By Linda Hindi

AMMAN —  The Royal Botanic Garden, under development in the Tel Al Rumman area, will not only give Jordanians a beautiful place to visit but also serve as an inheritance gift for future generations.

“Our aim through the establishment of the Royal Botanic Garden in Jordan is to make it a centre to enhance public education, scientific research, tourist attraction and most of all, a centre for the conservation of God Almighty’s botanical creations for generations to come,” said HRH Basma Bint Ali, founder of the Royal Botanic Garden.

The Kingdom is particularly rich in wild plants and naturally grows more than 2,000 species. However, due to rapid urbanisation, population expansion, lack of land use management and minimal conservation efforts, the rich botanical diversity is under threat of extinction.

Along with the conservation of rare plants, the garden will serve three main objectives: Education, scientific research and recreation.

The 1800-dunum hub for conserving the Kingdom’s biodiversity is due to open in two years and will include natural habitats, theme gardens and a herbarium.

The area near the King Talal Dam is home to seven different species of wild orchids including the orchid sancta found nowhere else in Jordan.

An initial survey of the site, which was previously filled with rubbish, found over 400 species of plants and desert flora rapidly regenerating after the nature safe haven was secured last year.  

Dawud Al Eisawi, a professor of botany at the University of Jordan who conducted the survey, told The Jordan Times that the site was over-grazed and heavily burdened by nomadic people living in the area, who collected wood, cut flowers and burned fires.

“Now there are several populations of flora including red tulips, black iris, alliums and blue bells growing at a very healthy pace,”  said Al- Eisawi, who is also on the scientific committee for the botanical garden.

The plant sciences professor added that the “theme gardens” will include one for medicinal plants and an Islamic garden.

“The Islamic garden has an Andalusian design with a specific system of irrigation with water canals that channel water without using energy,” he said.

The professor noted that the site, itself very rich in plant life and biodiversity, has witnessed the return of new trees including the national tree of Jordan —  a deciduous oak —  previously destroyed and replaced by man-made pine forests.

“Plants we haven’t seen since the 1800s have reappeared… it is amazing how the land can rehabilitate itself when given the opportunity,” Princess Basma said.

The ambitious project will be also be a tourist destination, housing a visitors’ centre, exhibition hall, research centre, picnic area, gift shop and food outlets, as well as conference facilities, eco-lodges  and hiking and horseback riding trails.

The executive director of the Royal Botanic Garden, Hania Kabariti, told The Jordan Times that the garden is a way to give back to the nation, adding that the private sector, including NGOs who support environmental projects, can join by contributing to the “national project.”

Meanwhile, delegates who participated in the second conference for Arab Botanic Gardens, this week, unanimously decided that Jordan would host the “botanic gardens conservation in the Arab world network.”

“Regional cooperation and networking is essential to success,” conservationist Mark Richardson told The Jordan Times.

He added that the conference proved the number of Arab countries creating botanic gardens has grown, with the quality of the new gardens equal to some of the best in the world.

As a projected centre of education, the garden will give Jordanians a better understanding of the country’s botanical heritage while educating citizens on its importance and the need to protect their natural habitats.