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| Jardín Botánico de La Orotava | |
|---|---|
| Name | Jardín Botánico de La Orotava |
| Type | Botanical garden |
| Location | La Orotava, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain |
| Established | 18th century |
| Operator | Cabildo de Tenerife |
Jardín Botánico de La Orotava is a historic botanical garden located in La Orotava on the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. Founded in the late 18th century, the garden has served as a center for acclimatization, scientific study, and public recreation, linking local institutions and global networks. Its collections, landscape design, and conservation programs connect the garden to Spanish, European, African, and Latin American botanical traditions.
The garden traces origins to initiatives by the Real Sociedad Económica de Amigos del País de Tenerife, the Bourbon Restoration period in Spain, and patrons such as Antonio Bernabé de Lugo and administrators from the Captaincy General of the Canary Islands. Early 19th-century developments involved links with the Spanish Enlightenment, botanical explorers returning from expeditions tied to the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid and contacts with collectors associated with the British Empire, French Republic, and Portuguese Empire. During the 19th century the garden received plants via maritime routes frequented by ships from Liverpool, Hamburg, Genova, and Lisbon, and exchanges involved botanists connected to the Linnaean Society of London, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, and the Botanic Garden Meise. In the 20th century the garden engaged with institutions such as the Instituto de Estudios Canarios, the Universidad de La Laguna, and the Ministerio de Cultura (Spain); its landscapes were influenced by horticulturists responding to trends from the Royal Horticultural Society and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Recent decades saw administrative transfer and partnerships with the Cabildo Insular de Tenerife and cultural programs tied to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention and the European Union cultural funds.
Situated in the historic quarter of La Orotava near landmarks like the Casa de los Balcones, Plaza del Ayuntamiento (La Orotava), and the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (La Orotava), the garden occupies terraced plots adapted to the island’s topography and microclimates influenced by Mount Teide and Atlantic trade winds. Its design incorporates paths, stone walls, and water features that reflect influences from Spanish Baroque architecture, Mudejar water-management traditions, and 19th-century European municipal garden design seen in places such as Jardin des Plantes (Paris), Kew Gardens, and Jardín Botánico Canario Viera y Clavijo. The spatial organization divides collections into thematic beds, greenhouse ranges, and arboreta, oriented to optimize sunlight exposure and elevation gradients comparable to layouts at Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid and Botanical Garden of Padua.
Collections emphasize Macaronesian endemics alongside introduced taxa from Africa, South America, Asia, and Australia. Notable genera include Dracaena, Aeonium, Echium, Phoenix, and Persea, while species of interest feature Dracaena draco, Aeonium urbicum, Echium wildpretii, Phoenix canariensis, and Persea americana. The garden maintains succulents, laurel forest relicts such as Ocotea foetens and Laurus azorica, and economically important plants like Coffea arabica, Theobroma cacao, and Citrus × sinensis. Collections are augmented by specimens collected in coordination with botanists from institutions such as the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Missouri Botanical Garden, New York Botanical Garden, Smithsonian Institution, and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. The herbarium holdings and living collections provide comparative material for studies involving taxa catalogued by the International Plant Names Index, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, and conservation lists managed by the IUCN Red List.
The garden participates in ex situ conservation programs linked to regional strategies for Macaronesian biodiversity and collaborates with the Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Recursos Genéticos (CIBIO) model institutions and the Consejería de Medio Ambiente de Canarias. Research initiatives have involved taxonomy, propagation protocols, seed banking aligned with standards from the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership, and restoration projects for habitats like the laurisilva and pine stands dominated by Pinus canariensis. Scientific output has been produced in collaboration with researchers from the Universidad de La Laguna, CSIC, Botanic Gardens Conservation International, and international partners such as the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Harvard University Herbaria, and Universidade dos Açores.
Educational outreach targets schools, universities, and tourists and includes guided tours, interpretive signage, and workshops developed with the Museo de Ciencias Naturales (Madrid), the Instituto Canario de Investigación del Patrimonio Cultural, and local NGOs. Programs address themes promoted by the Convention on Biological Diversity, the European Green Deal, and regional initiatives by the Canary Islands Government. Partnerships with cultural institutions like the Auditorio de Tenerife and festivals such as the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife integrate botanical education into broader cultural calendars.
Visitors approach via roads connected to TF-5, local bus routes operated by Metrotenerife and taxi services linked to Aeropuerto de Tenerife Norte (Los Rodeos) and Puerto de la Cruz. On-site amenities reflect comparisons with services at Jardín Botánico Canario Viera y Clavijo and include interpretive maps, seasonal exhibitions, and accessibility measures conforming to standards referenced by the European Landscape Convention. Nearby accommodations and cultural sites include La Orotava Old Town, Puerto de la Cruz, and the Orotava Valley, providing combined itineraries with visits to Teide National Park and the Anaga Rural Park.
Governance involves municipal and island-level authorities, notably the Ayuntamiento de La Orotava and the Cabildo de Tenerife, with technical support from the Universidad de La Laguna and conservation guidance from Botanic Gardens Conservation International and the IUCN. Funding and project partnerships have included the European Regional Development Fund, regional ministries such as the Consejería de Cultura y Patrimonio Histórico de Canarias, and collaborations with non-governmental organizations like SEO/BirdLife and international networks including the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.
Category:Botanical gardens in Spain Category:La Orotava Category:Protected areas of Tenerife