Jevremovac
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The Jevremovac Botanical Garden ( sr-cyr, Ботаничка башта Јевремовац, Botanička bašta Jevremovac) is the botanical garden of the
University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...
and also a surrounding urban neighborhood of
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
,
Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
. The garden is located in the municipality of Stari Grad and is administered by the University of Belgrade's School of Biology. It was declared a
natural monument A natural monument is a natural or cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities, or cultural significance. They can be natural geological and geographical features such as w ...
in 1995 and a
cultural monument A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage registe ...
in 2007.


Location

Jevremovac is located in the westernmost part of the Palilula neighborhood, but after the changes of the municipal administrative borders in 1952, 1955 and 1957, it didn't become part of the municipality of Palilula but of Stari Grad. It is bounded by the ''Boulevard of Despot Stefan'' and the streets of ''Takovska'', ''Dalmatinska'', ''Palmotićeva'' and ''Vojvode Dobrnjca''.


Botanical garden


History

The botanical garden was founded in 1874 by the decree of the Ministry of Education of the Kingdom of Serbia, at the suggestion of the
botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...
Josif Pančić Josif Pančić ( sr-cyr, Јосиф Панчић; April 17, 1814 – February 25, 1888) was a Serbian botanist, a doctor of medicine, a lecturer at the Great School (the future University of Belgrade), and the first president of the Serbian Roya ...
, who also became its first manager. Original lot assigned to Pančić was on the bank of the
Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
, in the neighborhood of
Dorćol Dorćol ( sr-Cyrl, Дорћол; ) is an affluent urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Stari Grad. Located along the right bank of the Danube, Dorćol is the oldest surviving neighbo ...
, at the end of the Dunavska Street. Lots were abandoned by the ethnic Turks who left Belgrade after Turkish military garrison left the city, too, in 1867. City donated 1,400
ducat The ducat ( ) coin was used as a trade coin in Europe from the later Middle Ages to the 19th century. Its most familiar version, the gold ducat or sequin containing around of 98.6% fine gold, originated in Venice in 1284 and gained wide inter ...
s and Pančić arranged it, bit by bit. Terrain was adapted, and an embankment on the Danube was constructed. Pančić was pleased that the lot was in the vicinity of the downtown and the
Kalemegdan Park The Kalemegdan Park (), or simply Kalemegdan ( sr-Cyrl, Калемегдан) is the largest park and the most important historical monument in Belgrade. It is located on a cliff, at the junction of the River Sava and the Danube. Kalemegdan Pa ...
, so that Belgraders can visit the garden with ease. The lot was parceled into several separate garden areas, a house for the gardener was built and the garden was officially opened in 1880. However, proximity of the garden to the Danube didn’t bode well for the development of the garden due to the flooding, despite the embankment. Pančić applied for another patch of land but died in 1888. One month after his death, in October 1888, major flooding destroyed almost everything Pančić planted. A year later, in 1889, even bigger flood inundated the remnants of the garden under a water one meter deep and destroyed everything that survived from the previous flood. Only some specimen, transferred to the garden of the Red Cross, survived. The garden became unusable. In Pančić’s honor, in 1889, king Milan Obrenović donated the estate (former orchard and vineyard, inherited from his grandfather
Jevrem Obrenović Prince Jevrem Teodorović Obrenović (18 March 1790 – 20 September 1856) was a Serbian politician and revolutionary. He was the younger brother of Miloš Obrenović I of Serbia, Prince Miloš Obrenović I of Serbia, the founder of the Obren ...
) to the Great School in Belgrade for the purpose of the construction of new botanical garden, provided that it be named "Jevremovac" (Serbian for "Jevrem's garden"), after his grandfather. The lot was originally owned by the brothers Jovan German (1782-1854) and Mihailo Todorović German (d.1845). Even then, it was arranged as the large garden. Jovan was Jevrem's secretary and married his daughter Simka. As Jevrem survived Jovan, Simka and their three sons, who all died in childhood, he inherited the lot. At the time, the estate was on the outskirts of Belgrade, but soon city spread further from it, leaving the garden as an urban oasis. It exists to this day at the same location and under the same name and gave its name to the small surrounding neighborhood. Apart from its founder, Josif Pančić, very important for the development and growth of Jevremovac was its longtime manager (1906–1934),
Nedeljko Košanin Nedeljko Koshanin ( Čečina / Vionica, near Ivanjica, Principality of Serbia, 13 October 1874 - Graz, Austria, 22 March 1934) was a scientist biologist, university professor and academic at the Serbian Royal Academy, now the Serbian Academy of Sci ...
under whose supervision the botanical garden experienced its golden age. In 1936, relocation of the garden was suggested. The proposed new location was
Topčider Topčider ( sr-cyr, Топчидер; ) is a forest park and an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is divided between the municipalities of Čukarica, Rakovica and Savski Venac. Being close to downtown, it is one of the m ...
park, on the outskirts of the city at the time. The reasons included description of Jevremovac as the "dead capital regarding city esthetics". Ultimately, the garden wasn't moved. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the new
Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
authorities suppressed public usage of the word Jevremovac, so it was simply referred to as the "botanical garden" until the 1990s, when Jevremovac came into common usage again. Additionally, the arboretum was seriously neglected for decades, with the number of plants being reduced from 4,000 to 2,500, and has only recently began its partial renovation and beautification. It now hosts 60,000 visitors a year, and is the second most visited natural monument in Serbia, after the mountain and
national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...
Kopaonik Kopaonik ( sr-Cyrl, Копаоник; ) is a mountain range located in Kosovo and Central Serbia. The highest point of this mountain range is the Pančić's Peak with an altitude of . The central part of the Kopaonik plateau was declared a nation ...
. On 27 September 2022, a bust of Jevrem Obrenović was dedicated in the garden. It was placed under the old
pedunculate oak ''Quercus robur'', the pedunculate oak, is a species of flowering plant in the beech and oak family, Fagaceae. It is a large tree, native to most of Europe and western Asia, and is widely cultivated in other temperate regions. It grows on soi ...
tree, believed to existing before the land was donated for the garden.


Arboretum

The arboretum spreads over the area of of open space and hosts 2,500 different plant species. That includes over 250 species of trees and bushes including local, European and exotic plants. The total plant population now includes about 500 trees, bushes and herbaceous plants. Curiosity is a 150 years old oak
Quercus trojana ''Quercus trojana'', the Macedonian oak, is a species of plant in the oak and beech family (Fagaceae). It is native to southeast Europe and southwest Asia, and is placed in the turkey oak section ( ''Quercus'' sect. ''Cerris''). Description '' ...
, believed to be a remnant of the vast oak woods common in this area. The oak itself is declared a natural monument. Actually, there are trees which are natural offspring of the trees which made forest in the original Obrenović garden, which was cleared when the garden was formed. They include Turkey oak, ash,
beech Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...
and
pedunculate oak ''Quercus robur'', the pedunculate oak, is a species of flowering plant in the beech and oak family, Fagaceae. It is a large tree, native to most of Europe and western Asia, and is widely cultivated in other temperate regions. It grows on soi ...
. Some are originating from the 1960s. Among numerous other, later planted species, there are
giant sequoia ''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (also known as the giant sequoia, giant redwood, Sierra redwood or Wellingtonia) is a species of coniferous tree, classified in the family Cupressaceae in the subfamily Sequoioideae. Giant sequoia specimens are the la ...
,
ginkgo biloba ''Ginkgo biloba'', commonly known as ginkgo or gingko ( ), also known as the maidenhair tree, is a species of gymnosperm tree native to East Asia. It is the last living species in the order Ginkgoales, which first appeared over 290 million year ...
, Mexican palm, ephedra, etc. Besides the open space, the arboretum also includes a
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 ...
and the Institute of Botany's premises (administrative building, herbarium, library, lecture hall and laboratories). In front of the administrative building, a bust of the former manager Nedeljko Košanin was erected in 2006, celebrating 100 years of his appointment. As the majority of garden is in the open, the birds are nesting in the canopies. Most abundant are the crows and nightingales. Parts of the arboretum are European garden and a
Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desig ...
, which was opened on 18 May 2004. The Japanese garden is created by Vera and Mihailo Grbić, landscape architects, and covers an area of . The garden includes artificial water flow over the cascades and the central pond with
water lilies ''Water Lilies'' ( ) is a series of approximately 250 oil paintings by French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840–1926). The paintings depict his flower garden at his home in Giverny, and were the main focus of his artistic production during ...
. The pond is filled from the natural spring, located almost below the ground. European garden was opened in 2006. In cooperation with the
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...
, the Pollinators' Oasis was opened on 31 October 2023. Apart from info boards about the process of pollination, the section was planted with plants which flower all year round, to provide the pollen. A specially designed "bee hotel" was also installed, where the process of eggs laying, honeycomb forming and honey making will be transparent to the visitors. The arboretum is open to visitors from May 1 to November 1 (09.00 a.m. – 07.00 p.m.).


Greenhouse

The greenhouse, built in 1892, covers an area of . The parts of the greenhouse were transported from Germany, and it took 6 month to reassemble the object. At the time of its construction, it was one of the biggest greenhouses in this part of Europe. Over 1,000 species of tropical and sub-tropical plants are being nursed, including
Canary Island Date Palm ''Phoenix canariensis'', the Canary Island date palm, is a species of flowering plant in the palm family Arecaceae, native to the Canary Islands off the coast of Northwestern Africa. It is a relative of ''Phoenix dactylifera'', the true date palm ...
, European Fan Palm, and Peruvian cactus ''(Cereus peruvianus)''. The greenhouse is protected by the law for its architectural values. It consists of two wings, which are connected via the central dome. The parts for the greenhouse were made in
Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
, then transported to Belgrade and assembled. It was built in the Victorian-
secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...
style. Garden's manager Nedeljko Košanin ordered another greenhouse built in the same style in 1922. He planned to populate the existing one with the local species, and the new one with the foreign plants. It is not known why the plan wasn't implemented. It was reconstructed in 1970. After partially collapsing in June 2005, it was thoroughly reconstructed, that is, completely deconstructed and then built again, from 2012 to 3 October 2014. Some of the exhibits in the greenhouse are wild banana tree, coffee tree and numerous orchids. There is a collection of 400
cacti A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...
species.


Herbarium

The herbarium, founded in 1860 and named after Josif Pančić, accommodates rich collections of plants originating from the
Balkan peninsula The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
and the rest of Europe containing around 120,000 herbarium sheets and over 300,000 dried specimens. It includes 16,000 sheets originally gathered by Pančić himself and specimens of some species which are extinct today.


Library

The library is one of the oldest and the largest in this part of the world. It was founded in 1853 at the
Belgrade Lyceum The Lyceum of the Principality of Serbia was the first higher education school in Serbia in which education was taught in Serbian. History The Lyceum of the Principality of Serbia () was founded in 1838 on the initiative of Prince Miloš Obre ...
, where Pančić was a professor at the time. Apart from 200 scientific and professional magazines it also accommodates over 6,000 books, including
Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...
’s
Natural History Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
, printed in 1562.


Underground

During one of the reconstructions of the administrative building, two underground rooms with oval-shaped ceilings were accidentally discovered when a wall collapsed. They are assumed to be part of Belgrade’s lagums, vast web of underground corridors which spread beneath the surface of the city. As the temperature, even at the highest, never goes over 20 Celsius, it was used as a huge refrigerator where food and wine were cooled and preserved for the royal court, which is why they are called "King’s ice-cellars". They cover and have a draining well at the center which drained the water from melted ice. Ice itself was brought during the cold winters when the Danube would freeze. Food was kept in the layers of ice and straw. Due to the high humidity and moisture, electricity can’t be introduced, so they are not opened for public. Another lagum is close to the greenhouse. During both World Wars, it was used as a shelter, but today is also inaccessible because it is flooded by the underground water. During the creation of the Japanese garden, a flow of underground water was discovered near lagum at the depth of 92 meters. Water is of an excellent quality and is used for watering plants in the garden and for filling artificial ponds.


Pančić gallery

In 1994 construction of an edifice, which covers , began by the Ministry of Culture. The legal permits weren't obtained, so only the concrete skeleton was built by 1995 when the construction was halted. By this time, already DM1 million was spent on the project. The structure was covered with the temporary wooden roof and left to the elements. 2019-2020 surveys showed that, apart from the rotten wooden cover, the structure was in excellent shape. In May 2020 it was announced that the building will be permitted, finished and adapted into the gallery of Josif Pančić. Exhibits will include his personal belongings, works, books, herbarium from the 1850s and digitization of his complete legacy. There are also plans for several small, science-promoting laboratories within the building, zoological and botanical collections,
seed bank A seed bank (also seed banks, seeds bank or seed vault) stores seeds to preserve genetic diversity; hence it is a type of gene bank. There are many reasons to store seeds. One is to preserve the genes that plant breeders need to increase yield, ...
of Serbian autochthonous plant species and
auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoriums can be found in entertainment venues, community halls, and t ...
for 190 people. When the project is greenlighted, it should be finished in only 2 months. The structure was officially permitted in December 2020, and its completion was announced for 2021.


In popular culture

Jevremovac is also a place where exhibitions, concerts, theatre shows and fashion shows are held. Films which have used the garden as a setting include '' We Are Not Angels'' (1992), ''Obituary for Escobar'' (2008) and ''
Montevideo, God Bless You! ''Montevideo, God Bless You!'' (; internationally titled ''Montevideo, Taste of a Dream'') is a 2010 Serbian sports comedy film directed by Dragan Bjelogrlić about the events leading to the participation of the Yugoslavia national football team at ...
'' (2010), while their music videos shot here
Leo Martin Leo Martin ( sr-cyr, Лео Мартин, born on 6 March 1942) is a Serbian and former Yugoslav pop singer. He started his career in the early 1960s in jazz bands as an instrumentalist and vocalist. In 1964, he moved with his band to West Germa ...
and Legende.


Neighborhood

The neighborhood is wider than the garden itself. It is bounded by the streets of ''Bulevar despota Stefana'' on the north (dividing it from the neighborhoods of Stari Grad and, further,
Viline Vode Viline Vode (Serbian Cyrillic: Вилине воде) is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Palilula. Location Viline Vode is located on the right bank of the Danube, stretch ...
), ''Cvijićeva'' on the west ( Profesorska Kolonija), ''Takovska'' on the southeast and south (Stara Palilula, Tašmajdan), ''Svetogorska'' on the southwest ( Dva Bela Goluba) and ''Palmotićeva'' (
Kopitareva Gradina Kopitareva Gradina ( sr-cyr, Копитарева градина) is a square and an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Stari Grad. Location Kopitareva Gradina is located in the ...
). The
First Town Hospital The First Town Hospital (, ) was built in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia in 1868. The construction was initiated by the head of state, ruling prince Mihailo Obrenović as the first building in Belgrade built purposely to serve as a hospital. Wit ...
, built in 1868, the first building purposely to serve as a hospital in Belgrade, is located in the neighborhood. Other public buildings include elementary school "Vuk Karadžić" and Belgrade Institute for Urbanism. At the northwest corner, there is a small square, where streets of Bulevar Despota Stefana, Drinčićeva, Gundilićev Venac and Carigradska meet. On 24 March 2021 rearrangement of the square's semi-circular pedestrian island began in order to erect the monument to the despot
Stefan Lazarević Stefan Lazarević ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Лазаревић, 1377 – 19 July 1427), also known as Stefan the Tall (), was a Serbian ruler as prince (1389–1402) and Despot (court title), despot (1402–1427). He was also a diplomat, legislat ...
. The leveling with the neighboring streets is done with the small, cascade walls, while the area around the monument is made of white marble square slabs and stone curbs. The sidewalk is combined from various-sized grey granite. There are two green strips, one of grass, another of perennials. Six
linden tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperateness, temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Great Bri ...
s are planted and the benches are placed. The monument is sculptured by Svetomir Arsić-Basara. The pedestal is only high, while the bronze sculpture itself has . The monument was dedicated on 19 April 2021.


Major features


First Town Hospital


House of Filip Filipović

The house at 37 Takovska Street, the House of Filip Filipović, was declared a cultural monument in 1984. It was a semi-detached ground floor house ("twin house"), quite common in the suburbia of Belgrade, including Palilula, at the time. It was built in c. 1900. After 1912, a top Communist official and elected mayor of Belgrade in 1920 Filip Filipović lived in the house. It was declared a cultural monument only because of the historic value, not architectural one. By 2018 the house was completely neglected and became derelict. The Institute for the protection of the monuments allowed it to be demolished and for a 6-storey hotel to be built instead. The house was demolished in the autumn of 2018. However, the investor didn't follow the construction and safety laws. They usurped the pedestrian sidewalk and placed a
tower crane A crane is a machine used to move materials both vertically and horizontally, utilizing a system of a boom, hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves for lifting and relocating heavy objects within the swing of its boom. The device uses on ...
on it, right above the underground waterworks grid. Additionally, they encased in concrete the waterworks and other communal infrastructure, walling it in into the
load-bearing wall A load-bearing wall or bearing wall is a wall that is an active structural element of a building, which holds the weight of the elements above it, by conducting its weight to a Foundation (engineering), foundation structure below it. Structural ...
of the future building's foundation. After two bursts of the water pipes in December 2018, the second time right below the crane, water undermined the base of the crane which tilted. This became a major city news as the streets were closed, police blocked the area, neighborhood was cut from the water supplies and residents of the surrounding buildings were resettled. It took almost two days for the communal services to dismantle the leaning crane. The pipes continued to burst in the next period.


See also

* Botanical Garden Kragujevac


References


External links


Botanička bašta

Images from "Jevremovac"

Japanese garden in "Jevremovac" on LENNE site
{{Authority control Arboreta in Serbia Botanical gardens in Serbia Neighborhoods of Belgrade Parks in Belgrade University of Belgrade Japanese gardens Stari Grad, Belgrade