An alpine garden (or alpinarium, alpinum) is a domestic or

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

, or more often a part of a larger garden, specializing in the collection and cultivation of

alpine plant Alpine plants are plants that grow in an alpine climate, which occurs at high elevation and above the tree line. There are many different plant species and taxon, taxa that grow as a plant community in these alpine tundra. These include perennial g ...

s growing naturally at high altitudes around the world, such as in the Caucasus, Pyrenees, Rocky Mountains, Alps, Himalayas and Andes. It is one of the most common types of

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small ...

. Although it is often associated with rocks, an alpine garden does not require rocks to thrive. It is the alpine plants that is the focus, not the rocks. Scientifically, alpine plants are characterized as plants that grow above the tree line in mountainous regions, where the environment makes it hard for plants to produce woody tissues. From the horticulture perspective, any plants with a suitable size and is able to withstand harsh conditions such as a rock garden, trough, or raised beds could be considered as alpine. They are often smaller in statue and more hardy. An alpine garden tries to imitate the conditions of the plants' place of origin. One example of this is using large stones and gravel beds, rather than the soil that naturally grows there. Though the plants can cope with low temperatures, they dislike standing in damp soil during the winter months. The soil used is typically poor (sandy) and extremely well-drained. One of the main obstacles in developing an alpine garden is the unsuitable conditions which exist in some areas, particularly mild or severe winters and heavy rainfall, such as those present in the United Kingdom and Ireland. This can be avoided by growing the plants in an

alpine house A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

(essentially an unheated

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

), which tries to reproduce the ideal conditions, or just covering them with a raised sheet of glass in winter. According to some Austrian sources, the first true alpine garden was created by

Anton Kerner von Marilaun Anton Kerner Ritter von Marilaun, or Anton Joseph Kerner, (12 November 1831 – 21 June 1898) was an Austrian botanist, physician, and professor at the University of Innsbruck and later at the University of Vienna. Von Marilaun emphasized the co ...

in 1875 on the Blaser Mountain, in Tyrol, Austria, at an altitude of .

Vegetation

Typical plants found in an alpine garden include: * ''

Androsace ''Androsace'', commonly known as rock jasmine, is a genus of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Primulaceae, second only to ''Primula'' in the number of species. It is predominantly Arctic–alpine, with many species in the Himalay ...

'' * ''

Arabis alpina ''Arabis alpina'', the Alpine rock-cress, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae, native to mountainous areas of Europe, North and East Africa, Central and Eastern Asia and parts of North America. In the British Isles, it is only known t ...

'' (rock cress) * ''

Campanula ''Campanula'' () is the type genus of the Campanulaceae family (biology), family of flowering plants. ''Campanula'' are commonly known as bellflowers and take both their common and scientific names from the bell-shaped flowers—''campanula'' i ...

'' - alpine species * ''

Dianthus ''Dianthus'' ( ) is a genus of about 340 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, native mainly to Europe and Asia, with a few species in north Africa and in southern Africa, and one species (''D. repens'') in arctic North Am ...

'' - alpine species * ''

Gentiana ''Gentiana'' () is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the gentian family (Gentianaceae), the tribe Gentianeae, and the monophyletic subtribe Gentianinae. With over 300 species, it is considered a large genus. Gentians are notable for their ...

'' * '' Geranium dalmaticum'' (cranesbill) * ''

Globularia ''Globularia'' is a genus of about 22 species of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Plantaginaceae, native plant, native to central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwest Africa and southwest Asia. They are dense low evergreen ...

'' * ''

Iberis sempervirens ''Iberis sempervirens'', the evergreen candytuft or perennial candytuft, is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae, native to southern Europe. The species is often used as an ornamental garden shrub because of its decorative flow ...

'' (candytuft) * ''

Leontopodium ''Leontopodium'' is a genus of plants in the family (biology), family Asteraceae. The genus is native to Europe and Asia. The fuzzy and somewhat stocky "petals" (technically, bracts) could be thought of as somewhat resembling lions' paws—h ...

'' * ''

Phlox subulata ''Phlox subulata'' the creeping phlox, moss phlox, moss pink or mountain phlox, is a species of flowering plant in the family Polemoniaceae, native to the eastern and central United States, and widely cultivated. The odor given off by the plants ...

'' * ''

Pulsatilla vulgaris ''Pulsatilla vulgaris'', the pasqueflower, is a species of flowering plant belonging to the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae), found locally on calcareous grassland in Europe, and widely cultivated in gardens. It was considered part of the genus ' ...

'' (pasque flower) * ''

Primula ''Primula'' () is a genus of herbaceous plant, herbaceous flowering plants in the family (biology), family Primulaceae. They include the primrose (''Primula vulgaris, P. vulgaris''), a familiar wildflower of banks and verges. Other common specie ...

'' - alpine species * ''

Ranunculus ''Ranunculus'' is a large genus of about 1750 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots. The genus is distributed worldwide, primarily in temperate an ...

'' (buttercup) * ''

Rhodanthemum hosmariense ''Rhodanthemum hosmariense'', the Moroccan daisy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native to the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. It is a bushy, prostrate subshrub growing to tall and broad, with deeply divided silvery leaves ...

'' * ''

Saxifraga ''Saxifraga'' is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 473 species of holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages or rockfoils. The Latin word ''saxifraga'' means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin ' ("rock" or " ...

'' - alpine species * '' Scutellaria orientalis'' (helmet flower) * ''

Sedum spathulifolium ''Sedum spathulifolium'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae known by the common names broadleaf stonecrop, yellow stonecrop, and spoon-leaved stonecrop. An evergreen perennial, it is native to western North America from Br ...

'' (stonecrop) * ''

Sisyrinchium ''Sisyrinchium'' is a large genus of annual to perennial flowering plants in the family Iridaceae. Native to the New World, the species are known as blue-eyed grasses. Although they are not true grasses (Poaceae), they are monocots. Several sp ...

'' * ''

Thymus The thymus (: thymuses or thymi) is a specialized primary lymphoid organ of the immune system. Within the thymus, T cells mature. T cells are critical to the adaptive immune system, where the body adapts to specific foreign invaders. The thymus ...

'' (thyme)

Botanical gardens with an alpine house or garden

;Austria * Botanical Garden of the University of Innsbruck ; ;Belgium * Plantentuin Universiteit Gent ; ;Canada ;
Jardin botanique de Montréal
;

;* ttps://botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/visit/garden-highlights/e-h-lohbrunner-alpine-garden/ University of British Columbia: E.H. Lohbrunner Alpine Garden;
Alpinegium
;China * Lijiang Alpine Botanic Garden ;France *

Jardin des Plantes The Jardin des Plantes (, ), also known as the Jardin des Plantes de Paris () when distinguished from other ''jardins des plantes'' in other cities, is the main botanical garden in France. Jardin des Plantes is the official name in the present da ...

Jardin botanique alpin du Lautaret The Lautaret Alpine Garden (Jardin botanique alpin du Lautaret) (2 hectares) is an alpine botanical garden located at 2100 metres altitude in the Col du Lautaret of the Dauphiné Alps, near Villar-d'Arêne, Hautes-Alpes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Az ...

* Jardin botanique alpin La Jaÿsinia ;Germany * Botanischer Erlebnisgarten Altenburg *

Botanical Garden in Berlin The Berlin Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum () is a botanical garden in the locality of the borough of , Berlin, Germany. Constructed between 1897 and 1910 under the guidance of architect Adolf Engler, it has an area of and over 20,000 di ...

Botanischer Garten Bielefeld The Botanischer Garten Bielefeld (4 hectares) is a municipal botanical garden located beside the southeast edge of the Teutoburger Wald at Am Kahlenberg 16, Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is open daily and free of charge. The g ...

* Botanischer Garten Düsseldorf * Botanischer Garten Gießen *

Botanischer Garten der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main The Botanischer Garten Frankfurt am Main (7 hectares) is a botanical garden and arboretum formerly maintained by the Goethe University and since 2012 administered by the City of Frankfurt. It is located at Siesmayerstraße 72, Frankfurt am Main ...

Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg The Botanischer Garten München-Nymphenburg is a botanical garden and arboretum in Munich, Germany. History Munich's first botanical garden, now called the " Old Botanical Garden", was established in 1809 based on designs by Friedric ...

Botanischer Garten Münster The Botanischer Garten Münster (4.6 hectares) is a botanical garden maintained by the University of Münster (Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster). Location It is located directly behind the Prince Bishop's Castle, within the castle ...

Botanischer Garten Marburg The Botanischer Garten Marburg (20 hectares), also known as the Neuer Botanischer Garten Marburg, is a botanical garden maintained by the University of Marburg, located on Karl-von-Frisch-Straße, Marburg, Hesse, Germany, and open daily. An adm ...

Botanischer Garten Potsdam The Botanical Garden in Potsdam ( or ''Botanischer Garten der Universität Potsdam''), is a botanical garden and arboretum maintained by the University of Potsdam. It has a total area of 8.5 hectares, of which 5 hectares are open to the public, ...

* Botanischer Garten der Ruhr-Universität Bochum ;Italy *

Orto botanico di Padova The Orto Botanico di Padova is a botanical garden in Padua, in the northeastern part of Italy. Founded in June 1545 by the Venetian Republic, it is the world's oldest academic botanical garden that is still in its original location. The garden � ...

; Slovenia * Alpine Botanical Garden Juliana ; The Netherlands * Botanische Tuin Fort Hoofddijk *

Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam ''Hortus Botanicus'' is a botanical garden in the Plantage district of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. It is one of the world's oldest botanical gardens. History Amsterdam City Council founded the ''Hortus Botanicus'' (initially named the '' ...

;United Kingdom *

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,10 ...

RHS Wisley RHS Garden Wisley is a garden run by the Royal Horticultural Society in Wisley, Surrey, south of London. It is one of five gardens run by the society, the others being Harlow Carr, Hyde Hall, Rosemoor, and Bridgewater (which opened on 18 May 2 ...

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...

;United States * Betty Ford Alpine Gardens *

Denver Botanic Gardens The Denver Botanic Gardens is a public botanical garden located in the Cheesman Park neighborhood of Denver, Colorado. The park contains a conservatory, a variety of theme gardens and a sunken amphitheater, which hosts various concerts in the ...

Vegetation

Botanical gardens with an alpine house or garden

See also

References

External links