Established in 1846, the botanic gardens in the city of Melbourne is the oldest in Australia and one of only six royal botanic gardens in the world. Today, the organisation also manages a second contrasting native garden site in Cranbourne and the State Botanical Collection housed at the National Herbarium of Victoria.

The identity for the organisation embraces distinct leaf forms from the two diverse gardens, the animals and bird life that inhabit those areas and the people who interact with them.