The Nikitsky Botanical Garden is an outdoor museum. It’s a gem from Crimea’s South Coast. This manmade park is considered to be a masterpiece of landscape design and also one of the world’s oldest botanical gardens. Well, it is not in vain, since exotic plants are collected from all over the world, that the garden is known as the peninsula’s green treasure. The park is internationally renowned for its 40 hectares of shrubs, trees and flowers that form an exceptional landscape from all parts of the world. You have the feeling of walking through the park as if you were travelling the world. It’s very interesting to see the Nikitsky Botanical Garden because something blooms here daily and that is why the park is called a magic garden. Find more information about the location, the history and more facts on our dedicated page about The Nikitsky Botanical Garden. Further below, you can discover some of the incredible species that you can enjoy when you visit the Garden.
Sequoias
Sequoias or redwoods are impressive conifers, not only for their size but also for their lifespan. In fact, they can live for more than 3,000 years as long as the conditions are right. Their growth rate is quite slow if we compare it with that of other trees, but that works in their favour since winter is so cold and harsh that it forces them to suspend all their activities, except the essential ones, such as to breathe. Later, in spring, their awakening is slow, so that after a year they will have been able to grow about five, perhaps six months with luck.
Cedars
Cedars are characterized by reaching a height of 40 meters or more, with a thick trunk towards the lower part, and with a crown formed by branches spread horizontally, although when young it can adopt a more pyramidal appearance, especially if it grows in a dense forest or in a wooded garden. The leaves are acicular, green, and rigid. These remain in the conifer for several months or years before falling; and still, you will see it always green because they do not fall at the same time.
Cypresses
The Cypresses that you can find at Nikitsky is a tree with a very erect trunk, it has a dense, strong and aromatic wood and this is covered by a brownish-grey bark, and it usually has a pyramidal crown. It is more branched in its lower part and its overlapping leaves support each other, giving a fan-like appearance. During the summer its leaves and wood express an aroma like that of cedar. It is a long-lived tree that under optimal environmental conditions can live from 100 to 500 years;
Olives
All species are dense wood trees or shrubs, with simple, opposite leaves and entire margins. The leaves are usually leathery (hard), especially in species with dry climates. The shape of the leaves is oval and tipped, is much more elongated and thinner in dry climates and wider in tropical ones. The flowers are small, with four petals, and appear grouped in cymes. The fruit varies in color but is always the same as olives, a drupe with a hard endocarp (the pit) that protects the seed.
Oaks
It is an imposing tree that can exceed 20 meters in height as long as the conditions are right, and although its growth is rather slow, it is one of those species that stands out for its beauty since they are young. With a straight and robust trunk and a greyish-brown bark, with shallow cracks in the older specimens, the leaves are somewhat leathery, 6 to 18cm long and elliptical or elongated. The flowers are hanging yellow catkins, and the fruit is a domed acorn with slightly uneven scales.
Pines
Pine is one of the most common conifers in the northern hemisphere. Normally, it grows as a tree and can exceed ten meters, although there are some species that remain as shrubs. It is one of the most primitive types of plants that exist, since it appeared during the Carboniferous period, about 300 million years ago, and is one of the few plants that are included in the division of gymnosperms, that is, they produce “naked” seeds, without protection. It is a tree that does not require much water, so it can withstand high temperatures and droughts. It is also capable of withstanding low temperatures as well, surviving at -20 °C.
Junipers
It is a shrub that can grow to over two meters in height if it grows in good conditions and its fruits are widely used in gastronomy. The name juniper is used to give names to other species that belong to the same genus. The feature that stands out the most in it and for what it is best known is its youthful-looking foliage. Although it is considered a shrub, some Juniperus have been recorded up to 10 meters high.
Spruces
Spruces are one of the most rustic conifers that exist since they grow in mountainous regions, and there are even some species that live in northern Scandinavia, in Siberia, where frosts of up to 15 degrees Celsius below zero are recorded. The leaves are flat or tetragonal, pointed, and green or bluish depending on the variety. Its growth rate is rather slow, especially during the first year, but its longevity is amazing: it can live more than 400 years.
Planes
They are deciduous trees belonging to the genus Platanus, which is composed of seven species of the more than 40 that have been described. They are popularly known as plantain or banana trees and are native to Asia, and from Canada to Guatemala in America. They are also found in Argentina and Chile. They can reach impressive heights of more than 30 meters, with a thick trunk up to 2m in diameter, with mottled bark. The leaves are simple, alternate, palmatifolium with 3-7 lobes.
Palms
The palm tree is a very useful plant, found in the tropics and other hot regions. There are about 2,800 species of palm, which grow as trees, shrubs or in the form of vines. We could say that they are the “older sisters” of herbs, since, in fact, palm trees are giant herbs. In the tropics, palm trees provide food, oils, wood and raw materials for shelter, clothing, fuel, construction materials, among other uses. Tropical coconut cultivation for the production of cooking oil is one of the most profitable. Its leaves, its stipe (trunk) and the way in which they develop is so elegant that no other plant like it can be found.
Cactus
Cacti (family Cactaceae) are plants that began their evolution around 40 to 50 million years ago. Unlike the rest of the vegetables, they do not have leaves (although there are exceptions), but they have thorns. The task of photosynthesis has fallen on the stem, which in most species is green. That same stem is the one that contains the precious water. Cacti are equally loved and hated plants. Thorns can do a lot of damage, but this is what people love so much.
Chrysanthemums
Is an ancient plant whose flowers have always been highly appreciated, it is originally from China, later expanding to Japan since in both countries it has great cultural value. It is an annual plant, which grows between 20 and 50 centimetres, its stems are semi-erect, smooth with some leaves along with it. The flower heads of the Chrysanthemum are large, reaching up to 6.5 centimetres, each terminal is a single flower that is supported by a widened base at the end of the stem provided with bracts.
Tulips
There are around 200 hybrids and more than 5 thousand registered sub-species, and this is a figure that is increasing since tulipomania (that is, the love of collecting tulips) is also gaining more and more followers. Something that is not surprising, since they are very decorative flowers suitable to have in pots or in the garden, combining several different ones or choosing to put only one type. Most tulips have simple flowers, one or two colours, with more or less thin petals.
Nymphaea
The water lily is an aquatic plant that is highly decorative: its wide, fragrant, sharply coloured flowers attract pollinating insects as well as the eyes of people who pass by. These plants are so extraordinary that throughout the history of mankind, they have symbolized many civilizations. They come from Asia and Africa, where they grow in pools and lakes with almost continuous stagnation of water.
Lillies
It is a series of herbaceous plants, often bulbous or, more rarely, rhizomatous, that usually produce large flowers of showy colours, composed of six petals, six stamens, and an ovary grouped in terminal inflorescences. The leaves are spiral or whorled, with an alternate arrangement, simple and with parallel veins. The fruits are capsules, or rarely berries. Inside they contain flat, disk-shaped, or globose seeds.
Hibiscuses
The hibiscus, who does not know them? Shrubs whose flowers can make you dream… they are spectacular! With large petals and very different colours, there are more and more cultivars. And it is that, they are very grateful plants that can bloom all year round in warm climates, or until autumn in cooler climates. They are very popular in gardens where we can find them bordering paths or planted in groups of two or three in different parts of the area. Hibiscus are generally slow to medium growing plants.
Hydrangeas
Normally, the most common way to find this plant is by forming groups with other hydrangeas. It can also be seen alone, but it is somewhat less frequent. Plants of this genus are native to Asia and America. The flower of the hydrangea is usually made to wait since it has a rather late flowering. When it blooms, they are usually panicle or cluster shaped, which is why it has that name. The flowers are usually white and begin to grow in spring or well into summer.
Roses
Roses are the most cultivated flowers in the world, they represent love and passion and are very beautiful with their variety of colours. Many of them are roses designed with great care, the product of successive hybridizations. Roses have been selected throughout history to give life to new varieties, which not only vary in appearance but also in qualities. Some are more resistant roses and others are very exotic specimens. We can classify roses into three large groups. On the one hand, there are the wild roses, that is, those that are natural and spontaneous. Then there are the so-called old roses, which are the varieties of roses before 1867, the year that coincides with the birth of the first tea rose. Finally, we have modern roses, which are those versions after the year 1867.
Iris
Those who are flower lovers know what plant this is and there is no one who overlooks the charms of this flower, this being one of the most delicate and beautiful species in nature. This flower, unlike most of the flowers that we can find in nature, has a great variety of species, with a little more than 200 variations, which are mostly red or bluish flowers. Each of these species has unique and special details that require specific care if you want to have a plant in good condition.
Lilacs
Its leaves are green but very pretty, and let’s not even talk about its flowers. When it is in flower, it is nice to see it for a long time every day. It is a deciduous tree endemic to the Balkans, in southeastern Europe, whose scientific name is Syringa vulgaris. It’s popularly known as lilo or common lilac, and reaches a height of 6-7 meters, with a single or multiple trunks. The bark is grey to brownish-grey, smooth when young, and cracked when old. The leaves are simple and measure 4-12cm long by 3-8cm wide.