Sunday, December 16, 2012
Mark and Gaz
In one of our earlier blog posts I mentioned that we always make it a point to check out if there are any nearby botanical gardens we can visit whenever we go on a city break. And on our long weekend break to Paris just recently it was no exception as this time we made sure to check out the huge Jardin des Plantes, the main botanical garden of France which is also conveniently located in central Paris and can be reached via several metro stations (or on foot if your hotel is just nearby).
 |
| A taste of the exotic in central Paris! |
So what is in Jardin des Plantes and what can you see in it? Well I'll let Monsieur Wikipedia do most of the explaining but within it is a series of reasonably large botanical glasshouses with a collection of exotic plants from different parts of the world. Worth noting that nearly all parts of this botanical garden are free to public with the glasshouses an exception, but the entry fee of Six Euros is not that unreasonable.
 |
| Glimpses of what else is in Jardin des Plantes apart from the glasshouses... |
 |
| Pretty but more comfy inside... |
The glasshouses, Les Grandes Serres as they are properly called are interconnected and composed of four sections:
La serre des forêts tropicales humides (Tropical Rainforest)
La serre des déserts et milieux arides (Deserts and Arid)
La serre de la Nouvelle-Calédonie (plants from New Caledonia) - the second smallest area but my favourite!
and La serre de l’histoire des plantes (History of Plants)
Despite the four sections and being France's main botanical garden, the glasshouses and plant collections are comparatively small compared to some of the glasshouses found in the UK (The British love their ornamental plants, significantly more than continental Europeans in general I'd say!). Compared to Kew Gardens then it is tiny even. But if you're in the city and fancy some green fix for a couple of hours or so, perhaps in the morning then it's worth visiting and spending some time ambling around inside the glasshouses.
 |
| As you enter the Tropical Rainforest Glasshouse, this is the first structure you go through. A very unique way to 'support' a climber, very nice! |
Whilst it's not one of the biggest botanical attractions we have been to we still managed to take loads of photos. Despite trimming it down, a single blog post about it would still be too photo intensive so I will divide into different sections and will feature them gradually in the next few weeks. But for now we'll start with the main and biggest section, the Tropical Rainforest plants.
 |
| Detail shot of the pathway, love it! |
 |
| Very lush, and very exotic! |
Now, the only other thing is that when we visited in the morning it was so grey, dark, cloudy outside which made the interiors of this section, with a canopy of towering tropicals even more shady. It was great as it made it more atmospheric, but not so great for taking photos especially with the ailing snappy snap camera we bought. So some photos will be dark and grainy (apologies for that) but things have improved gradually as it started to become more sunny later on during our visit.
 |
| The viewing platforms overlooking the rest of this section and connecting to the New Caledonia glasshouse |
 |
| View from Level 1 |
 |
| The three tiered platforms are a sight to behold themselves, looking like a rock face and blended in with plants climbing on its surface |
 |
| Ficus roots |
 |
| with a variegated Pteris fern growing in one of the root hollows |
 |
| Bananas... |
 |
| towering over everything else. |
 |
| And that structure by the entrance once again... |
 |
| which actually continues towards... |
 |
| the Desert and Arid section. More of this section at a later post! |
It was an enjoyable visit despite being so dark and gloomy outside (and as a consequence inside too) on he first quarter of the time of our visit but we're glad it brightened up later on, easier on our eyes and taking photos. The morning we spent looking around was lovely and was just after we have arrived via Eurostar and dropped our luggage at our hotel nearby. It's so nice to travel abroad via train, so much less stressful than flying! And even better that we started it with a quick botanical visit. More to come in the next few days (or weeks!).
Mark :-)
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
All their paths are beautiful. Can't decide which one I like best. Even the big one through with trees on each side - very nice.
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
Hi Cher, it's a lovely and intimate glasshouse, especially compared to the big ones in the UK and other European cities. It is also very atmospheric with the canopy of exotics, a lovely place to visit for plant enthusiasts :)
DeleteWow, it is amazing to see our own plants raised to perfection in some distant cold country. It really looks like in a natural setting, as if i am looking at our volunteer Philodendron climbing maybe 5-story high on an Artocarpus (antipolo) tree. The only difference is the cleanliness of that one, while ours has a lot of weeds and other unwanted bush and vines.
ReplyDeleteWhat is that unique climber made of? is it wood? I posted some photos now of Strasbourg, and say that the only Eiffel Tower i saw was an almost 2meter high, on the plane while i was arriving at Charles de Gaule airport. On the way back, i didn't see it as it is cloudy. So thank you so much for at least touring me in its Botanical Garden!
Hi Andrea, it's strange and interesting to see indeed how plants growing outside in the tropics also growing in Europe, albeit inside a glasshouse. Not sure what the trellis structure is made of, more likely soft wood like pine. Hope you get to go back to Paris soon and climb up the Eiffel tower, which is quite an experience :)
DeleteGood to see...Ive never yet made it there, but will wander over next time i am in Paris....looks like a good opportunity for promenading!
ReplyDeleteHi Clive, do so next time you are there :) If you can, time your visit from early spring till early autumn as the rest of the garden looks lovely when plants are in leaf and summer beddings are still looking good.
DeleteWhat a beautiful place - inside and out. Love the pathways (I'm looking for pathway ideas!), and that support is so very interesting! I keep running my garden through my mind wondering where I could do something like that! ;0 Lots of ideas here!
ReplyDeleteHi Holley, in the summer the entire garden looks even better especially the tree lined walkways :) Hopefully you can incorporate something similar to that support in your garden, I think it's a good idea!
DeleteWhat a leafy looking oasis and a tranquil retreat from the bustling city outside. Looking forward to the next chapter.
ReplyDeleteThanks Anna! It is a tranquil space in a bustling city :)
DeleteThis looks quite lovely. I didn't know it was there, but it has been 30 years since I was in Paris. If you ask me, I think the glasshouses at Kew are a bit much. These are somewhat older, aren't they?
ReplyDeleteHi Jordan, it is a lovely looking greenhouse. I think some of the greenhouses at Kew are much more recent than this one but I'm not sure if this one is much older than the oldest one at Kew. Despite the compact size I think the planting and overall effect is better.
DeleteI have visited Paris a couple of times but have not yet made it to Jardin des Plantes! It looks great. If I lived so close to such a great city I would be there often! Lots of envy right now! Jeannine
ReplyDeleteHi Jeannine, it also took us several visits before we finally managed to make it to Jardin des Plantes. There's simply too many sights to see in Paris to fit in just a few days visit at a time.
DeleteSuch a breath of warm air to see all of this tropical foliage in the bleak midwinter. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi outlawgardener, yes it was so nice and warm inside, a nice break from the cold weather outside!
DeleteLucky you that you can go visit Paris as casually as I might go visit our beach! I love the path of slats! Thanks for a look into the tropics. I am learning to appreciate these plants more and more.
ReplyDeleteHi Debs, I'm glad that the transport network between where we live and Paris works out so well and convenient too. We really ought to visit more often :)
DeleteA beautiful garden that I visited a couple of years ago. I must admit though that I spent a lot of time looking in detail at the extensive array of beds that lead up to the conservatory. In summer they are packed with bedding but not the common stuff - lots of exotics and tender perennials. It was a very hot day and I opted not to do the glasshouses. I think you chose the best time of the year to be under glass!
ReplyDeleteI can imagine how beautiful this garden must be during the growing season Ian! We spent some time walking outside after our glasshouse visit and noted all the beds used for summer planting. They're pretty much empty now apart from the remnants of a few cannas and bananas. With their continental summer heat the displays must look really good with explosions of colour. The tree lined promenades looks great as well!
ReplyDeleteWhy can't we create a garden like that?? I also wonder how much energy is used in these botanical gardens?
ReplyDeleteIf only we all had tropical glasshouses to grow our gardens in! I dread to think what their heating costs are over winter.
Delete