Ąžuolynas (literally, "Oak Grove") is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to res ...

in Lithuania's second largest city,

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Tra ...

, in the Žaliakalnis elderate. The park covers about 84

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...

s and is the largest urban stand of mature oaks in Europe.

Vydūnas Alley Wilhelm Storost, artistic name Vilius Storostas-Vydūnas (22 March 1868 – 20 February 1953), mostly known as Vydūnas, was a Prussian-Lithuanian teacher, poet, humanist, philosopher and Lithuanian writer, a leader of the Prussian Lithuani ...

serves as the park's northern border. It is a popular recreational destination for the inhabitants of Kaunas. Most of its trees are oaks ranging in age from 100 to 320 years old, but it also holds linden,

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

, and

maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since ht ...

trees. The current park is what remains of a much larger oak forest that grew around the city, and was connected to the forests in Karmėlava, Rumšiškės and

Kaišiadorys Kaišiadorys () is a city in central Lithuania. It is situated between Vilnius and Kaunas. Kaišiadorys is one of six Lithuanian diocese centres. It is home to the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Christ built in 1932. The Lithuanian Veterinar ...

. Those forests were cut down during the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, and the timber was used in city buildings, bridges, castles, and ships. The section of the forest between

and Garliava was cut down in the 19th century. A valley in the park is named for the poet

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish ...

, who rested there during his days as a teacher in Kaunas schools. In 1938

Tadas Ivanauskas Tadas Ivanauskas (December 16, 1882 – June 1, 1970) was a Lithuanian zoologist and biologist, and one of the founders of Vytautas Magnus University. Biography He was born in Lebiodka Manor (today in Belarus) as a third child of Leonard Iwanow ...

established the Kaunas Zoo in the northern corner of the park. A year later Kaunas Sports Hall, which hosted Eurobasket 1939, was established near Ąžuolynas. The park's infrastructure was reconstructed in 1955; in 1966 the Valley of Songs ( lt, Dainų slėnis) was installed. The park is used extensively for sports activities of students of the

Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education Lithuanian Sports University or LSU is a university in Kaunas, Lithuania, specializing in sports, physical activities, and physiology. It is headquartered in Žaliakalnis neighbourhood, in close proximity to the Kaunas Sports Hall and the S. Dar ...

located nearby. A section of Ąžuolynas, Vytautas Park, contains a number of recreational attractions for children.

References

Rekreacijos formos ir jų poveikis aplinkai Kauno miesto Centriniame ąžuolyno parke
''Žaliasis pasaulis'', 2007. Parks in Kaunas {{KaunasCounty-geo-stub