Dunedin Botanic Garden

The Dunedin Botanic Garden is located at the northern end of central Dunedin. The garden is close to the University of Otago and one of the city's most historic cemeteries, the Northern Cemetery on a spur of Signal Hill and on the river plain immediately below it.

The two parts of the Dunedin Botanic Garden are known simply as the upper gardens and the lower gardens. The lower gardens' features include the Winter Garden, a heated Edwardian glass house, rose and herb gardens, a duck pond, children's playground, sound shell, and Japanese garden, the latter commemorating links with Dunedin's Japanese sister city, Otaru. The lower gardens are also noted for their sculptures and statues, among them an ornate fountain, a gift of Wolf Harris, and a pair of statues by Cecil Thomas depicting Peter Pan and the Darling children from the novel ‘Peter Pan’. Two places within the lower gardens are listed as Category II Historic Places by Heritage New Zealand: the Wolf Harris fountain (listed in 1982), and the sound shell (listed in 1986).

A small tributary of the Leith, the Lindsay Creek flows through the lower gardens. A cafe and visitors' centre are located to the west of this creek, next to a large duck pond and tropical greenhouse.

The Dunedin Botanic Garden is the oldest botanical garden in New Zealand and was established in 1863 on a site surrounding the Water of Leith now occupied by the University of Otago. After extensive flooding in 1868, the gardens were moved to their current site in 1869.

In July 2010, the Dunedin Botanic Garden was awarded a rank of "Garden of International Significance" by the New Zealand Gardens Trust becoming one of only five gardens nationwide to be awarded this honour. The only other garden in the South Island with this ranking is also in Dunedin, at Larnach Castle. The garden is much loved by residents of Dunedin.