Munich’s Botanical Garden has a unique distinction, connected to the image above: it’s adjacent to the grounds of the Nymphenburg Palace and the famous state-owned Nymphenburg Porcelain Works, some of whose large-scale works are displayed in the garden.
The garden’s been there since 1912, when it was created to replace an older one at Karlsplatz in the city’s center. Its mission isn’t just to educate the public about plants and nature; its charter also calls it a ‘beautiful and restful’ environment, and it certainly is.
It has a wide variety of plants—nearly 20,000 species and subspecies. Walking through the garden on a summer day offers a constant change of environments in the different sections of the garden and the greenhouses, and even a chance to be ‘peas in a pod.’ The sign reminds us “It’s the mix that counts.”
As we wandered the garden, we were especially struck by the strong and in some cases unusual colors on display.
A common expression, seen in life: “As busy as a bee!” The garden also provides a home for other insects as well, helping keep the balance of nature.
Some more beauties as we wandered toward the water feature near the garden’s center…
In the water-lily pond we were struck by this hybrid blossom called “Meteor.” The lilies share the pond with, among others, several large but shy bullfrogs, whose calls we could hear even though they made no appearance.
Some more color, and if you look closely, some more bees…
The purple petunias are called ‘Mirage Blue Star,’ so maybe the clearly purple color is an illusion?
Vegetables contribute to the color as well
In the ‘system garden,’ plants are grouped by their Linnaean names and families, with signs as a guide.
The large greenhouses were next on our list. They offer a variety of ‘hothouse’ environments, from desert dry to seriously moist, even damp.
Even without flowers, a colorful assortment of leaves…
And the berries and blooms…
Indoors we found another lily pond, with varieties needing more warmth. And again, a spectacular blossom, this one called ‘Pacific Blue,’ though no one will convince me it isn’t purple.
All in all, a very pleasant garden for a visit, and a nice break in a week that may have had too many museums in it…
