The Orto Botanico dell'Università di Catania (16,000 m²), also known as the Hortus Botanicus Catinensis, 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. is ...

Catania Catania (, , , Sicilian and ) is the second-largest municipality on Sicily, after Palermo, both by area and by population. Despite being the second city of the island, Catania is the center of the most densely populated Sicilian conurbation, wh ...

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, southern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. It is operated by the

University of Catania The University of Catania () is a university located in Catania, Sicily. Founded in 1434, it is the oldest university in Sicily, the 13th oldest in Italy, and the 29th oldest in the world. With over 38,000 enrolled students, it is the largest uni ...

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

department. This institution is a member of BGCI, with international identification code CAT.

History

Realization of a garden was first attempted in 1847 with a purchase of land on the city outskirts, but the revolutions of 1848 rapidly led to its dispersion. In 1858 the garden was established by founder and director,

Benedictine Monk The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, they ...

and

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

Francis Roccaforte Tornabene (1813–1897), with first plantings in 1862 of specimens obtained from other botanical gardens in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, and

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

. It was enlarged in 1865 with a new area dedicated to cultivation of indigenous Sicilian species, and in the early 1900s further enhanced by creation of the Giardino Botanico "Nuova Gussonea" on

Mount Etna Mount Etna, or simply Etna ( or ; , or ; ; or ), is an active stratovolcano on the east coast of Sicily, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Catania, between the cities of Messina, Italy, Messina and Catania. It is located above the Conve ...

for cultivation of native mountain plants. The main garden was damaged during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and its great Tepidario greenhouse demolished in 1958, but in subsequent years it has been renewed.

Overview

Today the garden is divided into two main sections: the Hortus Generalis (13,000 m²) which collects mainly exotic plants, and the Hortus Siculus (3000 m²) which cultivates Sicilian species. The Hortus Generalis is divided into squares, set off by limestone steps, with two small

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

s for

succulent In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...

s, a tropical greenhouse used primarily for reproduction of palms by seed and for cultivation of exotic plants, and three circular tanks for

aquatic plant Aquatic plants, also referred to as hydrophytes, are vascular plants and Non-vascular plant, non-vascular plants that have adapted to live in aquatic ecosystem, aquatic environments (marine ecosystem, saltwater or freshwater ecosystem, freshwater ...

s. The Hortus Siculus is divided into narrow rectangular flower beds bordered with

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a Natural satellite, moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a Fissure vent, fractu ...

stone, containing plants arranged by family. The garden also contains a handsome departmental building in neoclassical style. Orto botanico di Catania 102459

The garden's main collections are as follows: * Succulent plants - thousands of specimens, most grown outdoors. The collection was first created by Tornabene, and in 1963 enlarged by 4,000 new specimens. Today it contains about 2,000 species, mainly ''

Cactaceae A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...

'', ''

Euphorbiaceae Euphorbiaceae (), the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of Euphorbia, the type genus of the family. Most spurges, such as ''Euphorbia paralias'', ar ...

'', and ''

Aizoaceae The Aizoaceae (), or fig-marigold family, is a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genera and about 1,800 species. Several genera are commonly known as 'ice plants' or 'carpet weeds'. The Aizoaceae are also referred to a ...

''. Of particular interest are its '' Astrophytum capricorne'', '' Blossfeldia liliputana'', '' Cereus'', ''

Echinocactus grusonii ''Kroenleinia grusonii'', popularly known as the golden barrel cactus, golden ball, "mother-in-law's cushion" or "mother-in-law’s chair", is a species of barrel cactus which is endemism, endemic to east-central Mexico. The golden barrel cactus ...

'', '' Leuchtenbergia principis'', ''

Lophophora williamsii The peyote (; ''Lophophora williamsii'' ) is a small, spineless cactus which contains Psychoactive cactus, psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline. is a Spanish word derived from the Nahuatl (), meaning "caterpillar Pupa#Cocoon, cocoon" ...

'', '' Mammillaria herrerae'', '' Mammillaria schiedeana'', '' Mammillaria theresae'', '' Melocatus jansenianus'', '' Roseocactus fissuratus'', and '' Toumeya papyracantha'', as well as '' Euphorbia abyssinica'', '' Euphorbia candelabrum'', '' Euphorbia trigona'', '' Euphorbia coerulescens'', '' Euphorbia resinifera'', and '' Caralluma europaea'', '' Crassula brevifolia'', '' Crassula falcata'', and ''

Stapelia ''Stapelia'' is a genus of low-growing, spineless, stem succulent plants, predominantly from South Africa with a few from other parts of Africa. Several Asian and Latin American species were formerly included but they have all now been transfer ...

''. * Palms - about fifty species, representing '' Arecastrum'', '' Arykuryroba'', '' Butia'', '' Chamaedorea'', ''

Chamaerops ''Chamaerops'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Arecaceae. It contains only one species, ''Chamaerops humilis'', variously called European fan palm or the Mediterranean dwarf palm. It is one of the most cold-hardy palms and is use ...

'', '' Erithea'', ''

Howea ''Howea'' is a genus of two palms, '' H. belmoreana'' and '' H. forsteriana'', both endemic to Lord Howe Island, Australia. ''H. forsteriana'' in particular is commonly grown as an indoor plant in the Northern Hemisphere, and the two species for ...

'', '' Livistona'', '' Phoenix'', ''

Sabal ''Sabal'' is a genus of New World palms (or fan-palms). Currently, there are 17 recognized species of ''Sabal'', including one hybrid species. Distribution The species are native to the subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, from ...

'', '' Trithrinax'', ''

Trachycarpus ''Trachycarpus'' is a genus of ten species of Arecaceae, palms native to Asia, from the Himalaya east to eastern China. They are fan palms (subfamily Coryphoideae), with the leaf, leaves with a bare petiole terminating in a rounded fan of numerou ...

'', '' Washingtonia'', etc., with notable specimens of '' Arecastrum romanzoffianum'', '' Butia eriospatha'', '' Brahea dulcis'', '' Dypsis onilahensis'', '' Jubaea chilensis'', '' Medemia argun'', '' Rhopalostylis sapida'', '' Pritchardia hillebrandii'', '' Sabal acauli'', '' Trithrinax campestris'', '' Trithrinax brasiliensis'', '' Wallichia densiflora'', and ''

Washingtonia robusta ''Washingtonia robusta'', known by common name as the Mexican fan palm, Mexican washingtonia, or skyduster is a palm tree native to the Baja California peninsula and a small part of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. Despite its limited native distr ...

''. * Sicilian plants - including '' Abies nebrodensis'', '' Anthemis ismelia'', ''

Brassica ''Brassica'' () is a genus of plants in the cabbage and mustard family (Brassicaceae). The members of the genus are informally known as cruciferous vegetables, cabbages, mustard plants, or simply brassicas. Crops from this genus are sometim ...

'', '' Celtis aetnensis'', '' Centaurea tauromenitana'', '' Cremnophyton lanfrancoi'', '' Darniella melitensis'', ''

Cheirolophus crassifolius ''Cheirolophus crassifolius'', the Maltese centaury, Maltese rock-centaury or Widnet il-Baħar, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is Endemism, endemic to Malta, where it has been the national plant of Malta since 1973. ...

'', '' Salix gussonei'', '' Scilla cupani'', '' Scilla dimartinoi'', '' Scilla sicula'', '' Senecio ambiguus'', and '' Zelkova sicula''. * Trees and shrubs - including '' Bupleurum fruticosum'', ''

Ceratonia siliqua The carob ( ; ''Ceratonia siliqua'') is a flowering evergreen tree or shrub in the Caesalpinioideae sub-family of the legume family, Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated for its edible fruit, which takes the form of seed pods, and as an orname ...

'', '' Chamaerops humilis'', '' Cistus creticus'', ''

Dracaena draco ''Dracaena draco'', the Canary Islands dragon tree or drago, is a subtropics, subtropical tree in the genus ''Dracaena (plant), Dracaena'', native plant, native to the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Madeira, Mount Adad Madani, western Morocco, and ...

'', '' Erica multiflora'', '' Fontanesia phillyreoides'', ''

Myrtus communis ''Myrtus communis'', the common myrtle or true myrtle, is a species of flowering plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. It is an evergreen shrub native to southern Europe, North Africa, Western Asia, Macaronesia, and the Indian Subcontinent, an ...

'', ''

Quercus ilex ''Quercus ilex'', the holly oak, also (ambiguously, as many oaks are evergreen) evergreen oak, is a large evergreen oak native to the Mediterranean region. It is a member of the section (botany), section ''List of Quercus species#Section Ilex, Il ...

'', '' Phillyrea angustifolia'', ''

Pinus pinea The Italian stone pine, botanical name ''Pinus pinea'', also known as the Mediterranean stone pine is a tree from the pine family (''Pinaceae''). The tree is native to the Mediterranean region, occurring in Southern Europe and the Levant. The ...

'', ''

Pistacia lentiscus ''Pistacia lentiscus'' (also lentisk or mastic) is a dioecious evergreen shrub or small tree of the genus '' Pistacia'' native to the Mediterranean Basin. It grows up to tall and is cultivated for its aromatic resin, mainly on the Greek isl ...

'', ''

Populus alba ''Populus alba'', commonly called silver poplar,Webb, C. J.; Sykes, W. R.; Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. IV. Naturalised Pteridophytes, Gymnosperms, Dicotyledons. 4. Christchurch, New Zealand, Botany Division, D.S.I.R. si ...

'', '' Ulmus canescens'', and '' Vitex agnus-castus''. * Exotic species - including ''

Agathis australis ''Agathis australis'', commonly known as kauri, is a species of coniferous tree in the family Araucariaceae, found north of 38°S in the northern regions of New Zealand's North Island. It is the largest (by volume) but not tallest species ...

'', ''

Agave americana ''Agave americana'', commonly known as the century plant, maguey, or American aloe, is a flowering plant species belonging to the family Asparagaceae. It is native to Mexico and the United States, specifically Texas. This plant is widely cultiv ...

'', '' Ceratozamia mexicana'', '' Eriobotrya japonica'', '' Macrozamia moorei'', ''

Morus alba Morus may refer to: People * Alexander Morus (1616–1670), Franco-Scottish Protestant preacher * Henryk Moruś (1943–2013), Polish serial killer * Huw Morus (1622–1709), Welsh poet * Thomas More or Morus (1478–1535), English philosopher * M ...

'', and ''

Prunus armeniaca ''Prunus armeniaca'' is the most commonly cultivated apricot species. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation. Genetic studies indicate Central Asia is the center of origin. It is extensively cultivat ...

''.

References

*

*

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20081017070742/http://www.grandigiardini.it/scheda.php?id=90 Tab on the site of Grandi Giardini Italiani * F. Tornabene, ''Hortus botanicus regiae Universitatis studiorum Catinae'', F. Galati, Catania, 1887. * V. Gicomini, "Un secolo di vita scientifica dell'Orto Botanico dell'Università di Catania (1858-1958)", ''Boll. Ist. Univ. Catania'', ser. II, vol. 2: I-LII, Catania, 1958. * A. Gugliemo and P. Pavone, "La collezione di piante succulente dell’Orto Botanico dell'Università di Catania", ''Il Naturalista Siciliano'', ser. IV, 5 (1-2): 1-20, Palermo, 1981. * A. Gugliemo and P. Pavone, ''L'Orto Botanico di Catania'', 1st edition Arti Grafiche Signorello, Catania, 1988; 2nd edition (1994), 3rd edition (1995) Litotipografia Vena, Palermo. {{DEFAULTSORT:Orto Botanico Dell'universita Di Catania University of Catania Buildings and structures in Catania Botanical gardens in Italy Gardens in Sicily Buildings and structures completed in 1858 1858 establishments in Italy 19th-century architecture in Italy

History

Overview

See also

References