Dunedin (15 February 2018) – The Dunedin Botanic Garden has proved it’s one of the country’s top garden experiences, once again being awarded a six star status from the New Zealand Gardens Trust.

Dunedin Botanic Garden Team Leader/Curator Alan Matchett says it’s an exciting achievement.

“We always push ourselves to do the best we can and this shows we’re achieving the levels that we want to.”

The rating follows a biennial assessment and means the Botanic Garden provides one of New Zealand's top garden experiences.

“This is also good news from a tourism perspective, the Garden is an attractive destination for tourists and this is another incentive for them to visit.”

There are 10 gardens in New Zealand that have a six star rating, only two of them are public gardens (the other public garden is Otari-Wilton’s Bush, a botanic garden in Wellington).

Gardens are rated on a range of criteria, including maintenance, plant health, design and presentation.

The rating is the equivalent of the preceding Garden of International Significance, which the Botanic Garden was first awarded in 2010.

The Dunedin Botanic Garden was established in 1863 and was New Zealand's first botanic garden.

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