The Jardin botanique du col de Saverne (2.5 hectares), also known as the Jardin botanique de Saverne, 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 along the

Col de Saverne The Col de Saverne (Pass of Saverne or Saverne Pass, ) is a natural pass in the north of the Vosges mountains, near Saverne, which permits travel between the départements of Bas-Rhin and Moselle, and therefore between Alsace and Lorraine. Transp ...

near

Saverne Saverne (french: Saverne, ; Alsatian: ; german: Zabern ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a pass over the Vosges Mountains, and 45 km (27& ...

Bas-Rhin Bas-Rhin (; Alsatian: ''Unterelsàss'', ' or '; traditional german: links=no, Niederrhein; en, Lower Rhine) is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est super-region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its low ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

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 ...

. It is open on weekends, and daily in the warmer months; an admission fee is charged. The garden was established in 1931 by naturalists including botanist Emile Walter (1873-1953). Since 1965 it has been jointly managed by the Université Louis Pasteur de Strasbourg, the town of Saverne, and the garden association; in 2003 the Région Alsace also became a partner. The garden is located on the Saverne Pass hillside at an altitude of 335 metres, and organized into sectors by plant classification. It describes its indigenous

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

section as the largest in France, with about 20 species; the garden also contains an excellent collection of

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...

s, as well as

alpine plant Alpine plants are plants that grow in an alpine climate, which occurs at high elevation and above the tree line. There are many different plant species and taxa that grow as a plant community in these alpine tundra. These include perennial grasses, ...

s and a

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

for

carnivorous plant Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans Protozoa (singular: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a group of single-celled eukaryot ...

s. The arboretum occupies one third of the garden area, and contains species from

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. The garden's orchid collections include ''

Aceras anthropophorum ''Orchis anthropophora'' (formerly ''Aceras anthropophorum''), the man orchid, is a European species of orchid whose flowers resemble a human figure. The head is formed by the petals and sepals, and the suspended torso and limbs by the lobes of ...

'', ''

Anacamptis pyramidalis ''Anacamptis pyramidalis'', the pyramidal orchid, is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the genus ''Anacamptis'' of the family Orchidaceae. The scientific name ''Anacamptis'' derives from Greek ανακάμτειν 'anakamptein' meaning 'b ...

'', ''

Bletilla striata ''Bletilla striata'', known as hyacinth orchid or Chinese ground orchid, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae, native to Japan, Korea, Myanmar (Burma), and China (Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hub ...

'', ''

Cypripedium calceolus ''Cypripedium calceolus'' is a lady's-slipper orchid, and the type species of the genus ''Cypripedium''. It is native to Europe and Asia. Taxonomy ''Cypripedium'' comes from the Greek Κυπρισ πεδιον (''Kupris pedion''), meaning Venus' ...

'', '' Cypripedium formosanum'', ''

Dactylorhiza maculata ''Dactylorhiza maculata'', known as the heath spotted-orchid or moorland spotted orchid, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Orchidaceae. It is widespread in mountainous regions across much of Europe from Portugal and Iceland east to R ...

'', ''

Gymnadenia conopsea ''Gymnadenia conopsea'', commonly known as the fragrant orchid or chalk fragrant orchid, is a herbaceous plant of the family Orchidaceae native to northern Europe. Etymology The name of the genus ''Gymnadenia'' is formed from Greek words (', ...

'', ''

Himantoglossum hircinum ''Himantoglossum hircinum'', the lizard orchid, is a species of orchid in the genus '' Himantoglossum'' found in Europe and North Africa. Description ''Himantoglossum hircinum'' is a perennial herbaceous plant, reaching a height of . It pe ...

'', ''

Orchis militaris ''Orchis militaris'', the military orchid, is a species of orchid native to Europe. It is the type species of the genus ''Orchis''. Description This plant grows to a height of 20 to 50 cm with a robust stem with rather drawn up oblong ...

'', ''

Orchis morio ''Anacamptis morio'', the green-winged orchid or green-veined orchid ( synonym ''Orchis morio''), is a flowering plant of the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It usually has purple flowers, and is found in Europe and the Middle East. Description It f ...

'', and ''

Orchis simia ''Orchis simia'', commonly known as the monkey orchid, is a greyish pink to reddish species of the genus ''Orchis''. It gets its common name from its lobed lip which mimics the general shape of a monkey's body. The range of the species is centra ...

''. Fern collections include ''

Adiantum pedatum ''Adiantum pedatum'', the northern maidenhair fern or five-fingered fern, is a species of fern in the family Pteridaceae, native to moist forests in eastern North America. Like other ferns in the genus, the name maidenhair refers to the slender, ...

'', ''

Asplenium scolopendrium ''Asplenium scolopendrium'', commonly known as the hart's-tongue fern, is an evergreen fern in the genus ''Asplenium'' native to the Northern Hemisphere. Description The most striking and unusual feature of the fern is its simple, undivided fron ...

'', ''

Athyrium filix-femina ''Athyrium filix-femina'', the lady fern or common lady-fern, is a large, feathery species of fern native to temperate Asia, Europe, North Africa, Canada and the USA. It is often abundant (one of the more common ferns) in damp, shady woodland env ...

'', ''

Blechnum spicant ''Struthiopteris spicant'', syn. ''Blechnum spicant'', is a species of fern in the family Blechnaceae, known by the common names hard-fern or deer fern. It is native to Europe, western Asia, northern Africa, and western North America. Like some ...

'', ''

Dryopteris affinis ''Dryopteris affinis'', the scaly male fern or golden-scaled male fern, is a fern native to western and southern Europe and southwestern Asia. It is most abundant on moist soils in woodlands in areas with high humidity, such as the British Isles ...

'', ''

Gymnocarpium robertianum ''Gymnocarpium robertianum'', the limestone fern or scented oakfern, is a fern of the family Cystopteridaceae. Description ''Gymnocarpium robertianum'' has small (10–50 cm), deltate, two- to three-pinnate fronds. Fronds arise from creep ...

'', ''

Matteuccia struthiopteris ''Matteuccia'' is a genus of ferns with one species: ''Matteuccia struthiopteris'' (common names ostrich fern, fiddlehead fern, or shuttlecock fern). The species epithet ''struthiopteris'' comes from Ancient Greek words () "ostrich" and () "fer ...

'', ''

Phegopteris connectilis ''Phegopteris connectilis'', commonly known as long beech fern, northern beech fern, and narrow beech fern, is a species of fern native to forests of the Northern Hemisphere. Unlike its close relative, ''Phegopteris hexagonoptera'', which is ter ...

'', ''

Phyllitis scolopendrium ''Asplenium scolopendrium'', commonly known as the hart's-tongue fern, is an evergreen fern in the genus ''Asplenium'' native to the Northern Hemisphere. Description The most striking and unusual feature of the fern is its simple, undivided fron ...

'', and '' Woodsia obtusa''. Other specimens of interest include ''

Ononis natrix ''Ononis natrix'', the yellow restharrow or shrubby rest-harrow, is a species of plant in the family Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,Pleioblastus nagashima'', '' Saruma henryi'', ''

Shibataea kumasasa ''Shibataea kumasaca'' (倭竹), the ruscus-leaf bamboo or ruscus bamboo, is a species of flowering plant in the grass family, native to mountain slopes in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces in China, and widely cultivated elsewhere. Growing to tall, ...

'', and '' Sinowilsonia henryi''. Its arboretum contains a range of species including ''

Abies cephalonica ''Abies cephalonica'' or Greek fir is a fir native to the mountains of Greece, primarily in the Peloponnesos and the island of Kefallonia, intergrading with the closely related Bulgarian fir further north in the Pindus mountains of northern Gre ...

'', ''

Abies cilicica ''Abies cilicica'', also known as Cilician fir or Taurus fir, is a species of conifer in the family Pinaceae. It is found in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. ''Abies cilicica'' and ''Cedrus libani'', together with Acer hyrcanum, ''Acer hyrcanum'' subs ...

'', ''

Acer capillipes ''Acer capillipes'' (Kyushu maple or red snakebark maple; ja, ホソエカエデ, translit=hosoekaede), is a maple in the same taxonomic section as other snakebark maples such as '' A. pensylvanicum'', '' A. davidii'' and '' A. rufinerve''. It i ...

'', ''

Amelanchier lamarckii ''Amelanchier lamarckii'', also called juneberry, serviceberry or shadbush, is a large deciduous flowering shrub or small tree in the family Rosaceae. Description In spring the plant unfurls new leaves and produces star-shaped white flowers. T ...

'', '' Cladrastis sinensis'', ''

Crataegus mollis ''Crataegus mollis'', known as downy hawthorn or red hawthorn, is a species of plant that occurs in eastern North America from southeastern North Dakota east to Nova Scotia and southwest to eastern Texas. The range of this species is from souther ...

'', ''

Eryngium giganteum ''Eryngium giganteum'', with the common name Miss Willmott's ghost, is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. The short-lived herbaceous perennial thistle is native to the Caucasus and Iran in Western Asia. Description ''Eryngiu ...

'', ''

Liriodendron tulipifera ''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus ''Liriodendron'' (the other ...

'', ''

Malus sieversii ''Malus sieversii'' is a wild apple native to the mountains of Central Asia in southern Kazakhstan. It has recently been shown to be the primary ancestor of most cultivars of the domesticated apple (''Malus domestica''). It was first described as ...

'', '' Photinia davidiana'', ''

Picea asperata ''Picea asperata'' (dragon spruce; ) is a spruce native to western China, from eastern Qinghai, southern Gansu and southwestern Shaanxi south to western Sichuan. Description It is a medium-sized evergreen tree growing to 25–40 m tall, and w ...

'', ''

Picea omorika ''Picea omorika'', common name Pančić spruce or Serbian spruce ( sr, Панчићева оморика, Pančićeva omorika, ), is a species of coniferous tree endemic to the Drina River valley in western Serbia, and eastern Bosnia and Herzego ...

'', ''

Pinus jeffreyi ''Pinus jeffreyi'', also known as Jeffrey pine, Jeffrey's pine, yellow pine and black pine, is a North American pine tree. It is mainly found in California, but also in the westernmost part of Nevada, southwestern Oregon, and northern Baja Califo ...

'', ''

Pinus sylvestris ''Pinus sylvestris'', the Scots pine (UK), Scotch pine (US) or Baltic pine, is a species of tree in the pine family Pinaceae that is native to Eurasia. It can readily be identified by its combination of fairly short, blue-green leaves and orang ...

'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

Sorbus aria ''Sorbus aria'' ( syn. ''Aria nivea''), the whitebeam or common whitebeam, is a deciduous tree, the type species of the subgenus ''Sorbus'' subg. ''Aria'' of the genus ''Sorbus''. It is native to most of Europe as well as North Africa (Algeria, M ...

'', and ''

Sorbus reducta ''Sorbus reducta'' (铺地花楸), the dwarf Chinese mountain ash, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rosaceae, native to western China (South West Sichuan and North West Yunnan}. Growing to tall by wide, it is a dense deciduous spr ...

''.

References

Jardin botanique du col de Saverne

Conservatoire des Jardins et Paysages description (French)

Culture.fr description (French)
{{Coord, 48.750, 7.341, type:landmark_region:FR-67, display=title Saverne, Jardin botanique du col de Saverne, Jardin botanique du col de

See also

References