The Trujillo Botanical Garden (''Jardín Botánico'') is a

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 ...

located in the city of

Trujillo, Peru Trujillo (; ; Mochica language, Mochica: ''Cɥimor'') is a city in coastal northwestern Peru and the capital of the Department of La Libertad. It is the third most populous city and center of the List of metropolitan areas of Peru, third most po ...

. It is located on America Sur Avenue, 1 mile (0.6 km) south of the main city square in La Merced neighborhood. The 6.5-acre (2.5 ha) garden contains 250 catalogued

plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with c ...

species, in addition to a number of unidentified

plants Plants are the eukaryotes that form the kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria to produce sugars f ...

among its collections. The

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

houses a number of

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

, as well as an

ethnobotanical Ethnobotany is an interdisciplinary field at the interface of natural and social sciences that studies the relationships between humans and plants. It focuses on traditional knowledge of how plants are used, managed, and perceived in human societi ...

collection (which includes

medicinal Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

ornamental Ornamental may refer to: *Ornamental grass, a type of grass grown as a decoration *Ornamental iron, mild steel that has been formed into decorative shapes, similar to wrought iron work *Ornamental plant, a plant that is grown for its ornamental qua ...

, and crop plants native to the Americas). A number of

animals Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, have myocytes and are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and grow from a ...

also reside in the grounds, such as

peacocks Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred to ...

turtles Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked turtle ...

, and

parrots Parrots (Psittaciformes), also known as psittacines (), are birds with a strong curved beak, upright stance, and clawed feet. They are classified in four families that contain roughly 410 species in 101 genus (biology), genera, found mostly in ...

History

Prior to 1993, the site where the

currently stands was

fallow land Fallow is a farming technique in which arable land is left without sowing for one or more vegetative cycles. The goal of fallowing is to allow the land to recover and store organic matter while retaining moisture and disrupting pest life cycles a ...

. During that year, neighborhood groups organized a clean-up campaign, and renamed the area as "Parque de la Cultura". It was then when the first

trees In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only p ...

were planted, such as

Casuarina ''Casuarina'', also known as she-oak, Australian pine and native pine, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Casuarinaceae, and is native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and e ...

, Flamboyant trees,

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are trees, often Mallee (habit), mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalyp ...

Acacias ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Australa ...

, and

Figs The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of tree or shrub in the flowering plant family Moraceae, native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and i ...

. The

acid soil Soil pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity (alkalinity) of a soil. Soil pH is a key characteristic that can be used to make informative analysis both qualitative and quantitatively regarding soil characteristics. pH is defined as the nega ...

on the grounds was another challenge, which the neighborhood groups tackled successfully. But as the trees took hold and grew, they provided refuge for

pickpockets Pickpocketing is a form of larceny that involves the stealing of money or other valuables from the person or a victim's pocket without them noticing the theft at the time. It may involve considerable dexterity and a knack for Misdirection (magic ...

and petty criminals. The lack of security and high crime incidence made the park infamous during the 1990s. As a result, the local government installed

security fencing Demarcation of a perimeter, when the protection of assets, personnel or buildings is required, is normally affected by the building of a perimeter fence system. The level of protection offered varies according to the threat level to the perimeter ...

and lighting, reducing the problem. Year after year, more trees were planted by both volunteers and the local

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

. in 2003, the local neighborhood groups successfully lobbied for a name change of the park to ''Jardín Botánico''. Currently it is one of the few verdant refuges in the city, popular with locals and visitors alike.{{cite web, url=http://upaoprensa.blogspot.com/2011/06/jardin-botanico-la-merced.html, title=Nuestra Merced: El gran pulmón verde de Trujillo, first=, last=Upaoperiodismo, date=21 June 2011, publisher=

References

Trujillo, Peru Tourist attractions in Trujillo, Peru Botanical gardens in South America