He was an essential partner to his brother, Sir Thomas Hanbury, in selecting specimens for and establishing the Giardini Botanici Hanbury at La Mortola, now maintained by the University of Genoa.
As a result of his keen interest in exotic succulents, he was selected by Sir Thomas Hanbury to manage his acclimatisation garden, the Giardini Botanici Hanbury at La Mortola, near Ventimiglia on the Italian Riviera.