 The gardens were opened by the Prince of Wales three years ago |
The crisis-hit National Botanic Garden of Wales may be forced to finally shut its doors on Wales' national day, St David's Day. The trustees of the site meet on Monday and could well name March 1 as the closure date if there are no positive developments in sight.
The future of the �43m Carmarthenshire attraction has not been secured despite negotiations with interested parties.
Now the site's general manager, Dr Rhodri Griffiths, is warning that March 1 may be set as the date for the venue's closure.
After a promising start when it opened in 2000, visitor numbers at the attraction have slumped despite a number of emergency handouts.
The garden's trustees were due to call in administrators in December after the Welsh Assembly Government refused to provide �3m to bail out the attraction.
But just hours before the talks were due to begin, a new source of funding emerged with a potential rescue package.
Discussions with a mystery backer have been on-going but no deal has been struck so far.
Speaking on Thursday, leader of the Conservatives in the assembly Nick Bourne told Culture Minister Alun Pugh that the prospect of closure on St David's Day was a "national disgrace".
"Isn't it about time you came to this chamber and made a proper statement about how things are proceeding?" he demanded.
But Mr Pugh responded by saying that nobody wanted the national garden to close.
"I want to make it absolutely clear that the Welsh Assembly Government will not enter into an open-ended revenue subsidy, nor will we nationalise the garden," he added.
He has repeatedly said there cannot be a "blank cheque" for the garden site.
Mr Pugh also said that the situation at the gardens was "grave", with the institution having an overdraft of �2m and trade creditors totalling �1m.
The Millennium Commission has also said it will seek to reclaim a �21m grant paid to the attraction.
The gardens at Llanarthne were opened by the Prince of Wales three years ago.
He has since added his voice to the campaign to save the site.
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The Welsh Assembly Government will not enter into an open-ended revenue subsidy nor will we nationalise the garden 
