The Tsytsin Main Moscow Botanical Garden of Academy of Sciences, Russia.

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In 2015 the Tsytsin Main Moscow Botanical Garden of Academy of Sciences celebrated its 70th birthday.
The Russian Academy of Sciences, N.V. Tsitsin Main Botanical Garden (RAS MBG) – the largest botanical garden in Europe.
This 360-hectare park, which spans the valleys of three small rivers, was officially founded in 1945, part of the Department of Biological Sciences, Russian Academy of Sciences.
The enormous collection effort brought plants and seeds from all across the Soviet Union and further afield, and the garden is now a botanist’s treasure trove, with a rose garden containing 2,500 varieties including an ancient green Bengali rose.
There is also an arboretum whose highlight is a glorious oak grove (home to squirrels who are tame to the point of impudence), a delightful Japanese rock garden, and a vast glass-covered orangery with a wide collection from the tropics and sub-tropics including numerous rare orchids and carnivorous plants.
But the Botanical Gardens are not just for experts.
Once inside, it’s hard to believe that you’re close to the centre of Europe’s biggest city, and it’s a wonderful place to come to get away from the noise and stress of urban living.
The gardens change their character and their attractions according to the season, and the enormous greenhouses mean that even in the depths of winter there’s plenty to see – although the cost of heating them doesn’t bear thinking about.

Dr Vera Sergeeva

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