Description of the attraction
The Botanical Garden was founded in 1803 by Professor G. A. Hermann. He was also its first manager. The chief gardener I. A. Veynmann was involved in the construction and planning of the garden. In 1811, professor of natural science, K. F. Ledebour, was elected director of the botanical garden, he faithfully performed his duties for 25 years. Thanks to his efforts and enthusiasm, the garden grew and today it has reached the size of 3.5 hectares. Memorial plates, as well as monuments in the park, keep the memory of famous botanists working for the benefit of the Botanical Garden.
In front of the greenhouses there is a department of plant taxonomy, created in 1870. This collection helps students to understand the basics of botany, and provides a great opportunity for plant lovers to get acquainted with rare species.
To the right of the main entrance is the monocotyledonous garden, in which the plants are arranged according to their region of origin. The collection contains about 300 species of monocotyledonous plants, including many bulbous and tuberous, blooming in spring and early summer.
In front of the palm greenhouse, dicotyledonous plants are planted according to the botanist Adolf Engler's system. This universally recognized system, which is used by many botanical gardens to this day, is characterized by the fact that plants are represented along the line of their evolution. There are about 800 plant species in this collection. Both annual and biennial crops are represented here. Among the presented dicotyledonous plants, you can see such cultivated plants as little known to Estonia as lentils, artichokes, buckwheat, flax, tobacco and others.
The Botanical Garden Park occupies most of it. It is divided into 3 sections: European, North American and East Asian. The “thickest” maple in Estonia is a valuable exhibit in the European part of the park. In the East Asian department, old hazel trees grow, as well as Amur velvets and various types of maple. Herbaceous plants of the same natural area grow under tree crops. The Minneota Grove in the North American part of the park was created on the same principle.
A collection of perennial ornamental plants is presented in the park. On the southern slope, there are plants that are rare for Estonia, such as ginkgo biloba and tulip liriodendron. Behind the fortress wall, there is a collection of irises, represented by more than 60 varieties. In the other half of the garden there is a large collection of 250 varieties of peonies. This peony garden, which blooms from mid-June to late July, was created in 2004.
On the side of the Emajõgi River, a clematis garden grows, blooming from the end of July until the very frost. The collection's colors range from white to dark red. The species diversity of flower beds changes every year. Every year, they try to decorate the flower beds with new and rarer plant species. The largest flowerbed is located on the left side of the palm greenhouse. In the center of the garden, in the hollow and on the slopes of the former bastion of St. George, there is a rock garden. Most of the plants come from the upper border of the forest belt and alpine mountain meadows.
In the eastern corner of the garden there is a rose garden with about 250 types of roses. This corner of the garden during the period of massive flowering of roses attracts visitors with its bright and varied palette of colors, and also beckons with a wonderful bouquet of aromas. In the western part of the botanical garden, plants of the Estonian flora are displayed.
The palm greenhouse contains 58 species of palm trees. The oldest is the 90-year-old Canarian date palm. The highest is Washingtonia threadlike, with a height of 20 meters. Bananas grow in the right corner, under them there is a pool in which fish and water turtles swim. In addition, the budgerigar, nymph and Senegalese live in the greenhouse.
The subtropical greenhouse contains plants from all continents of the subtropical belt. There are plants from Australia, Africa, New Zealand, Japan, America and other countries. The tropical greenhouse contains mainly plants brought from America.
The succulent greenhouse, covering an area of 100 square meters, contains approximately 600 plant species. There are various types of aloe, aeonium and jerky. Plants from the cactus and agave families also grow. The oldest and largest cactus in the greenhouse is Gruzon's echinocactus, popularly called "mother-in-law's chair".
