| Rio de Janeiro - Parks - Botanic Garden |
The Botanic Garden of Rio de Janeiro was one of the first instituitions created
in Brazil. Founded in the colonial period, the park houses one of the most important collections of plants, some of them extremely rare. There
are more than 8 thousand varieties of vegetables, most of the cultivated in green houses. Some of them reproduce the natural habitat of exotic
lineage.
It is the ideal place for the people to enjoy the contact with the nature and
learn a bit about science and the cultural influence that the Botanic Garden had in the history of Brazil. Besides the gree houses and the
flower beds, the park has a Botanic Museum, a library and various centers of environmental education.
The Bromeliário is one of the most visited place and occupies teo green houses
where 10 thousand seedlings are kept. The collection includes bromelias of various origins, even from other South American and Central
American countries. Just like the bromelias, the orchids also attract a large number of visitors. The samples of the Orquidário of Botanic
Garden began to be collected at the end of the 19th century and today add up to three thousand samples of 600 different varieties
most of them natural of Brazil.
Among the exotic varieties, the catcus are the main attractions of the Botanic
Garden of Rio de Janeiro. Samples of 400 different varieties are part of the collection that began to be formed in 1910. The main objective of
the Cactário is to supply plants for researches in the medical area, besides the preservation of the species through the development of a seed
bank. There are still 450 types of carnivorous plants, also called insectivorous, that capture and devour insects.
The cactus are not the only plants used for the research in the medical area. In
the park, there is a garden planted only with medicinal herbs. Among these species are rosemary, mint, lavender, picão, carqueja, cammomile
and others.
It is worth while visiting the Sensorial Garden in the Botanic Garden of Rio de
Janeiro. It is an area inauguirated in 1995 specially for deficient people. All the plants that are part of the garden were carefully chosen
to transmit sensation through the touch and smell. The seedling have distinct textures and peculiar smells.
Due to the natural richness, the Botanic Garden of Rio de Janeiro is inhabited
by various species of birds, even by those who are treatened by extinction, and other animals like the brown capuchin monkeys, saguims and
sloths.
The Botanic Garden of Rio de Janeiro is open daily from 8 am to 5 pm except on
Christmas and New Years. Guides visits should be scheduled at the Centro de Visitantes. There is no extra charge to use the service of the
guides that also speak English and Spanish.
Address: Rua Jardim Botânico, 1008
Phone: 55-21-2294-9349 |
Presentation
