Beijing Botanical Garden

The Beijing Botanical Garden was founded in 1956 with financial support from the central government.

The Beijing Botanical Garden is located at the foot of the far Western Hill in the Haidian District. It is northwest of downtown Beijing and covers an area of 400 hectares It is known as the largest botanical garden in North China. The garden displays a variety of rare trees and stunning flowers. As well, it also houses a number of historical attractions. The plant conservatory, which in some ways resembles a crystal palace, lies at the center of the garden. The greenhouse is the largest one in Asia, and exhibits thousands of tropical and subtropical plants. There are areas designated for various trees and flowering plants. Eleven themed gardens form a spectacular sight within the garden, which features the rose, peony, lilac, bamboo, magnolia, bonsai, prunus mume flower, perennial flowers, herbaceous peony, ornamental peach and numerous other Chinese flowers.

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Conservatory: The main Conservatory, one of the biggest projects in Beijing, was setup in 1999 with an area of 6,500 square meters for display. There are a total of 3,000 taxa plants grown in crystal sections, including rainforest house, cacti & succulent house, orchid &carnivorous house, alpine house, foliage plant house and flower show house. The features of the rainforest are displayed in the tropical rainforest house, such as the plank buttress roots, dripping-tip leaves, cauline flowers, and etc. The diversity of epiphytes and carnivorous plants arrests children's and even parents' eyes in the orchid &carnivorous house. More than 1,000 species of cacti and succulents are collected in their house. It makes you feel like walking on an Arizona or Africa pathway. So, the conservatory is a very important site for the education of botany and conservation of plant resources.

Penjing garden: Penjing (Bonsai) is an ancient tradition art in China. Its long history can be traced back to 1,900 years ago. The Penjing garden is an attractive exhibition in the Beijing Botanical Garden. Most Penjing works come from different parts of China with distinct styles.

There are also outdoor miniature trees over 100 years old in the garden. A ginkgo tree is now more than 1,300 years old. The garden provides visitors with an elegant place to study the Penjing art, appreciate and exchange the works. Historic Site Cao Xueqin Memorial Hall, the Tomb of Liang Qichao, the Temple of the Sleeping Buddha and the December 9th Pavilion can also be seen there. The Cao Xueqin Memorial Hall depicts a vivid scene of mountainous villages of China. The Tomb of Liang Qichao, a famous reformist in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), lies beyond the wooded area of the garden. The Temple of the Sleeping Buddha was constructed early in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) when a huge copper Sakyamuni statue, together with twelve smaller Buddha figurines was regarded as sacred. The December 9th Pavilion is built in memory of the December 9th Movement, which took place in 1935 and called for an end to the civil war and resistance towards the Japanese aggressors.