Botanical Garden
Eka Karya Botanic Garden, also known as Bali Botanic Garden is a botanic garden in Bedugul, Bali, for botanical research, conservation, education and recreation. It is operated by Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).
The Eka Karya Botanic Garden is established on July 15, 1959 and situated at 1250–1450 m above sea level overlooking Beratan Lake and Ulundanu Temple, with an area of 157.5 hectares (389 acres). The temperature of the garden range from 17 - 25°C in daytime and drops to 10 - 15°C at night. Its humidity average is around 70-90%.
The Gardens contains more than 18,000 taxa of plants belonging to 2100 species, representing various species from mountainous areas of eastern Indonesia: Bali, Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua. In addition its herbarium contain 10,000 preserved plant specimens ranging from algae to flowering plants..
Apart from plant collections, there is also a traditional Balinese style guesthouse that functions as guest house for visitors.
On 15 July 1959, Eka Karya Botanical garden in Bali was officially established on the slopes of Tapak Hill, Candikuning village with an altitude of 1250-1400 m. In Balinese language, "Eka" means first while "Karya" means creation, referring to the garden's status as the first Indonesian Botanic Garden to have been established after the Indonesian independence.
Bali Botanic Garden was originally intended to specialize in cultivation of conifer plants (non-flowering seed plants, or Gymnosperms) and as a place for recreation. The garden accommodate scientific, cultural and recreational activities for visitors.
Development of the garden stopped in 1965 due to political instability and was only reopened on 30 April 1975. When the garden became operational once again, its area was expanded to 129.2 hectares. It also added a new function for ex-situ conservation of plants from the mountainous region of eastern Indonesia.
In 2001 the land area of the Garden was expanded to 157.5 hectares.
The garden's main collection are divided into several subsection: orchids (293 species), Balinese ceremonial plants (218 species), medicinal plants (300 species), cacti (68 species), ferns (80 species), begonia (200 species), and various aquatic plants. The garden itself is home to around 79 species of birds.