Bromeliad showcases plant from the Bromeliaceae family. Pineapple is a famous member of the bromeliad family. "The unique collection of bromeliads on display was acquired from Shelldance Nursery in the United States in 1994".
Coolhouse: The Cool House tries to recreate the environment of a tropical highland forest and so it showcases orchids that are normally only found in the tropical highland areas.
[edit] Rainforest
The Singapore Botanic Gardens has a small tropical rainforest, of around six hectares in size, which is older than the gardens itself. The Botanic Gardens' rainforest and its bigger cousin at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve are located well within the Singapore's city limits. Singapore is one of the only two major cities with a tropical rainforest within its city limits - The other is Rio de Janeiro's Tijuca Forest.
[edit] Evolution Garden
A new attraction at the botanic garden is the 1.5-hectare (3.7 acre) ( Evolution Garden, located within the Central Core. The Evolution Garden tells the evolution story of plant life on Earth throughout the ages.
[edit] Ginger Garden
Located next to the National Orchid Garden, this one hectare garden lumps together the collection of members of the family Zingiberaceae. The garden houses a restaurant (Halia Restaurant). There is also a drop-off point along Tyersall Avenue as well as a waterfall. The garden was officially opened in 2003 and it took over the spot vacated by the previous Orchid Enclosure.
[edit] Botany Centre and Tanglin Gate
The recently re-opened Tanglin Gate was given a new look. Gone was the old cast iron gate, it now sports a more modern sliver colour with a leaf motif as its main design.
The 2 new blocks of offices and classroom in the upgraded Tanglin Core were known as the Botany Centre. It houses the:
Library of Botany & Horticulture (including the Public Reference Centre)
The Singapore Herbarium
Orchid Breeding & Micropagation
Education Outreach/ Workshop classrooms
The corridors and walkways of the Botany Centre were covered by leaf imprint. And there are also a number of wooden craving that littered the ground. There are also fern covered vertical walls.
The Green Pavilion is the first "green roof" in Singapore. Weed-like or grass-like plants fully covered the pitched roof. It houses the visitor services desk as well as the foodcourt (Taman Serasi Food Garden) at its basement.
The offices of former directors namely Holttum Hall (named after Eric Holttum, Director of the Gardens from 1925 - 1949) and Ridley Hall (after Henry Nicholas Ridley, first director of Gardens from 1888 - 1911) were preserved and now serve as the Singapore Botanic Gardens' Directorate and Visitor Management & Rangers offices.
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