De Plantentuin
“In the middle of the Belgium city of Antwerp all of a sudden a small, green oasis pops up. Here you can find some peace and quiet and stroll through the small garden, or have a look at the cacti in the greenhouse. The perfect place to enjoy the sun or to give your feet a break from all the shopping.”
It might be the smallest botanical garden I’ve ever visited, but it’s a botanical garden nonetheless. Located around the corner of the big shopping street in Antwerp, it’s a nice place to rest, have a picknick or just have a look in the greenhouses. Despite its small size, the botanical garden still houses around 2000 plants, like an extraordinary big wild orange tree or a Gingko Biloba.
Dating back from 1825 the botanical garden was used for medical purposes for the adjacent hospital. Legend has it the little pond was used to keep bloodsuckers which they used at the hospital. True or not, nowadays the botanical garden is nothing more than a small city park (without bloodsuckers, I can assure you). Small but good!
The greenhouse is only open at Saturdays from 13.30 till 15.45 and on Sundays at 10:00 till 13.00
