Artefacts from Chinese businessman Hoo Ah Kay's private garden will be up on display at the Singapore Botanic Gardens' heritage museum which is slated to open at the end of next month.

These include small cactus pots and two larger flower pots from the last century donated by his great-great grandaughter Madam Hoo Miew Oon, 78.

Better known as Whampoa, the businessman has been credited with playing a key role in the development of the gardens in 1859. Fluent in English and a member of the Agri-Horticultural society, he helped negotiate with the British colonial government for the Gardens' establishment and also appointed its original designer.

Located in Holttum Hall, which is next to the Botany Centre in the Tanglin Core of the Gardens, the museum will also feature interactive and multimedia exhibits that detail the Gardens' history and notable personalities, among other things. The museum will support the Gardens' nomination bid as Singapore's first UNESCO World Heritage Site.