Greenhouses

The Three Climate Greenhouse is a genuine eye-catcher. It was designed in 1993 by Zwarts & Jansma Architects as a huge, ultramodern construction. In this greenhouse you can find three different zones with different climates, representing the subtropics, the desert, and the tropics. Each zone has its own temperature, humidity, and air circulation. Different routes take you through dry scrubland, desert, or jungle.

The Hortus is working on a large-scale project in which this greenhouse will be completely renovated in a sustainable manner, and in which the layout will be changed to tell the story of biodiversity and climate. Read more about the project here.

The Palm Greenhouse is a protected monument and a prominent part of the Hortus heritage. It was designed in 1911 by the architect Johan Melchior van der Mey (1878-1949) on commission by Professor Hugo de Vries.

In winter, the greenhouse houses a collection of palms, palm ferns (Cycadees) and container plants. Most container plants are moved outside in the summer, but some, such as the famous 350-year-old Encephalartos altensteinii, also remain inside the greenhouse over the summer. This of course also applies to the plants that are growing in the few plant beds. The cinnamon tree (Cinnamomum burmannii) and the two ficuses (F. macrophylla and F. lyrata) are said to have been planted by Hugo de Vries himself for educational purposes. The Philodendron bipinnatifidum with its long aerial roots is an image-defining plant in the greenhouse.

Hundreds of tropical butterflies frolic around the small Butterfly Greenhouse. They lay their eggs on the leafs of the many plants. Every day, Hortus employees collect the eggs and young larvae. These are then grown into pupae in a separate greenhouse. When they are about to emerge, the pupae are taken back to the Butterfly Greenhouse, where they are hung in a special pupal cabinet. As soon as the butterflies emerge, they can fly freely in the greenhouse.

The tropical plants that grow in this greenhouse are mostly economic crop plants. They are eaten or used for fibre and medicine. The large coffee plant in this greenhouse is a good example of such a plant. You will also find cacao trees, tea, rice, pepper plants, and sugarcane. These plants play an important role in the educational programmes of de Hortus.

The Glassroom is a flexible space for all educational activities of de Hortus. This space is used for; school visits, drawing courses, lectures or microscopic research for students.

When not in use for educational activities, the Glassroom is open to our regular visitor. The permanent presentation in this greenhouse gives you an insight into the botanical garden’s collection; Learn why and how a botanical garden collects, discover the variety of plants, stimulate your senses and recognise the plants you use in your day-to-day life!