Oxford's Botanic garden was the third in Europe, preceded by Pisa and Leyden. Its original function was to provide herbs for the School of Medicine.

The first gardener was a retired German soldier, Jacob Bobart, who was delighted to find that the cess-pits of the colleges provided him with almost unlimited supplies of good growing medium.

He was a powerfully built man, who late in life sported a beard of such length that one day a madman grabbed hold of it and cried out that Bobart had eaten his horse, and its tail was hanging out of his mouth.

Bobart was succeeded by his son, who became Professor of Botany. Around 1700, the Younger Bobart discovered a rat in the garden, and by cosmetic surgery turned it into so convincing a dragon that great excitement was caused in the academic world. The hoaxer eventually confessed, but the 'dragon' was considered such a masterpiece anyway, that it was kept on display in the School of Anatomy.

Bobart the Elder built a conservatory where the greenhouses now stand; this was probably onw of the first in England. Since then the greenhouses have been rebuilt several times. They are a treasure-trove of exotic plants. It is worth remembering that though the gardens are open much of the day, you can only visit the greenhouses between 2.00pm and 4.00pm.