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The jardin des plantes de Caen (French for: 'Garden of the Plants of Caen'), also known as jardin botanique de Caen ('Botanical Garden of Caen') is a
botanical garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
and
arboretum
An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...
located at 5, place Blot,
Caen
Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,[Calvados
Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears.
History In France
Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Norm ...]
,
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. Covering 5,000 m², it is open daily.
The garden's earliest plants were collected in 1689, and its first catalog published in 1781 (''Jardin botanique de Caen'' by Farin and Demoneuse). It was established on the site of an old stone quarry as a university botanical garden, but in 1803, after the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
, it was extended by 3.5 hectares to become a municipal park. In 1860 two large
greenhouses
A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic conditions are grown.These s ...
were constructed, and a botanical institute added in 1891, but all were destroyed in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. New greenhouses were built in 1988.
Today the garden contains more than 8,000
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
laid out in two sections. The lower section contains native plants of
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
(about 1,000 species), a medicinal garden (600 plants), horticultural collections (700 varieties), rockeries (1,500 dwarf specimens), an
arboretum
An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...
of trees and shrubs (500 species), and a greenhouse of about 1,500 exotic species. The upper section is a public park containing remarkable tree specimens including ''
Sophora japonica
''Styphnolobium japonicum'', the Japanese pagoda tree (also known as the Chinese scholar tree and pagoda tree; syn. ''Sophora japonica'') is a species of tree in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae.
It was formerly included withi ...
'' (1750), ''
Sequoiadendron giganteum
''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (giant sequoia; also known as giant redwood, Sierra redwood, Sierran redwood, California big tree, Wellingtonia or simply big treea nickname also used by John Muir) is the sole living species in the genus ''Sequoiade ...
'' (1890), and ''
Cryptomeria japonica
''Cryptomeria'' (literally "hidden parts") is a monotypic genus of conifer in the cypress family Cupressaceae, formerly belonging to the family Taxodiaceae. It includes only one species, ''Cryptomeria japonica'' ( syn. ''Cupressus japonica'' L ...
'' (1870).
The garden also has a pedagogical role, where gardeners can ask advice to professionals, who are available to answer questions and regularly organize workshops, and is committed on environmental issues. During Spring, they offer ladybug and lacewing eggs to local gardeners, in order to encourage biological gardening and avoiding the use of pesticides,.
See also
*
List of botanical gardens in France
This list of botanical gardens in France is intended to contain all significant botanical gardens and arboretums in France.
Ain
* Arboretum de Cormoranche sur Saône, Cormoranche-sur-Saône
* Parc botanique de la Teyssonnière, Buellas
Aisne ...
References
Jardin des plantes de Caen(the garden's page within the municipality official website)
Conservatoire des Jardins et Paysages description (French)Brittany Ferries descriptionJardins et Loisirs description (French)* Roger Lawrence Williams, ''Botanophilia in Eighteenth-century France: The Spirit of the Enlightenment'', Springer, 2001, page 117. .
;Specific
Caen, Jardin des plantes de
Caen, Jardin des plantes de
{{France-garden-stub