Shedd Aquarium expert gardener Christine Nye retiring

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Some of Shedd Aquarium's most beautiful exhibits are actually on land.

For 25 years, Christine Nye has curated gardens around the aquarium's campus, but she's retiring later this month.

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She tends to 12 gardens, boasting more than 1000 species of plants.

She was the second horticulturalist, or garden expert, ever hired by the aquarium.

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Some of the food Nye grows is used to feed animals in the aquarium, which is in line with Shedd's commitment to sustainability.

Nye installed several beehives in the gardens, to ensure pollination. She has also implemented several sustainable practices, including watering gardens by hand.