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WELCOME!

THE GREAT GLASSHOUSES

As part of the Ruhr-University Bochum the Botanic Garden's purpose is, first and foremost, research and education. However, members of the public are also welcome to visit if they want to learn more about science and plants or simply seek a place to relax and enjoy nature. After all, besides often breathtaking beauty, there are a lot of exciting and interesting facts to discover about the plants of our planet. Visitors can begin their journey of discovery in the centrally located glasshouse complex. On more than 1,700 square metres, exotic plants from different tropical and subtropical habitats from all corners of the Earth are on display. The Tropical Glasshouse shows plants from the tropical rainforests of America, Asia and Africa. In the Desert House, plants from arid regions such as cacti and other succulents are on display. Finally, the Savannah House gives an impression of the unique floras of Australia and South Africa.

Insiders will be amazed by the East-African miracle berry (Synsepalum dulcificum, Sapotaceae) or the allegedly so healthy (but bitter tasting) noni or Indian mulberry (Morinda citrifolia, Rubiaceae). The miracle berry contains "miraculin", a substance that confuses our sense of taste. A few seconds after chewing one of these rather bland tasting little fruits, sour or bitter things suddenly taste wonderfully sweet. A wonderful party trick! The health benefits of the perhaps less illustrious noni, however, are questionable. Whether or not the revolting tasting noni juice is good for you is not scientifically proven.

From the Tropical Gasshouse, visitors can venture straight into the Desert house and the Savannah house. In the Desert House, plants from arid regions display astonishing strategies as to how to survive in these extreme habitats with very little rainfall, high temperatures and a lot of sunlight. Almost everyone knows that cacti store water in their swollen, succulent stems. However, the fact that cacti naturally only occur in the Americas and the Caribbean is new to many visitors. The cacti we see on our holidays in the Mediterrean or Canary Islands do not belong there!
More astonishing still, many of the plants in the African part of the desert house, especially members of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae) look just like cacti but, actually, are not closely related to them at all.

The Savannah House shows mainly sclerophyllus (hard-leaved) plants as they are typical of the floras of the dry regions of Australia and South Africa. Accordingly, in the Australia House many species of acacias and eucalyptus trees can be found whereas in the South Africa House, highlights include the colourful bird-of-paradise flower (Strelitzia reginae) and members of the protea family, some of which we recognize from exotic cut flower arrangements.

OUTDOOR HIGHLIGHTS

Outside the great glasshouses, the Botanic Garden of the Ruhr-University Bochum also has a lot to offer. Every summer, the ornamental borders are a popular attraction. Most of the outdoor plantings, however, show different European, Asian and American plant communities and how they changed over time. These include North-American, Asian and European forests but also coastal dunes, swamps and bogs. Among these, the "Tertiary Pond" is probably the most impressive and most beautiful place in the Botanic Garden of the Ruhr-University Bochum.

During the time period of the Tertiary (ca. 70 – 2 mya), the climate in Central Europe was subtropically warm. At an average temperature of 22 °C (Bochum today: 10.6 °C), swamp cypresses, giant sequoias, magnolias and other plants nowadays still present in North Ameria and Asia thrived here. With its primeval looking swamp cypresses surrounded by water, the Tertiary Pond gives an impression of how the vegetation in Central Europe looked about 20 million years ago.

THE CHINESE GARDEN

Its Chinese name "Qian Yuan", which translated means "Qian's Garden", refers to the poet Tao Qian (365-427), whose story "The Peach Blossom Spring" is one of most well-known pieces of Chinese literature. In the story, a fisherman, intrigued by a blossoming peach orchard, accidentally discovers a hidden idyllic land, an outcrop of Paradise, which once he returns home can never be found again. This tale is engraved on a stone tablet and many of its elements are represented within the garden. With the Chinese Garden, the Botanic Garden of the Ruhr-University Bochum does not just offer something for nature lovers but also for culturally interested visitors. Always worth a visit!