Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden was established in 1829 in an area of 4.9 hectares in the Kluuvi district of central Helsinki. Drawing on the principles of plant systematics, the area is arranged into sections by family. The key part of the garden features the Tree of Life, presenting plant systematics through evolution.
The oldest and largest part of the garden is the arboretum with its woody plants. Special sections include the garden of the senses, the garden of rock plants, and the lichen and moss gardens.
Collection of tropical and subtropical plants
The 10 greenhouses in Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden feature climatic conditions ranging from a rainforest to a desert and the Mediterranean climate. In addition, the plants represent different geographical areas, such as South Africa and isolated oceanic islands. The main attraction is the Waterlily Room with its Santa Cruz water lilies.
Opened to the public in 2009, Kumpula Botanic Garden is situated on the historic grounds of Kumpula Manor. The six-hectare area is divided into the garden of cultivated plants and the geobotanical garden.
The geobotanical collection has been designed specifically for the micro-climate of the Vallilanlaakso area. The garden rises from the old Vallilanlaakso marine clay soil up a gently sloping southern moraine cliff to a rocky hillock and mounds in the northern part of the area.
Collection of cultivated plants
The collection of ornamental plants is based mostly on flora typical for a 19th century manor environment. Also included are plants that arrived in Finland even earlier, such as the common lilac and the fanleaf hawthorn. The medicinal garden was modelled on the first scientific herb garden in Finland, situated next to the Royal Academy of Turku in the 17th century. The plants are grouped according to their various medicinal properties. Plants suited for human consumption and thriving in Finnish conditions are grouped according to their geographical origins.
Geobotanical collection
The geobotanical section of Kumpula Botanic Garden, Hortus geobotanicus, provides a comprehensive presentation of species in the northern hemisphere. The plants come from climates similar to Finland in eastern and western North America, the Far East, Japan and Europe. The European section of the garden also features typical Finnish vegetation.
As the geobotanical sections stretch from a pond to a rocky area, they are suited to both water and shoreline plants and forest and meadow species.