page_title: North-West University Botanical Garden
section_title: Key functions and activities
hierarchical_section_title: North-West University Botanical Garden / Key functions and activities
caption_attribution_description: English: Sculpture in the NWU Botanical Garden
context_page_description: The North-West University Botanical Garden on the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University is the only botanical garden in the North West Province of South Africa. The Garden spans just under three hectares and is open to the public.
context_section_description: The North-West University Botanical Garden fulfills many key functions within the North-West University most notably supporting the training of students and research. Even though horticulture is not taught at the North-West University, an internship program funded by AgriSETA was started in 2011 to give young horticulturalists a chance to gain valuable practical experience. Besides the academic functions the Botanical Garden is also involved with conservation efforts of numerous threatened indigenous plant species particularly threatened species endemic to the North West Province of South Africa. In 2008 the Botanical Garden signed up to the International Agenda for Botanic Gardens in Conservation that commits the Garden to contribute to the 16 conservation targets set out in the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC). The Garden has made many contributions towards species conservation most notably in 2011 when the Garden donated seeds of a newly discovered and already threatened monotypic species, Prototulbaghia siebertii, to the Millennium Seed Bank Project.
  The Garden also provides may educational opportunities to visitors and the local community. Visitor friendly plant labels, emphasizing common plant names and plant uses, are used throughout the Garden. The Garden also regularly supports community projects such as creation of school and community gardens. In 2008 a partnerships was established with the North-West University Science Centre to also give local school groups exposure to the biological sciences during the annual National Science Week by providing suitable programming in the Botanical Garden.
  In 2008 an old hall in the office building, that once housed the A.P. Goossens Herbarium, was converted into a multipurpose space and has since then been used by the North-West University Gallery for various art exhibitions and also as a classroom for visiting school groups. Art exhibitions are held in the Gallery and Botanical Garden year round. The Garden also serves as an official venue for the Aardklop National Arts Festival since 2008.
caption: Angus Taylor sculpture in the North-West University Botanical Garden during Aardklop 2010
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