Orto Botanico dell'Università di Pavia
Encyclopedia
The Orto Botanico dell'Università di Pavia (20,000 m²), also known as the Orto Botanico di Pavia, is a botanical garden
maintained by the University of Pavia
. It is located at Via S. Epifanio, 14, Pavia
, Italy
, and open weekdays.
The garden was begun in 1773 as a successor to Pavia's earlier Orto dei Semplici (established 1558). By 1775 the garden was in use, with its first wooden greenhouses constructed in 1776. Nocca Domenico organized and expanded the garden 1797–1826, adding collections to exchange seeds and plants, and building a masonry greenhouse to replace the earlier wooden structures. The garden was extensively damaged in World War II
, after which its greenhouses were relocated to the main building's south side.
Today the garden contains about 2000 taxa
, with major collections of aquatic plant
s, conifers, hosta
, hydrangea
, magnolia
, medical plants, peat bog plants, and a rose garden
. Its four greenhouses are as follows:
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
maintained by the University of Pavia
University of Pavia
The University of Pavia is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties.-History:...
. It is located at Via S. Epifanio, 14, Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and open weekdays.
The garden was begun in 1773 as a successor to Pavia's earlier Orto dei Semplici (established 1558). By 1775 the garden was in use, with its first wooden greenhouses constructed in 1776. Nocca Domenico organized and expanded the garden 1797–1826, adding collections to exchange seeds and plants, and building a masonry greenhouse to replace the earlier wooden structures. The garden was extensively damaged in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, after which its greenhouses were relocated to the main building's south side.
Today the garden contains about 2000 taxa
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
, with major collections of aquatic plant
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
s, conifers, hosta
Hosta
Hosta is a genus of about 23–45 species of lily-like plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae, native to northeast Asia. They have been placed in their own family, Hostaceae ; like many 'lilioid monocots', they were once classified in the Liliaceae...
, hydrangea
Hydrangea
Hydrangea is a genus of about 70 to 75 species of flowering plants native to southern and eastern Asia and North and South America. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Japan, and Korea...
, magnolia
Magnolia
Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol....
, medical plants, peat bog plants, and a rose garden
Rose garden
A Rose garden or Rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses. Designs vary tremendously and roses may be displayed alongside other plants or grouped by individual variety, colour or class in rose beds.-Origins of the rose...
. Its four greenhouses are as follows:
- Arid greenhouse (Serre Scopoliane, originally dating to 1776, 171 feet (52.1 m) long by 23 feet (7 m) wide) — a good collection of succulents (more than 500 speciesSpeciesIn biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
) with notable specimens of Ariocarpus furfuraceus, Ariocarpus trigonus, Copiapoa cinereaCopiapoa cinereaCopiapoa cinerea is a species of the genus Copiapoa in the family of Cactaceae. The name cinerea comes from the Latin word for ash, by reference to the colour of the epiderm....
, Lophophora williamsii var. Caespitosa, Obregonia denegrii, and Welwitschia mirabilis, and many species of FraileaFraileaFrailea is a genus of globular to short cylindrical cacti native to Brazil. These species are cleistogamous. They were first classified in the genus Echinocactus....
, Lobivia, and RebutiaRebutiaRebutia K. Schum. is a genus in the family Cactaceae, native to Bolivia and Argentina.It was designated in 1895 by Karl Moritz Schumann and named after Pierre Rebut , a French cactus nurseryman. The type species is R.minuscula, which has been in cultivation since 1887...
, as well as 30 species of LithopsLithopsLithops is a genus of succulent plants in the ice plant family, Aizoaceae. Members of the genus are native to southern Africa. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words λίθος , meaning "stone," and ὄψ , meaning "face," referring to the stone-like appearance of the plants...
. - Orchidaceae greenhouse — orchids from Central America and North America, plus ferns, AraceaeAraceaeAraceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe or leaf-like bract. Also known as the Arum family, members are often colloquially...
, BromeliaceaeBromeliaceaeBromeliaceae is a family of monocot flowering plants of around 3,170 species native mainly to the tropical Americas, with a few species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, Pitcairnia feliciana...
, and TillandsiaTillandsiaTillandsia is a genus of around 540 species in the Bromeliad family , found in the forests, mountains, and deserts, of Central and South America, and Mexico and the southern United States in North America....
. - Temperate greenhouse — plants of economic importance, fruitFruitIn broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, etc. - Tropical greenhouse (built 1974) — AraceaeAraceaeAraceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe or leaf-like bract. Also known as the Arum family, members are often colloquially...
, ArecaceaeArecaceaeArecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
, EuphorbiaceaeEuphorbiaceaeEuphorbiaceae, the Spurge family are a large family of flowering plants with 300 genera and around 7,500 species. Most are herbs, but some, especially in the tropics, are also shrubs or trees. Some are succulent and resemble cacti....
, LiliaceaeLiliaceaeThe Liliaceae, or the lily family, is a family of monocotyledons in the order Liliales. Plants in this family have linear leaves, mostly with parallel veins but with several having net venation , and flower arranged in threes. Several have bulbs, while others have rhizomes...
, MarantaceaeMarantaceaeThe Marantaceae or arrowroot family is a family of flowering plants known for its large starchy rhizomes. It is sometimes called the prayer-plant family...
, and Pteridofitas.