Zugdidi Botanical Garden is a conspicuous monument of cultural heritage of national importance of Georgia, which is located at 122 m above sea level, with an area of 26 hectares. The garden, with its location and climate condition is one of the best source for the introduction, research and acclimatization of valuable subtropical plants.
Some highlights about Zugdidi Botanical Garden, in Zugdidi (Georgia)
Zviad Gamsakhurdia Ave. 1, 2100 Zugdidi
Saegrelo-Zemo Svaneti, Georgia
Coordinates: 42.51182, 41.87916
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Open every day from 6:00 am to 11:00 pm
Check the Zugdidi Botanical Garden web
Web: zbg.ge
Email: info@zbg.ge
Phone: 00995 557 442 700, 00995 592 190 588, 00995 555 168 040
The history of the Botanical Garden is related to the history of the construction of the residence of Samegrelo Rulers the Dadianis. The foundation for its cultivation was made around the second half of the 18th century, while these areas were still covered by impassable forests, characteristics of Kolkheti area since ancient times, from the shores of the Black Sea to the slopes of the Caucasus Mountains.
In 1840, Davit Dadiani, the head of Samegrelo, made the foundation for European-style decorative garden. Queen Ekaterine Chavchavadze-Dadiani ordered the necessary material (seeds and seedlings) from the garden of the King Louis Philippe Palace of Versailles (Paris) and Milan (Italy), and invited the famous specialist gardener Joseph Babin from Trieste (Italy) to plan the garden.
Based on French symmetrical style and Italian principle of cultivation, Joseph Babin arranged a European-style decorative garden with flowerbeds, lawns, artificial and natural landscapes, alleys, an island, a nursery and an orangery, which contains rare varieties of exotic plants.
Since then the introduction of species of rare plants, previously unknown to Georgia has begun. In 1869, the second stage of garden renovation begins, when Queen Ekaterine invited a gardener-decorator Gaetano Zamberletti (later his brother - Giovanni) from Farese (Italy).
The Botanical Garden is an important part of the history of Zugdidi, an example of cultural heritage of national importance, which has a noteworthy historical value. The garden has played an important historical role in shaping the unique appearance of the city and creating a rich collection of exotic plants, as well as a large educational function. It became the hub of introduction of valuable plants in Samegrelo, from which hundreds of foreign plants were widely expanded among the population, many gardens, squares and parks were cultivated in the villages, towns and cities of Samegrelo
Zugdidi Botanical Garden is a conspicuous monument of cultural heritage of national importance of Georgia, which is located at 122 m above sea level, with an area of 26 hectares.
The garden, with its location and climate condition is one of the best source for the introduction, research and acclimatization of valuable subtropical plants.
The history of the Botanical Garden is related to the history of the construction of the residence of Samegrelo Rulers the Dadianis. The foundation for its cultivation was made around the second half of the 18th century, while these areas were still covered by impassable forests, characteristics of Kolkheti area since ancient times, from the shores of the Black Sea to the slopes of the Caucasus Mountains.
In 1840, Davit Dadiani, the head of Samegrelo, made the foundation for European-style decorative garden. Queen Ekaterine Chavchavadze-Dadiani ordered the necessary material (seeds and seedlings) from the garden of the King Louis Philippe Palace of Versailles (Paris) and Milan (Italy), and invited the famous specialist gardener Joseph Babin from Trieste (Italy) to plan the garden.
Based on French symmetrical style and Italian principle of cultivation, Joseph Babin arranged a European-style decorative garden with flowerbeds, lawns, artificial and natural landscapes, alleys, an island, a nursery and an orangery, which contains rare varieties of exotic plants.
Since then the introduction of species of rare plants, previously unknown to Georgia has begun. In 1869, the second stage of garden renovation begins, when Queen Ekaterine invited a gardener-decorator Gaetano Zamberletti (later his brother - Giovanni) from Farese (Italy). In 2017-2019, Zugdidi Botanical Garden completely underwent an infrastructural rehabilitation. Fragments of historical-architectural monuments preserved to this day have been identified.
The garden has played an important historical role in shaping the unique appearance of the city and creating a rich collection of exotic plants, as well as a large educational function. It became the hub of introduction of valuable plants in Samegrelo, from which hundreds of foreign plants were widely expanded among the population, many gardens, squares and parks were cultivated in the villages, towns and cities of Samegrelo.
To this day, the territory of the garden is decorated with trees imported from India, Japan, Italy, North America and other countries, as well as local endemic species, as well as other plants, the species of which exceed 200, and according to specialists, many of them have no analogues in the Caucasus region. The total number of trees and plants reaches 8000 units.
The botanical garden is famous for its unique plants and shrubs: such as Sequoia sempervirens, Cedrus deodara, Cedrus atlantica, Ginkgo biloba, Liquidambar styraciflura, Liriodendron tulipifera,Tilia Caucasica.
Magnolia species: Magnolia macrophylla, Magnolia soulangeana, Magnolia kobus, Magnolia stellata, Hydrangea macrophylla, Fragrant osmanthus, Caesalpinia Japonica,Chaenomeles japonica and etc.
The Botanical Garden is also famous for its alleys such as: Carpinus Alley, Platanus Alley, Azaleas Alley, Callistemon Alley, Golden Rain Alley, Camellia Alley and Japanese Sakura Alley.
Zugdidi Botanical Garden periodically hosts various cultural, educational and research activities. Of particular note is the training seminar course held last year, which aimed at raising awareness among students for the school's eco-clubs on the following issues:
Together with the world's leading universities and research organizations, Zugdidi Botanical Garden participated in the World Experiment of Oaks, initiated by the University of Granada/ Spain (Comparison of growth intensity of locally propagated oaks in open and closed ground, summarizing and sharing results), in the framework of which the seeds of Imereti oak (Quercus robur subsp. Imeretina) common in western Georgia were collected, processed and planted in open and closed ground in the garden area with the involvement of students from Ilia State University and Agrarian Universities.
On the basis of a letter of permission from the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, a Colchian dendrium for scientific-educational purposes is being arranged with seedlings obtained in the wild. Workshops on environmental issues, the importance of biodiversity and ex situ conservation of plants are held periodically. The establishment of a local flora herbarium fund for scientific-educational purposes has started in the garden. Which involves local scientific expeditions in various types of ecosystems typical of the Caucasus (semi-desert, arid forest, field, water, summer green deciduous forests, mixed forest, alpine and subalpine meadows), plant collection, drying, morphological-systematic examination and labeling.
In cooperation with Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi Botanical Gardens, Zugdidi Botanical Garden monitors the spread of pests and diseases of local oaks and the effectiveness of measures to combat them.
Zugdidi Botanical Garden has signed memoranda of scientific and educational cooperation between Shota Meskhia Zugdidi State Teaching University and Ilia State University.
Conspicuous monument of cultural heritage of national importance of Georgia