The oldest botanical garden in the Netherlands
The Hortus Botanicus is Leiden University's lush plant paradise. For over four hundred years, plants from all over the world have been collected, grown, admired and studied in the beautiful garden and greenhouses here.
Activities
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Plants & Planets
Plants & Planets
In Plants & Planets you will travel through time and space: from the Big Bang to th...
weekly
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Lustrum Exhibition ‘The Eternal Student'
Lustrum Exhibition ‘The Eternal Student'
What is a university without its students? The university celebrates 450 years of study...
until 26 October
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Science café Papilionaceous plants
Science café Papilionaceous plants
Come listen, try, look. You can drop in whenever it suits you, stroll along the stalls,...
Friday 8 August
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Science café Nightshade
Science café Nightshade
Tobacco and tomato are family, just like potatoes, eggplant, chili pepper, goj berry, b...
Friday 26 September
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Science café Grass
Science café Grass
Come listen, try, watch. You can drop in whenever it suits you, stroll along the stalls...
Wednesday 8 October
Since 1590
The Hortus is Leiden University's study garden; scientists have been studying biodiversity and collecting and studying plants here for centuries. Take a walk through a variety of themed gardens, such as the Japanese Garden and the Mediterranean Garden. Enjoy the ancient trees and greenhouses filled with orchids, carnivorous pitcher plants and ferns. The Hortus is also a wonderful place to study or relax with a book.
Exploring in the Hortus
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The jade vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys) is one of the most stunning climbing plants in the Hortus' greenhouses. In March, this plant—native to the tropical forests of the Philippines—produces flower clusters that can grow up to ninety centimetres long.
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More than a hundred species of pitcher plants (Nepenthes) grow primarily in tropical Asia. The pitchers are treacherous traps with a slippery rim; once caught, insects cannot escape.
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The greenhouse complex was built in 1938 around one of the Hortus' most spectacular trees: the ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) from 1785. The ginkgo biloba is the only species of the genus Ginkgo still in existence. The first fossils of this genus are at least 270 million years old.
Hortus Grand Café
The Hortus Grand Café is a great place to enjoy a delicious cup of coffee, tea and cake, lunch or drinks. Relax indoors or on the terrace and savour local ingredients—fresh vegetables, fruit, and tea from the Grand Café’s own garden. Try our green tea from the ginkgo, or a Hortus beer with flowers and herbs from the Hortus.
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See all 13 museums
See all 13 museums
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Got hungry?
Got hungry?
