Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne Library

The Library of the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG) Melbourne is Australia's most comprehensive botanical library. It is the information centre that supports the work of the Gardens. The Library collections include printed material, original artwork, letters and manuscripts, photographs, maps and museum items, as well as extensive archives.

The Library specialises in the fields of plant taxonomy and systematics; horticulture, gardening and landscape design; the exploration of Australia; botanical illustration; the history of botany and horticulture in Australia; and the history of RBG Melbourne and the National Herbarium of Victoria.

Much of the material in the Library is fragile or ephemeral in nature and must be stored in special storage areas. New material is continually added to the Library to support the management of the Gardens and its research programs.

Using the Library

The Library is open to the public by appointment only, and students are encouraged to exhaust all other resources before approaching the Library for assistance. Enquiries may be directed to the Library and should include your name and contact details, the information required and the reason for the enquiry. If you have an enquiry or wish to make an appointment please contact the Library.

The Library hours are 9.30 am to 4.00 pm Monday to Friday.

Search the Library catalogue

The Library's collection can be searched using the Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC). The catalogue contains almost 50,000 records, which represents the majority of the collection, and new records are added daily.

Contact the Library

Library
Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne
Private Bag 2000
South Yarra, Vic. 3141

Library Manager: Sally Stewart (03) 9252 2320

Library Technician: Jill Thurlow (03) 9252 2382

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Ferdinand von Mueller's library

The Library's foundation is the personal library of Ferdinand von Mueller, Victoria's first Government Botanist. In his efforts to assemble a library of essential texts, Mueller spent much of his own money. His efforts resulted in the Gardens having an extensive collection of works published in the nineteenth century and earlier. These works are essential to our understanding of Australian plants.

Biographical collections

The Library contains a large collection of biographical information about people who collected, described, wrote about or painted Australian plants; people after whom an Australian plant was named; and staff members of RBG Melbourne and the National Herbarium of Victoria.

Artwork and photographs

The Library's collection of botanical art includes the work of some of Australia's best-known botanical artists, including Anita Barley, Mali Moir, Enid Mayfield, Celia Rosser, Margaret Stones and Betty Conabere. Over 5,000 botanical artworks are held in the Library.

The Library also holds over 30,000 photographs, including historic images of the Gardens and slides of Australia's native and cultivated flora. The photograph collection includes the collections of Ilma Dunn, Ian McCann and Bob Withers.

Journal exchange

Under the Library exchange program we send the National Herbarium of Victoria's botanical journal, Muelleria, to other plant research organisations throughout the world. In return we receive their scientific journals, adding to the Library's collection of information about the world's flora.

For all enquiries about journal exchanges please contact the Library.