I had passed by this garden many many times and always bypassed it , don’t ask why, do not know. Finally , coming with my dear late wife Martine who loved gardening I stopped by. A pleasant surprise of a beautiful garden and interesting history I like. Nowdays came back several times even with my boys. Therefore, let me tell you a bit on the Real Jardin Botànico de Madrid or the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid !
The Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid is a research center of the Higher Council of Scientific Research. Founded by royal decree on October 17, 1755 in Madrid by King Fernando VI, at Migas Calientes, it was then ordered by King Carlos III at its current location, on the Paseo del Prado, more precisely at Plaza de Murillo , 2 near Prado Museum. This garden hosts, on three terraces, plants from Europe, but also from America and the Pacific. It is surrounded by walls and vegetation, the tranquility of this 8-hectare setting is appreciable in a heaven of peace.
The garden is divided into 3 terraces. The lowest terrace, called Cuadrados Terrace (square terrace) presents collections of endemic plants, medicinal, aromatic and a beautiful rose garden of ancient and primitive roses. Then, the terrace of Escuelas ( Schools terrace ), still as it was conceived in 1774, presents the plants according to the botanical classification of Karl von Linné, from the most primitive to the most evolved. The upper terrace, terrace Plano de la Flor (Flower Plains terrace), more of the 19C, more romantic, houses old and recent greenhouses.
The first collection of about 2000 species were constituted around 1755 , then in 1774, King Carlos III entrusted their implantation to the Prado. In 1788, the Dahlia, native of Mexico, is acclimatized for the first time in Europe. At this time, the garden distributes free medicinal plants to the population. Today the botanical garden contains more than 5000 species of plants.
The archive of the Royal Botanical Garden guards the documentation produced by the operation of the institution itself, and that generated by the Spanish scientific expeditions of the 18C and 19C in relation to Botany. The archive is structured into 15 documentary collections, which have traditionally been called “divisions”. It also includes the collections acquired by deposit, donation or purchase, such as the private collection of Cavanilles, Lagasca, Cuatrecasas, Winthuysen or Emilio Guinea, or the drawings and prints of the Van Berkhey collection. It preserves one of the most important collections of botanical drawings and prints in the world, on which the more than 6,600 drawings of the Expedition to the Viceroyalty of New Granada by José Celestino Mutis stand out. With more than a million specimens, it is the largest herbarium in Spain and one of the most representative in Europe.
The official Real Jardin Botanico of Madrid: https://rjb.csic.es/
The Madrid tourist office on the Real Jardin Botanico: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/tourist-information/real-jardin-botanico
There you go folks, a space of tranquility in a noisy area of the Museum golden triangle. Enjoy the Real Jardin Botanico of my dear Madrid. Memories forever ! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 