I have already shouted you at several travel posts from our weekend break to Holland last month but I still owe you 3!! Today I will tell you more about our visit to the Botanic Gardens in Utrecht… so all you garden-lovers out there… stay tuned!

The botanic gardens of Utrecht can be found at the Utrecht Science Park, about 5 kms from the city center. The gardens can be reached by car or public transport (or do as the Dutch do and go by bike!!). Check out the site for all practical information like opening hours and exact location!

Now on to the gardens… we do like visiting gardens, especially in spring. And what a beautiful spring day it was… we arrived at the gardens near opening time and it was already bright, sunny and hot.

The gardens are open to the public, but actually they are also used for science education and research by students of the nearby Utrecht university as well as external researchers. So the collections are not only intended for the public, but also for scientific research, education and to conserve plant species.

These botanic gardens are divided into several gardens :

The rock garden is situated at the entry of the gardens and contains a wealth of different species which makes it one of Europe’s largest rock gardens. There are various plant habitats like rock plants grown especially for their double flowers or special leaf colouring, various primrose (Primula) species, as well as a genuine mountain brook complete with waterfall.

In the wildlife garden, the conditions have been made as favourable as possible for all kinds of insects and small animals like frogs, dragonflies and damselflies, butterflies and bees. Special nests have been provided for solitary bees and there are hives for honey bees. At the back of the Wildlife Garden, there is a breeding site for grass snakes. (source: www.uu.nl)

The outer fort is a part of the garden where local plants are more or less naturally growing which results in a natural, wild terrain. I made some beautiful photos for an outfit post there! 

In the Botanic Gardens is also a complex of greenhouses (the research section is not accessible to visitors). The temperature is kept at a constant 21°C and the humidity during the day is 55%.

A lot of tropical plants reside here : many orchids, bromeliads, passiflora, tropical climbing plants and many plants from South America.

There are even more gardens (like the discovery garden and the systematic garden). After a couple of hours strolling down these gardens, we left this tranquil beautiful place and drove off to Gouda… but more on that in a next tips ‘n trips!

(Keep scrolling down for more beautiful photos!)

Love, Kathleen

Here you see another post about beautiful gardens…