Cooperation project between the Katse Alpine Botanical Gardens and the Munich Botanical Garden
The cooperation project between the Katse Alpine Botanical Gardens in Lesotho and the Munich Botanical Garden began in 2005 with a gardener exchange, supported by the Loki Schmidt Foundation.
Jennifer Wainwright-Klein from the Munich Botanical Garden worked at the Katse Botanical Gardens for four weeks in January 2005. Im März und April desselben Jahres arbeitete Bongani Ntloko, ein Gärtner aus Katse, im Botanischen Garten in München. The primary goal of the project was to support the transfer of horticultural knowledge between the two gardens.
In February 2007, the cooperation was consolidated by a second visit of Munich gardeners to Katse – during which an agreement on the exchange of seeds was signed. The Munich team for this second visit consisted of gardeners Jennifer Wainwright-Klein and Andreas Stadlmayr and one of the garden’s curators, Dr. Andreas Gröger.
The cooperation produced the following results:
- Publication of a joint seed catalog (Index Seminum 2006 and 2007)
- Labeling of the medicinal plant area in Katse by the Munich team
- Extension of the alpine collection of the southern hemisphere in Munich and in the Alpine Garden Schachen
- Support of the Alpine Botanical Garden Katse in the planning and establishment of new plantings
- Joint excursions to deepen knowledge of plants in their natural habitats
Generous financial and logistical support came from the Foundation for International Gardener Exchange (Hamburg), the Society of Friends of the Munich Botanical Garden e.V. and the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority.
