In this section we will highlight private and public plans for the future development and improvement of the Gardens and its services. These might include items in the following list. These, if implemented, will help the Gardens reclaim its past reputation - achieved under the management of Joseph Jones - as the premier Botanic Gardens in the Caribbean. But we need to start now, doing the things which require minimum resources and no Cabinet approval, and lobbying Cabinet and international agencies for the bigger projects. If we do not start now, population pressure will encroach on and engulf the Gardens; and an incomparable but irreplaceable national heritage will be lost. In pursuit of this objective, the Dominica Government is preparing a "Master Plan" for the rehabilitation of the Gardens. No official details are currently available, but hopefully, the Plan will include the items listed below.

Operational

• replant dead trees and introduce new specimens – exotic & local,
• eliminate excess trees crowding the lawns – eg. Saman and Pacific Palm – need better balance between trees and lawn, and need space for new specimens
• identify and tag plants, priority being given particularly to the exotic or unusual trees
• much more tree pruning needed – for tree health and appearance, and for better growth habit
• remove lianas and wild shade trees that are killing important exotic trees, eg. Jamoon and Allspice
• rehabilitate Jackswalk, Upper Garden Path, Lower Garden Path and inter-plot paths in economic section,
• establish heliconia, plumeria, rose and anthurium gardens,
• develop an orchid house with both native and exotic orchids,
• establish a medicinal herb garden containing, in particular, medicinal herbs used by the Caribs
• install a mobile irrigation system – low tech, minimum maintenance, no root problems
• reconstruct old gazebo/water fountain - for both functional and aesthetic reasons,
• replant grass in worn, balding areas of lawns,
• eradicate weed invasion throughout lawns of ornamental section, eg Pies Poule in cricket field
• re-establish economic section as a living museum for tourists and community – paths, plots, pond, new plantings
• expand plantings in economic section to serve (i) as a new, exotic crops trial area (grapes, ackee, figs, mangosteen, macadamia, kiwi, white saporte, lichee, longan, langsat, rambutan, durian, etc), and simultaneously (ii) as a museum of the new, exotic crops, as above, and the traditional economic crops (cocoa, bananas, sugarcane, new mango, citrus, guava, and avocado vars, etc);
• locate in the Gardens a small plant distribution center for ornamentals and economic crops propagated at outlying agricultural centers, crops such as above and the numerous new vars of ornamentals, such as Flamboyant, Bouganvillea, various Palms, Orchids, Heliconia, Plumeria;
• re-establish pond at its old SE corner or other suitable location to showcase exciting aquatic plants such as the great water lilies (Victoria sp.)
• develop a program of lectures on horticultural topics to educate general public and community in the vicinity of the Gardens; could include vegetable gardening, ornamental plants, growing fruit trees, medicinal plants and herbs
• organize school visits and tours to educate and sensitize youth to the role of Botanic Gardens in modern societies, and in Dominica in particular
• organize general guided tours for paying visitors/tourists, (enough of interest currently exists to make this feasible with a minimum of organization)
• develop a Medicinal Plants Guided Tour package (combining trees and herbs) and an Economic Crops Guided Tour package for paying visitors/tourists,
• expand small animal sanctuary to include more examples of Dominican wildlife – doves, pedui and other birds, manicou, snakes, etc – to provide a more authentic Dominica experience for both Dominicans and visitors
• reduce excessive thru traffic in Gardens – pedestrian and vehicular
• widen road along northern boundary of Gardens (Valley Road) to accomodate increased vehicular traffic and divert Gardens traffic
• reduce speed of vehicular traffic thru Gardens – dangerous to adults, and to children in particular, is in conflict with basic tenets of Gardens use, and is especially dangerous to visitors who don't expect such speed – use sleeping policemen
• remove stones along drive – too untidy and unsightly – find another method to control illegal parking on grass; work with Police Dept; ditto speeding
• urgently need to organize and control traffic and parking much more efficiently than is the case currently, especially on cruise ship days near Baobab tree
• need parking lot to accommodate the large number of taxis and buses stopping in the Gardens on cruise ship days
• provide bathroom facilities for public – locals and tourists alike – urgently needed with recent rapid expansion of cruiseship visitors
• remove abandoned shipping containers and condemned asbestos buildings from the yard
• transfer offices not directly related to the work of the Botanic Gardens to other locations, eg CARDI and Vet offices
• reclaim land previously appropriated for school facilities in NW corner of Gardens – too much of Gardens lands have been appropriated for non-Gardens use; this must now be redressed
• establish a visitor center – providing (i) info on the Gardens in the first instance, but also (ii) general info about Dominica that would be of interest to visitors, and (iii) a video showing of the highlights of Gardens history and experience – use one of the vacated buildings/offices mentioned above
• rehab military cemetery at Morne Bruce where Joseph Jones, the curator who was most responsible for developing the Gardens, is buried - large part of boundary wall has fallen down and site is in a generally dilapidated state

• organize an annual open house for stakeholders, including the community in vicinity of the Gardens (i) to discuss ongoing development plans, (ii) give a free demonstration guided tour, and (iii) solicit cooperation for Garden’s plans
• appoint a dedicated Curator/manager to focus on Gardens redevelopment, maintenance and dynamic improvement,
• place the whole of the Gardens – ornamental and economic sections – under one management authority – Forestry – ie. extend the authority of the Director of Forestry to include the economic section,
• re-locate the Curator/manager's office back in the Gardens, for better supervision of day-to-day operations, and, importantly, for more dynamic development of improvement programs,
• restore membership in the Botanic Gardens Conservation International – will help find replacement trees and shrubs and keep Gardens management abreast of new developments in botanic gardening
• additionally, establish formal links with other eminent Botanic Gardens and Botanic Gardens related institutions, such as Kew Gardens, Fairchild Tropical Gardens, Hope Gardens in Jamaica, and the Smithsonian Institution,
• recognize areas of mutual interest and shared objectives between the Dominica Botanic Gardens and the Convention on Biological Diversity; this will allow the Gardens to obtain support from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) of the World Bank, UNDP, and UNEP to implement Gardens projects
• establish a non-governmental, Friends of the Botanic Gardens organization to advise and assist in implementing improvement projects; and, critically important, to involve the Dominican community in the welfare of its patrimony, and provide the Gardens with a base in the community which will advocate on its behalf; a good example is Friends of the Trinidad Botanic Gardens.