[1] The first garden was established in December 1849 by Dr Charles Johnston on the edge of the Berea Ridge next to the Umgeni River (near Quarry Road).

[1] A Scot called Mark McKen then took his place and began to establish gardens of plants of economic value such as sugar cane, tea, coffee and pineapples.

[1] A German by the name of William Keit arrived from Glasnevin in Ireland to take over the curatorship of the gardens, but economic depression in Natal, a drought, and the Anglo-Zulu War took its toll.

[1] A local farmer and rural trade store owner John Medley Wood who was a self-trained botanist took over the curatorship from 1882 to 1913, and the Durban Botanic Gardens was said to have enjoyed its heyday[1] with support of the governor of the colony of Natal, Sir Henry Bulwer who shared a keen interest in the Gardens.

[9] Economic problems exacerbated by the suspension of a government grant in the last years of the Natal Colony caused the collapse of the Durban Agricultural and Horticultural Society, who had owned the Gardens.

Among later curators was Ernest Thorp (from 1950 to 1975) who oversaw the construction of the orchid house at the Durban Botanic Gardens in 1962.

[10] In 1999 the gardens were surveyed and mapped so that the various plants and their relevant information could be traced with the aid of GIS software.

[11] The grounds currently host various social gatherings such as local music bands and ' Victorian tea parties', as well as an indigenous plant fair in spring (September) each year.

[15] The theme of the Fair for 2010 was taken from the UN's International Year of Biodiversity, and more than 750 species of plants indigenous to South Africa were available.