and a sporting field, where regular cricket and football matches were held. The former curator's cottage built for John Frederick Bailey, curator from 1905–1917, is now a cafe. The City of Brisbane Act of 1924 transferred responsibility for the Botanic Gardens to the Brisbane City Council, but the Herbarium remained as part of the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Stock. Due to the proximity to the river, the Botanic Gardens have been flooded nine times between 1870–2011. With many plants being washed away, the Brisbane City Council established a new botanic gardens at Mount Coot-tha. Since the opening of the Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens in the mid 1970s, the Brisbane Botanic Gardens has become principally a recreational venue. Re-development of the Gardens in the late 1980s saw the introduction of new recreational structures and restoration work on the former Queen's Park fence. The Gardens were also the home for over 100 years for Harriet, a tortoise reportedly collected by Charles Darwin during his visit to the Galápagos Islands in 1835 and donated to the Gardens in 1860 by John Clements Wickham, former commander of and later Government Resident for Moreton Bay. Harriet was named in honour of Harry Oakman, curator of the Gardens from 1945 to 1962 and the creator of the (now disbanded) zoo at the Gardens. The zoo closed in 1952. Harriet lived out her final years at Australia Zoo until dying in June 2006. Description The Brisbane Botanic Gardens, occupying , is bounded by George and Alice Streets and the Brisbane river. They comprise three major sections: the former Queen's Park along Alice Street, the Botanic Gardens proper (adjacent to the river), and the former Government Domain at the rear of the Queensland University of Technology (formerly part of the grounds to Old Government House). The gardens house a collection of approximately 600 plant species. Set in undulating grounds, the gardens are bordered by mature shade trees which also create avenues and groves. A lake and formal lawns, gardens and structures provide a diversity of passive recreational activities. A series of interconnecting paths link a riverside concourse with other perimeter paths. The gardens contain an avenue of Bunya Pines (Araucaria bidwilli) planted in the 1850s and an avenue of Weeping Figs (Ficus benjamina) planted in the 1870s. It also contains a number of other rare plants, particularly palms and figs – some in formal planting arrangements within