Townsville's Botanical Gardens
Townsville has three unique botanic gardens including Anderson Gardens, Palmetum, and Queens Gardens. Each garden has an amazing collection from all around the world, as well as a wide variety of flora and wildlife.
Location - Townsville, North Queensland, Australia
Townsville has three unique botanic gardens including Anderson Gardens, Palmetum, and Queens Gardens. Each garden has an amazing collection from all around the world, as well as a wide variety of flora and wildlife. Go for a leisurely bike ride or stroll through the gardens to take in the breathtaking surroundings. All three gardens offer walking and cycling pathways.
Learn more about bird-friendly fruits and nectar plants for our tropical bird species with these helpful fact sheets:
- Feeding our pollinators: Nectar plants for our tropical bird species (PDF, 2.9 MB)
- Tucker time: Nourish our local wildlife with bird friendly fruits (PDF, 2.9 MB)
Interactive Map
Queens Gardens
Entry points located at Paxton Street and Gregory Street, North Ward.
Open to the public between sunrise and sunset. Gates will be closed at other times.
The Queens Gardens is a heritage listed, lush, green oasis established in 1870. It is regarded as an excellent example of a tropical colonial garden from that time period and now covers four hectares, down from its previous 40 hectares. Offering a peaceful and cool respite from the city centre and set against the dramatic pink granite monolith of Castle Hill. It was initially created as a garden for acclimatisation trials prior to European settlement, when possible plants for use as food and economics were tested.
Each of the garden's four quadrants has a centre fountain. The Herb Society's garden, the annual garden beds, the two small hedge mazes, the rainforest path, and the black bean (also known as Moreton Bay chestnuts) avenue are among the these locations. A small aviary with peacocks, lorikeets, and sulfur-crested cockatoos is also present. The focus of the current plant collection is on colonial ornamental plants with colourful, eye-catching flowers, foliage, or fruit.
Residents of Townsville enjoy its lavish gardens for leisure and entertainment, while the Townsville City Council and community organisations make use of its verdant beauty to host a range of special events.
- Download the Queens Gardens brochure (PDF, 493.4 KB)
- Download the Queens Gardens Cultural Heritage Conservation Management Plan (PDF, 13.7 MB)
Palmetum
Main entrance located at University Road, Douglas.
Open to the public between sunrise and sunset. Gates will be closed at other times.
The Palmetum, a 17 hectare botanic park, is one of the largest and most varied public collections of palms in the entire world. This well-known destination was a 1998 Bicentennial Project that the Townsville community supported, planned, and executed through the Townsville City Council Parks Services.
The main attraction of the gardens is the sizable collection of palms on show in a variety of environments; Pandanaceae, cacti, and succulents are also well-represented. There are about 60 native palm species in Australia, and the Palmetum has the majority of them. There are about 300 species in the collection, many of which are rare and endangered in their native habitats. The Palmetum was instigated by Jim Darley and created with the purpose of showcasing plants in their natural habitats, ranging from the dry tropics to the moist tropic lowlands.
There are large lawns and water features that are frequented by many different bird species, in addition to these reconstructed habitats. A café and tourist amenities may be found inside the majestic Tumbetin Lodge, a piece of regional history architecture at the main entrance. The Ross River Bikeway connects the river with the gardens. Public amenities, conference spaces, art exhibits, restaurants, and tea rooms are all included in the facilities. A Black Hawk Disaster Memorial is another element of the Palmetum.
- Download the Palmetum brochure (PDF, 602.0 KB)
Anderson Gardens
Vehicle entry point located at Gulliver Street, Pimlico.
Walking/cycling entry points located at Gulliver Street, Balls Lane and Wellington Street Mundingburra.
Anderson Gardens are open to the public between sunrise and sunset. Gates will be closed at other times.
The largest botanic garden in Townsville is Anderson Gardens. The gardens, which span 25 hectares, feature the World Cycad Collection, magnificent species of tropical plants and palms, and stately avenues. The collections, which were initially built as an arboretum, are evolving with a focus on native and dry tropical species. The Garden, which is conveniently situated in Mundingburra, is home to magnificent examples of tropical plants, palms, and Pandanus. Particularly noteworthy are the Grand Avenues, the Tropical Orchard, and the World Cycad Garden.
Everyday tourists as well as botanical specialists can enjoy the varied range of flora in Anderson Gardens thanks to its impressive collection of plants, which includes the Cape York Peninsula Collection, one of the largest pandanus collections in the world, and the Tropical Orchard. The garden, which was first established in the early 1930s, is now a brilliant botanical achievement and a wonderful public resource. In honour of William Anderson, who served as the City of Townsville's first Curator of Parks from 1878 until 1934, Anderson Gardens were given their name.
- Download the Anderson Gardens brochure (PDF, 536.0 KB)
Dan Gleeson Gardens
Main entrance point is located at Thuringowa Drive, Thuringowa Central.
Although not operated as a botanic garden, Dan Gleeson Memorial Gardens is a pleasure garden that is kept to the same high standards and offers lovely places for special occasions. Dan Gleeson Gardens is located on an area of around 5 hectares and was once planned as a Bicentennial project. Large lawn areas and paved pathways are interspersed throughout the gardens, which are made up of a variety of native and exotic trees, shrubs, and palms.
In Dan Gleeson Memorial Gardens, you may spread out a picnic rug and unwind by one of the numerous water features while watching the variety of wildlife in the area. These beautiful gardens are home to a wide variety of animals, including bowerbirds, barking owls, fig birds, ducks, cormorants, egrets, butterflies, a variety of insects, and lizards, as well as long neck turtles, mangrove jack, barramundi, eels, redclaw, and prawns.
Dan Gleeson Memorial Gardens offers a number of well-maintained walking trails set amid magnificent landscape that are ideal for an afternoon stroll, whether you're walking the dog or taking the kids out for a ride on their bikes or scooters.
There is plenty of parking, handicapped accessibility, and barbeque facilities at Dan Gleeson Memorial Gardens.
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