Free State National Botanical Garden, Botanical garden near Bain's Vlei, Bloemfontein, South Africa.

The Free State National Botanical Garden covers 70 hectares in a valley between dolerite hills about 10 km north of downtown Bloemfontein, near Bain's Vlei. It holds around 400 plant species native to the Free State, Northern Cape and Lesotho, and includes a dam, wide lawns and a bird hide.

This garden was established in 1965 as a dedicated space for studying regional plant life. Among its trees stands a wild olive that existed more than two centuries before the garden was created, marking the area's deeper botanical heritage.

The garden is named for the Free State province whose flora it collects, together with plants of the Northern Cape and Lesotho. Its herbarium holds 50,000 specimens, a reference collection for identifying and studying that flora. Visitors can look for the wild olive (Olea europaea subsp. africana), estimated at over 200 years old, which stood here before the garden was laid out in 1965.

The garden lies about 10 km north of downtown Bloemfontein, near Bain's Vlei, in a valley between dolerite outcrops. A bird hide, a dam and wide lawns are on the grounds; the herbarium holds 50,000 specimens. Paths cross open lawn and rock, so wear shoes suited to uneven ground.

A wild olive tree (Olea europaea subsp. africana) in the garden is probably more than 200 years old, so it was already mature when the garden was laid out at Bainsvlei in 1965. The herbarium holds 50,000 specimens. A bird hide and a dam give visitors a place to watch the 140 recorded bird species.