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Jardin des Plantes
The Jardin des plantes in Montpellier is located on the boulevard Henri IV to the north of the triumphal arch known as the Porte du Peyrou. The Jardin des plantes was the oldest botanical garden in France. It was founded by Pierre Richer de Belleval in 1593 for the purpose of cultivating medicinal herbs. The garden, attached to Montpellier's school of medicine, was originally intended to train doctors and apothecaries in the use of herbs but rapidly expanded into a general botanical garden. The garden, which covers an area of 4.6 hectares, was designated an historic monument in 1992, and is widely regarded as one of Montpellier's most attractive parks. The collections comprise 1500 varieties of open-air plants and trees, and another 1000 varieties which are cultivated under cover.
The Orangerie. Image published under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License The main attractions are the orangerie, established in 1804, the five Planchon hothouses of which the largest is dedicated to south American plants, the serre Martins, which specialise in cactuses, and the serre Harant which specialises in the cultivation of tropical shrubs. The gardens also contain a number of impressive sculptures. There are fifteen busts of naturalists plus a statue of the Swedish botanist Carl von Linne and a monument dedicated to Francois Rabelais, a French renaissance writer who studied at Montpellier.
The Jardin des plantes, Montpellier. Image published under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5 license
The Rabelais Monument. Image published under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5 license The gardens provide education and research facilities to schools, universities, professional bodies and specialist institutes. The gardens are owned by the state and entry is free. They are open to the public from noon to 8pm during the months of June, July, August and September and from noon to 6 pm during the remainder of the year.
© 2007 LACT Limited. All rights reserved Saint Peters Porte du Peyrou Pharmacy Opera Comedie Musee Fabre Medical School Jardin des plantes Ecusson Citadel Antigone Brief history
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Entance to the Jardin des plantes. Image published under
GNU Free Documentation License, version 1.2 or later
