Instead of a typical small, enclosed area with a stream and rich plant diversity, the Cornell Botanic Gardens is a large, open green space integrated into the surrounding Ithaca temperate broadleaf and mixed forest biome. It consists of a variety of interconnected gardens as well as some areas outside campus.
The garden still maintains a highly diverse flora, with some iconic woody plant species like ///
The gardens are sites of field work and research for Cornell students studying biology and the environment. Cornell students and staff has made numerous groundbreaking discoveries in these living laboratories. An example would be