Montpellier Botanical Garden, Montpellier, France

The Jardin des plantes de Montpellier (4.5 hectares) is a historic botanical garden and arboretum maintained by the Montpellier University.

The garden was established in 1593 by letters patent from King Henri IV, under the leadership of Pierre Richer de Belleval, professor of botany and anatomy. It is France's oldest botanical garden, inspired by the Orto botanico di Padova (1545) and in turn serving as model for the Jardin des Plantes de Paris (1626).

The Montagne de Richer lies within the garden's oldest section, which also now contains a systematic garden. The garden was expanded twice in the 19th century. Its orangery was designed by Claude-Mathieu Delagardette (1762–1805) and completed in 1804, the arboretum was landscaped in 1810, and the English Garden, with pool and greenhouse, dates from 1859. The monumental Martins greenhouse opened in 1860.

Today the garden contains about 2,680 plant species, including 500 native to the Mediterranean region. Of these roughly 2,000 species are grown outdoors, and 1,000 under glass.

References:

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Miscellaneous historic sites in France

User Reviews

Jan (9 months ago)
It is a nice, quiet botanical garden close to the city center of Montpellier. Entry free of charge and good to relax a bit from the narrow streets and bustling city. They do a good job of explaining climate changes impact on nature. However all signs are in French only. Be aware of the seasons as this garden for sure is more beautiful during when plants are blooming. It can be a bit bleak in the fall. Spend half an hour strolling around and then head back into the city.

Geof Addison (9 months ago)
Beautiful free public park with great trees, duck ponds, playgrounds and gardens. Bring a picnic or have lunch at the cafe. There are even several large sequoias! Nice job Bordeaux!

dennis süßmeier (11 months ago)
beautiful old garden located in the heart of the city. one of the best places in montpellier to charge your battery and relax your body & soul.

Elisa (11 months ago)
Nice (I’d say quite little) botanical garden with a bit of a rough side to it, which is a nice change to the sometimes overly perfect gardens! Sidenote: it’s difficult to sit still because there are a lot of mosquitoes which are ferocious biters (the bigger amount in comparison to the city is due to the little ponds everywhere (August)).

Melissa Dinkin (15 months ago)
Gorgeous place to walk around and enjoy nature or even pack a snack and relax for a bit. No entry fee.

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