Banjarbaru, Oct. 15 -- Banua Botanical Garden in South Kalimantan is stepping up fire prevention and plant care to protect its conservation collection amid an extreme dry season.

Rahmat Maidiyanto, head of the garden's technical management unit, said the conservation area was affected by a fire originating outside its boundaries in July, before the dry season peaked.

"The most recent fire occurred in July, before the dry season peaked, but it came from an area bordering the forest," Maidiyanto said here on Wednesday.

Banua Botanical Garden is a 100-hectare conservation area managed by the South Kalimantan provincial government.

It is a member of Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and won Indonesia's top award for botani...