Spatiotemporal Evolution of Chinese Botanical Gardens over the Last 5000 Years

Abstract

Botanical gardens are a primary avenue for ex situ biodiversity conservation. China represents a center of origin for many of the world’s cultivated plants, as well as the birthplace of the world’s earliest pharmacopoeia and most ancient gardens. Botanical gardens are thought to have originated in China, the only one of four ancient civilizations that has persisted without interruption for the last 5000 years. This paper aims to demonstrate the spatiotemporal changes of Chinese botanical gardens and explore their driving mechanism. Based on a systematic review of the literature, the development of Chinese botanical gardens can be roughly divided into three major stages: an enlightenment stage for ancient botanical gardens (2800 BC–1859 AD), a colonial-exploration stage for modern botanical gardens (1860–1949), and a gradual-development stage for modern botanical gardens (1950–2022). By the end of 2022, China will contain a total of 456 botanical gardens, the most of any country in the world; these gardens will cover an area of 115,000 hectares and preserve 515,000 species of living plants. In the past 5000 years, the temporal and spatial development of Chinese botanical gardens has been linked to social and economic developments. By assessing the achievements of each stage of botanical-garden development, four major factors driving the rise, dissemination, development, and evolution of Chinese botanical gardens were identified: societal wealth/prosperity, demand-driven developments, support from science and education fields, and the promotion of ecological sustainability. Our findings fill the gap in botanical-garden development theory, and serve as a reference for the construction and management of botanical gardens.

1. Introduction

As human civilizations have developed, the purpose of botanical gardens has shifted from an initial focus on the cultivation of medicinal plants, to include multiple functions, such as the collection of various plant resources, the creation of planted landscapes, the breeding of germplasm resources [1], and informative displays of plant ecology. Botanical gardens also play an important role in ex situ conservation to combat the effects of global changes on plant biodiversity [2,3], as well as providing research opportunities and education on the plant resources of a given region or country [4]. Societal understanding of botanical gardens is also gradually evolving, from a focus on medicinal uses and domestication, to taxonomical research and ex situ conservation [3]. The International Association of Botanic Gardens (IABG) once defined a botanical garden (or arboretum) as a place open to the public in which individual plants are labelled [5]. More recently, Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) defined a botanical garden as “an institution holding documented collections of living plants for the purposes of scientific research, conservation, display and education” [5]. The earliest Chinese botanical garden “prototype” is thought to be the “Shennong Medicine Garden”, which was established around 2800 BC, more than 4800 years ago [6,7,8,9]. At present, China has a total of 456 botanical gardens spread across 34 provinces and autonomous regions, municipalities, and special administrative regions, a remarkable accomplishment that makes China one of the richest countries in the world in terms of the area conserved in these gardens. Simultaneously, the Chinese botanical gardens have become an important ex situ location for the conservation of plant diversity, and have acted as a repository for certain segments of plants that are at risk of being lost with the rapid urbanization progress [2,10]. A Chinese national botanical garden system was launched in 2021, and the China National Botanical Garden was officially inaugurated in Beijing on April 18th, 2022, marking the beginning of a more systematic approach to China’s botanical gardens.

Concomitant with the rapid development of new Chinese botanical gardens, an increasing number of studies related to botanical gardens are also being published, including studies on the development of botanic gardens [11,12,13,14,15,16], construction concepts and ideas [7,17,18,19,20], planning and design [21,22,23], operations and management [24,25], functions and roles [26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33], and development strategies [34,35,36]. Despite the volume of research conducted to date, there has been no systematic review of how Chinese botanical gardens have developed, from a macro perspective. At present, China is experiencing a surge in the development of new botanical gardens. Therefore, summarizing the spatiotemporal development of Chinese botanical gardens in the past 5000 years, and the influential factors driving these developments, will be helpful to guide the future establishment and management of botanical gardens in the country.

This review aims to comprehensively examine the spatiotemporal development of Chinese botanical gardens, as well as the factors underlying their creation, using a mixed approach that combines comprehensive and in-depth investigations, quantitative and qualitative analyses, and assessments of historical achievements and practical needs. In the following analysis of the rise, spread, and development of Chinese botanical gardens, the spatiotemporal evolution of Chinese botanical gardens is divided into three developmental stages. This study updates the data of the existing global botanical-garden database, and has significant implications for the construction of future botanical gardens, as well as for the development of a global network of gardens with the shared purpose of more harmonious relationships with nature.

2. Spatiotemporal Evolution of Chinese Botanical Gardens

China is the center of origin for many of the world’s cultivated plants, the birthplace of the earliest pharmacopoeia, and the mother of the world’s gardens [34]. According to the literature, the concept of a botanical garden first originated in China; China represents the only one of four ancient civilizations that still exists today, with a history of nearly 5000 years [6,26,37,38]. Throughout the history of botanical gardens in China, three major “developmental stages” can generally be recognized, based on the practical activities of plant collection, cultivation, and utilization and also the evolution of botanical-garden ideas. The three major stages include an enlightenment stage for ancient botanical gardens (2800 BC–1859 AD), a colonial-exploration stage for modern botanical gardens (1860–1949), and a gradual-development stage for contemporary botanical gardens (1950–2022); each major stage contains several minor stages. According to the websites review [37], data query and interviews, 456 botanical gardens in China were collected by 2022, covering a total area of 115,000 hectares, and preserving a total accumulated number of 515,000 living plant-specimens across all 34 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, and special administrative regions in China (Figure 1, Figure 2 and Figure 3).

2.1. The Enlightenment Stage for Ancient Botanical Gardens (2800 BC–1859 AD)

The evolution of botanical gardens in China has a long history, and was accompanied by the simultaneous development of Chinese civilization. Over the past 5000 years, from the “Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors” period to the middle of the Qing Dynasty, botanical gardens have existed in each dynasty. The first documented botanical garden “prototype” dates to the establishment of the “Shennong Medicine Garden” around 2800 BC. In ancient China, there were ten important botanical gardens with relatively clear historical records: the “Shanglin Garden” in the Qin and Han Dynasties, “Beijiaotan Medicine Garden” in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, “Leyou Garden” in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, “Jingshi Medicine Garden” and “Dadi Mountain Medicinal Garden” in the Tang Dynasty, Sima Guang’s “Dule Garden” in the Northern Song Dynasty, Prince Zhu Su’s “Famine Relief Herbal Garden”, Li Shizhen’s “Compendium of Materia Medica Garden” and Xu Guangqi’s “Planting Experiment Garden” in the Ming Dynasty, and the “Dongshu Garden” of Qing Dynasty champion Wu Qijun [37,38,39]. The founders of these gardens included emperors, generals, literati, and famous doctors who had substantial personal status and abundant financial resources. Ancient Chinese botanical gardens were mainly located in the provinces of Henan and Shaanxi in the Yellow River basin, and in the provinces of Hubei, Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Zhejiang in the Yangtze River basin. This distribution was closely related to the development and evolution of ancient Chinese civilizations (

Table 1. The temporal and spatial evolution of botanical gardens in ancient China.

Name	Establishment	Location	Area (hm2)	Species	Affiliation	Founder	Type	Note
Shennong Medicine Garden	Prehistoric: 2800 BC	Kunlun Mountain	-	-	-	Shennong Clan	Medicinal	Earliest prototype of botanical gardens in the world.
Shanglin Garden	Qin Dynasty: 350 BC	Changan	34,000	3000	Qin and Han Palace	Duke Xiao of Qin; Emperor Wu of Han	Royal garden	The earliest botanical garden ever recorded in history.
Beijiaotan Medicine Garden	Eastern Jin Dynasty, 325 AD	Southern Fuzhou Mountain, Nanjing	1	-	Eastern Jin Palace	Emperor Ming of Jin	Royal medicinal	The term “medicinal garden” was used for the first time in history.
Leyou Garden	Southern Dynasty, 434 AD	Jiuhua Mountain, Nanjing	12.9	-	Southern Dynasty Palace	Emperor Wen of Song	Royal garden	Rebuilt and expanded upon the Beijiao Temple of the Jin Dynasty.
Jingshi Medicine Garden	Tang Dynasty, 624 AD	Eastern Zhuque Street, Changan	20	-	Tang Imperial Medical Academy	Emperor Gaozu of Tang	Medicinal, educational	The largest medicinal garden in ancient China; the earliest higher education institution for medicine in China.
Dadi Mountain Medicinal Garden	Tang Dynasty, 735 AD	Dadi Mountain, Yuhang	-	60+	-	Xiahou Ziyun, a Taoist priest in Tang Dynasty	Medicinal	One of 36 wonders of Daoism.
Dule Garden	Northern Song Dynasty, 1071 AD	Sima Village, Yanshi District, Luoyang	1.33	10+	Family of Sima Guang	Sima Guang	Private garden	The masterpiece “Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance” was written in the garden.
The Famine Relief Herbal Garden	Ming Dynasty, 1391 AD	Kaifeng, Henan	5	400+	Garden of Prince’s Palace	Prince Zhusu	Edible plants	The scientific masterpiece “Famine Relief Pharmacopoeia” was written by the prince.
Compendium of Materia Medica Garden	Ming Dynasty, 1558 AD	Qizhou Town, Qichun County, Hubei	-	-	Family of Li Shizhen	Imperial Doctor, Li Shizhen	Medicinal	Li completed the medicinal masterpiece “Compendium of Materia Medica Garden”.
Planting Experiment Garden	Ming Dynasty, 1607 AD	Xujiahui, Shanghai, Tianjin	55	10+	Family of Xu Guangqi	Xu Guangqi, the Minister ofthe Ministry of Rites	Edible crops	Xu wrote the agricultural masterpiece “A Complete Treatise on Agriculture”.
Dongshu Garden	Qing Dynasty, 1822 AD	Shihe Village, Gushi, Henan	1	30	Hometown of Wu Qijun	Champion of Qing Dynasty	Private garden	Wu finished the “Illustrated Catalogue of Plants” academic monologue.

, Figure 4).

Table 1 shows distinct typologies underlying the origin of Chinese botanical gardens, mainly based on three key aims:

(1)

Cultivation of edible plants. As one of the world’s four ancient civilizations, ancient China oversaw the transformation of human societies from primitive to agricultural. Prior to the birth of agriculture, plants were foraged from the wild. To obtain the food resources necessary for survival, human societies gradually learned to cultivate plants. More than 100 commonly cultivated crops in the world today originated in China, making China one of the world’s important centers of origin for cultivated plants [39]. Over time, cultivated botanical gardens have gradually been established in China, with Zhu Su’s “Famine Relief Herbal Garden” and Xu Guangqi’s “Planting Experiment Garden”, both established in the Ming Dynasty, two representative examples of ancient Chinese botanical gardens. The scientific and technological masterpieces, “Famine Relief Pharmacopoeia” and “ Complete Treatise on Agriculture”, were inspired by these gardens.

(2)

Research on medicinal plants. China has a long history of herbal research for medicinal use. In ancient times, the use of herbs for medicine was only second to their use as food. In Chinese mythology, there is a story about Shennong tasting all kinds of herbs. During the Xia and Shang Dynasties, Chinese culture gradually accumulated experience with medicinal herbs. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, the world’s earliest pharmacopoeia, “Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica”, was created. Research on medicinal plants reached its climax in the Ming Dynasty with the publication of Li Shizhen’s “Compendium of Materia Medica” [38,39]. As part of the process of herbal research, special attention was paid to the construction of medicinal botanical-gardens. In fact, medicinal botanical gardens accounted for nearly half of all ancient botanical gardens in China: from the early “Shennong Medicine Garden” and “Beijiaotan Medicine Garden” in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, to the “Jingshi Medicine Garden” and “Dadi Mountain Medicinal Garden” in the Tang Dynasty, and finally to Li Shizhen’s “Compendium of Materia Medica Garden” in the Ming Dynasty.

(3)

The construction of garden landscapes. China is the mother of the world’s gardens. Chinese gardens originated from ancestral patterns of worship of landscapes and natural landscapes. In the Book of Songs, three songs, “Lingtai”, “Lingyu” and “Lingyuan”, serve as records of ancient gardens. In ancient times, there was a gradual migration of people from farms to villages and towns. To compensate for the relative isolation from nature, emperors, generals, literati, and monks established a variety of gardens; over time, three types of gardens emerged, including royal gardens, private gardens, and temple gardens [39]. Shanglin Garden in the Qin and Han Dynasties and Leyou Garden in the Wei and Jin Dynasties are typical royal gardens, while Dule Garden in the Northern Song Dynasty and Dongshu Garden in the Qing Dynasty are typical private gardens. The Dadi Mountain Medicinal Garden, created by practitioners of Daoism, is an example of a temple garden. No matter the type of garden, flowers, other herbaceous plants, and trees were commonly planted, serving as an important resource for modern botanical gardens.

2.2. The Colonial Exploration Stage for Recent Botanical Gardens (1860–1949)

Botanical gardens in the scientific sense did not exist in China until modern times. A “botanical garden” by its name implies “a garden for the study of botany”. Botanical gardens are inseparable from botany. As one of the modern sciences originating in Europe, botany was introduced to China in the eighth year of Xianfeng in the Qing Dynasty (1858) [39]. In 1860, the first botanical garden in China, the Hong Kong Botanical Garden, was established [40,41], foreshadowing the construction of modern Chinese botanical gardens. Generally, the colonial-exploration stage can be divided into two periods. The first period took place in the late Qing Dynasty (1860–1911). At the end of the Qing Dynasty, China represented a semi-feudal and semi-colonial society, oppressed by foreign forces and in decline as a nation. In the late Qing Dynasty, from 1860 to 1911, only five botanical gardens were established [39,40]; these were created in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Liaoning by British and Japanese colonists, to serve the purposes of colonial rule (

Table 2. The temporal and spatial evolution of recent Chinese botanical gardens.

Name	Year	Location	Area (hm2)	Number of Plant species	Affiliation	Founder	Type	Notes
Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens	1860	Albany Rd, Central	5.6	1000	Leisure and Cultural Services Department	British colonists	Landscape	Originally Hong Kong. Botanical Gardens
Taipei Botanical Garden	1895	No. 53, Nanhai Rd, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City	8.2	2000	Taiwan Forestry Research Institute	Japanese colonists	Academy
Lushun Botanical Garden	1902	Lushunkou, Dalian city, Liaoning Province	4	160	Lushun Urban Management Bureau	Colonize	Landscape
Hengchun Tropical Botanical Garden	1906	Hengchun, Donping, Taiwan	430	1300	Hengchun Research Centre, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute	Colonize	Academy
Jiayi Botanical Garden	1908	Jiayi, Taiwan	8.3	273	Zhongpu Research Centre, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute	Colonize	Academy
Taiwan Gaoshan Botanical Garden	1912	Jiayi Taiwan	0.015	100	Ciyun Temple in Jiayi	Colonize	Tourism
Xiongyue Arboretum	1915	Bayuquan District, Yingkou, Liaaoning Province	6.5	550	Research Institute of Pomology of Liaoning	Colonize	Academy
Jiangsu Jiazhong Agriculture University Arboretum	1915	Sanpailou, Najing, Jiangsu Provice	0.4		Jiangsu Jiazhong Agriculture University	Prof. Chen Rong	Education	Now closed.
Zhejiang University Botanical Garden	1921	Huajiachi, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province	0.9	1000	Zhejiang University	Prof. Zhong Guanguang	Education	Originally Jianqiao Botanic Garden.
Xiaping Tropical Botanical Garden	1923	Nantou, Taiwan	8.9	850	Taiwan University		Education
National Peiping Natural Museum Botanical Garden	1929	Sanbeizi Garden, Beijing		700	Original was Plant Research Institute, Beiping Research Institute	Prof. Liu shene	Academy	Now closed.
Nanjing Zhoangshan Botanic Garden	1929	Xuanwu District, Nanking, Jiangsu Province	186	10,000	Chinese Academy of Science	Prof. Fu huanguang	Complex	Originally Nanjing Botanical Garden, Sun. Yat-Sen Memorial.
South China Botanical Garden	1929	Guangzhou, Guangdong Province	319.3	17,168	National Parks Department, Chinese Academy of Science, Guangdong Province	Prof. Chen huanyong, Academician	Complex	Originally Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute, National Zhongshan University.
Arboretum of Wuhan University	1933	Luojiashan, Wuchang, Wuhan, Hubei Province	21	800	Wuhan University		Education
Lushan Botanical Garden	1934	Lushan, Jiujiang, Jiangxi province	333.3	5500	Chinese Academy of Science	Prof. Hu Xiansu	Complex	Originally established by Jinsheng Biological Research Institute.
Shanghai Botanical Garden	1934	Longhua Road, Shanghai	0.93		Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Education	Mr. Jiang Yixi	Education	Now closed.
Shuangxi Tropical Arboretum	1935	Gaoxiong, Taiwan	33	96	Taiwan Gaoxiong Forestry Bureau		Forests, Landscape
Changchun Zoological and Botanical Park	1938	Nanguan District, Changchun, Jilin Province	72	134	Changchun Forestry and Landscape Bureau		Landscape
Kunming Botanical Garden	1938	Panlong District, Kunming, Yunnan Province	44	8700	Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Science		Complex	Originally Yunnan Institute of Botany.
Arboretum of Southwest Forestry University	1939	Panlong District, Kunming, Yunnan Province	41.6	539	Southwest Forestry University		Education
Jingzhi Botanical Garden	1944	Guiyang, Guizhou Province			Original was Guizhou Provincial Government		Seedlings	Now closed.
Chongqing Medicinal Botanical Garden	1947	Nanchuan District	6.7	2500	Chongqing Medicine Planting Institute		Academy	Originally Sichuan Medicinal Botanical Garden.

, Figure 5). The second period of the colonial-exploration stage lasted from 1912 to 1949. After the Republic of China was established in 1912, the first generation of Chinese botanists emerged, and several scientific botanical gardens were established from 1912–1949. For example, Professor Chen Rong established the Teaching Arboretum for Jiangsu First Class Agricultural School in 1915; Professor Zhong Guangguang established the Jianqiao Botanical Garden for the Labor and Agriculture College of No. 3 Sun Yat-Sen University in 1921; and Professor Liu Shenzhen founded the National Peiping Natural Museum Botanical Garden in Beijing Sanbeizi Garden in 1929. In the same year, Professor Fu Huanguang became curator of the Sun Yat-sen Cemetery Memorial Botanical Garden in Nanjing. In 1934, Professor Hu Xianxiao founded the Lushan Forest Botanical Garden in Jiujiang, and Jiang Xiyi established the Shanghai Municipal Botanical Garden for the Shanghai Education Bureau. All these efforts contributed to the construction of 18 scientific botanical gardens across China from 1912–1949 [38,39,40,42], in 13 provinces and autonomous regions. Of these 18 gardens, 13 remain today, and the majority of these have become large-scale demonstration gardens, which promote the development of additional botanical gardens in China.

Colonial botanical gardens were built by colonists to collect and display both plant resources and natural landscapes, as well as for scientific-research activities such as plant collection, breeding, cultivation, and conservation, led by botanists. Botanical gardens were mostly located in areas with abundant plant resources in southern China and were relatively concentrated in the cities and towns of eastern China (Table 2, Figure 5). Thus, the introduction of scientific disciplines (such as botany) served as a practical impetus for the construction of modern Chinese botanical gardens. During the colonial-exploration stage, the theory of garden construction underwent new developments, including:

(1)

Collection of plant resources: in this period, botanical gardens no longer only collected plant species of value (e.g., food, medicine, or for landscaping), but began collecting plant resources in a more comprehensive and exhaustive manner. Collectors made use of the natural environments where their botanical gardens were located, collecting as many plant resources as possible.

(2)

Plant scientific-research: was performed in the botanical gardens established by botanists. These botanical gardens focused on basic research into planting regimes, plant introductions, domestication, and reproduction, laying the foundation for the field of Chinese botany and for the development of modern Chinese cultivars grown today. This academic research has cultivated many useful outcomes.

(3)

Plant-science education: botanical gardens from this stage were mainly built in cities such as Beijing, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Taipei. They served an important additional function as urban parks, providing services such as recreation and science education for local populations.

2.3. The Gradual-Development Stage for Modern Botanical Gardens (1950–2022)

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, botanical gardens were developed steadily and rapidly. A total of 443 botanical gardens were established over the past 70 years, with an average of six new botanical gardens per year. At present, 437 botanical gardens are still maintained in 34 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities, accounting for 95.8% of the total 456 botanical gardens across the country [37,43,44,45,46]. The gradual-development stage (of modern botanical gardens) can be divided into three periods.

The first period saw the restoration and development of botanical gardens in New China (1950–1977). Within the 28 years from 1950 to 1977 (after the founding of New China), 74 new botanical gardens were built in China, bringing the total number of botanical gardens to 93. With eleven provinces and regions added to the list, the number of provinces and regions with at least one botanical garden increased to 26. China saw a particularly rapid development of new botanical gardens from 1956 to 1960, with 43 new botanical gardens added in these five years, for an average of 8.6 new botanical gardens per year. This represents the first peak in the timeline of botanical-garden construction for China (Figure 6 and Figure 7).

The second period included the rapid development of botanical gardens from 1978 to 2000. Reforms begun in 1978 pushed the construction of botanical gardens in China into a new stage of rapid development. During the 23 years from 1978 to 2000, 119 botanical gardens were newly built in China, bringing the total number of botanical gardens nationwide to 212. The addition of seven new provinces and regions having botanical gardens increased the number of provinces and regions with botanical gardens to 33 nationwide. In particular, from 1984 to 1986, China experienced rapid growth in the number of botanical gardens, with 27 new gardens established in three years, an average of nine new botanical gardens per year. The second period therefore represents a second peak in the construction of new botanical gardens in China.

The third period represents the rapid development of botanical gardens in the new century (2001–2022). At the beginning of the 21st century, China entered a new stage of modernization and prosperity, accelerating the development of new botanical gardens. From 2001 to 2022 (a period of 22 years), 250 new botanical gardens were built in China, bringing the total number of botanical gardens to 462. Of these, six gardens were later merged, renamed, or abandoned, resulting in a total of 456 botanical gardens persisting today. During this period, a single new province was added to the list of those with botanical gardens; today, all 34 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities across the country have established botanical gardens (Figure 8). In particular, the construction of new botanical gardens accelerated for the 17 consecutive years from 2002 to 2018: 223 new botanical gardens were established, giving an average of 13.1 new botanical gardens per year. This represents the third peak in the timeline of construction of new botanical gardens in China.

In the three periods described above, the national government was the lead developer of botanical gardens, with the Chinese Academy of Sciences coordinating these efforts, supported by local scientific research and administrative departments. The botanical gardens established during this period were distributed across all the provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities of China. A hierarchical system of national botanical gardens, provincial botanical gardens, and city/county botanical gardens was also established during this time (Figure 6, Figure 7 and Figure 8).

Therefore, the rapid development of modern botanical gardens in China depended on the comprehensive development of the Chinese economy and continued societal progress. This promoted the construction of botanical gardens serving more diversified social needs, with a higher level of scientific and technological support. The practical motivation for constructing botanical gardens at this stage included a diversity of factors. While retaining the basic functions of plant-resource collection, conservation, and research, botanical gardens also undertook the creation of characteristic plant landscapes and the development of plant science. Various service functions, such as education, the dissemination of plant ecology, the provision of leisure and recreational places, and the promotion of ecological values, have now become crucial to the sustainable development of cities, regions, and the nation. For China, this makes the construction of new botanical gardens of even greater value.

3. Drivers Underlying the Spatiotemporal Evolution of Chinese Botanical Gardens

The development of Chinese botanical gardens and the particulars of their construction over time has been driven by the desire to collect and utilize plant resources. Across historical periods, garden construction initially focused on simply meeting the practical needs of plants, with increasing attention to visual aspects, landscaping, and plant cultural-functions over time. More recently, gardens also began to highlight the scientific value of botanical research and conservation, and to provide social services such as popular science education, leisure and recreation, and ecological-service support, among others. Over time, the number and types of functions served by botanical gardens has continuously increased, and continued refinements to how gardens are constructed have ensued; these changes have likely been driven by a combination of factors, which may be grouped into four categories (see below). To characterize how these factors have shifted over time will therefore require an understanding of historical context.

3.1. Theory of Garden Creation during Prosperous Times

During prosperous times in China’s history, it was common practice to build gardens and plant forests, as resources were available; civil engineering projects and large-scale landscaping projects were also undertaken. The imperial palace gardens of the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties were representative of each Dynasty’s gardens and also served as prototypes of China’s early botanical gardens. From ancient to modern times, botanical-garden development has repeatedly flourished in prosperous times. For example, the three developmental stages sketched above and their respective peaks all occurred during periods of prosperity, when China entered new historical eras (New China, reform period, and new-century modernization); at these times, a series of preferential policies promoted the development of new botanical gardens. In contrast, there are many examples of when wars led to the decline of botanical gardens, also supporting the theory that gardens flourished in prosperous times. By 2022, the total number of botanical gardens in China reached 456, accounting for more than 12% of the global total of 3757 botanical gardens [37] and making China the single country with the most botanical gardens in the world.

3.2. Theory of Demand-Driven Development

Demand guides behavior, and the type of demand also guides the type of behavior. Historical civilizations required adequate food and medicine to support their populations’ physical needs, thus giving birth to the world’s first botanical gardens (e.g., “wild-plant cultivation and domestication gardens” and “medicinal botanical-gardens”). As human societies have evolved, needs have gradually changed, shifting from basic survival to population growth and from growth to sustainable development; these shifts have moderated how botanical gardens are used from generation to generation. Botanical-garden functions have continued to evolve and gradually expand, allowing botanical gardens to make ever-increasing contributions to human society.

3.3. Theory of Garden Support by Scientists and Educators

Many ancient botanical gardens in China, especially those established since the Northern Song Dynasty, were founded by famous scientists. These scientists wrote classic works, such as the “Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance”, “Famine Relief Pharmacopoeia”, “Compendium of Materia Medica”, “Complete Treatise on Agriculture”, and “Illustrated Catalogue of Plants”, and made outstanding contributions to the advancement of human civilization. Modern botanical gardens in China, especially those built since the founding of the Republic of China, were introduced from the West along with modern sciences and technologies. Their creation was facilitated by a group of intellectuals enthusiastic about botanical research, who represented the first generation of botanists in China (e.g., Chen Rong, Fu Huanguang, Hu Xianyu, Jiang Xiyi, Liu Shenzhen, and Zhong Guangguang), coupled with strong support and funding from academic groups. Modern botanical gardens were promoted, as the fields of science, technology, and education rapidly expanded. For example, in 1956, the construction of botanical gardens was proposed in the first medium- and long-term science and technology plan: “1956–1967 Science and Technology Development Vision Plan”. The arrival of the “Scientific Spring” in 1978, where science and technology were promoted in the early stages of the reform period, and the implementation of resulting innovations in the new century, promoted the rapid development of botanical gardens nationwide. In creating new gardens, scientific research institutes (such as the Chinese Academy of Sciences) and other higher-learning institutions played an important leading role.

3.4. Theory of Ecological Sustainability

Since the mid-20th century, as global change and environmental catastrophes have become increasingly serious, a global movement to conserve and protect nature has gradually emerged. In the 21st century, China entered a new era of sustainable development and ecological conservation. Botanical gardens (ex situ conservation), along with national parks and other protected areas (in situ conservation) constitute a complete system for biodiversity conservation in China. The construction of botanical gardens has now entered a new stage, with rates of development the fastest recorded in human history. On average, the number of new botanical gardens established annually is in the double-digits, making China a world leader in the rate of construction of botanical gardens. At the same time, the needs of human societies have shifted from mere physical survival and growth. As such, modern botanical gardens also function as places for nature appreciation, ecological tourism, citizen science, and environmental education, as promoted by central governments, communities, and concerned individuals. Collaboration on the creation of new botanical gardens (among stakeholders) and benefit-sharing schemes have spawned the rapid establishment of new botanical gardens of various types.

4. Discussion and Conclusions

4.1. Discussion

(1)

Chinese botanical gardens are generally small in scale, and have limited capacity in the conservation of regional plant-diversity. After nearly 5000 years of development, especially the rapid development seen since the founding of the People’s Republic of China (New China, founded 70 years ago), China now hosts the greatest number of botanical gardens of any country. However, the scale of individual botanical gardens is generally small. For example, there are only 14 (3%) botanical gardens of more than 1000 hectares, 270 of China’s botanical gardens (or 59.2%) have an area of only 1–100 hectares, and a total of 275 (60.3%) of China’s botanical gardens are small- or medium-sized (Figure 9). Most small- or medium-sized botanical gardens preserve from 100 to 1000 species. There are only 17 large botanical gardens (3.7%) that preserve more than 5000 species of living plants (Figure 10). In general, small-scale botanical gardens have played an important role in protecting local plant-resources and popularizing biodiversity knowledge. However, it is also necessary to build a group of large-scale botanical gardens for the regional plant-diversity protection in the future [47,48].

(2)

China lacks botanical gardens with global influence. By categorizing the primary functions of botanical gardens, Chinese botanical gardens can be classified into six types: (a) large-scale, comprehensive botanical gardens serving multiple functions and sponsored by large national institutions; (b) landscape-style botanical gardens with the provision of leisure opportunities as their main purpose, sponsored by the forestry departments; (c) botanical gardens and arboretums sponsored by forestry departments that focus on in situ conservation; (d) research-focused botanical gardens sponsored by scientific-research institutions; (e) teaching botanical-gardens sponsored by colleges and universities; and (f) tourism-focused botanical gardens established by enterprises and individuals that focus on tourism and production. Of China’s 456 botanical gardens, there are only eleven large-scale, comprehensive botanical gardens (or 2.4% of the total) (Figure 11). This lack of large botanical gardens with global influence is not commensurate with China’s status as a biodiversity hotspot, and should be addressed to support China’s goals of building an ecologically-sustainable nation rich in natural beauty.

(3)

There is a need to accelerate the construction of China’s botanical-garden network. Although the number of botanical gardens in China is high (ranked first in the world) after decades of rapid development, individual botanical gardens are typically small in size, of low quality, and have weak service-provision. As a next step, it is urgent to shift the development of China’s botanical gardens from quantity-oriented to quality/benefits-oriented, to better foster high-quality garden-creation. Three measures need to be adopted to achieve this goal. First, China should focus on optimizing the overall design and scientific layout of botanical gardens; new botanical gardens should also be established in key areas where none yet exist. This can be done by comprehensively considering factors such as representative ecosystem types, scientific-research value, and economic value, based on natural, social, and economic conditions, as well as the distributions of key species and/or ecosystems to be preserved. Second, the overall capacity of appropriately positioned botanical gardens should be enhanced, taking effective measures to strongly support the functions of scientific research, conservation, popular science, and utilization, while also increasing outputs for plant collection, domestication, conservation, and utilization. Third, to strengthen scientific management, China should formulate and implement a legal system, institutional system, and set of standards for the construction and management of botanical gardens; additional actions might include improving the information systems used by botanical gardens, building smart botanical gardens, and modernizing botanical-garden management. In addition, China should adopt an approach in which different types of botanical gardens (i.e., comprehensive, scientific research-focused, teaching-focused, horticultural, etc.) are managed separately, using a standardized approach. In this way, a botanical-garden network with a scientific layout, distinctive features, and complementary functions might be established, contributing to ecological conservation and sustainable-development goals in China.

4.2. Conclusions

(1)

China is the mother of the world’s botanical gardens, hosting the world’s earliest botanical garden “prototype”, with the creation of the “Shennong Medicine Garden” in 2800 BC. The development of Chinese botanical gardens over the last 5000 years can be roughly divided into three major stages: an enlightenment stage for ancient botanical gardens (2800 BC–1859 AD), a colonial-exploration stage for modern botanical gardens (1860–1949), and a gradual development stage for modern botanical gardens (1950–2022).

(2)

China has become the country with the most botanical gardens in the world. By the end of 2022, China will host 456 botanical gardens, accounting for more than 12% of the global total. In China, botanical gardens can be found in all 34 provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, and special administrative regions, with the cumulative total of 515,000 specimens of living plants preserved on 115,000 hectares of land.

(3)

In the past 5000 years, the development of Chinese botanical gardens has varied in time and space in sync with social and economic developments. Four driving factors are proposed to explain the rise, spread, and development of Chinese botanical gardens: prosperity levels, demand-driven development, support from scientists and educators, and the promotion of ecological sustainability.