Vilnius University Botanical Garden
Four locations, more than 245 years of activity, and a significant contribution to the study of regional flora
Founded in 1781, the Vilnius University Botanical Garden (VU Botanical Garden) is one of the oldest botanical gardens in Eastern Europe. Over its history, it has changed location four times and experienced periods of both flourishing development and stagnation, yet it has remained an important centre for science, university studies, and public education. This is where systematic, scientifically grounded research into the region's flora began. The history of the Botanical Garden is closely linked to the development of Vilnius University, political upheavals in the region, and the evolving relationship between society and nature—from the Enlightenment to modern biodiversity conservation.
Beginnings: Botanical Science and the Study of Regional Flora (1781–1799)
The first director of the Vilnius University Botanical Garden, Jean Emmanuel Gilibert, was not only its founder but also a pioneer of local flora research. Even before arriving in Vilnius, he had studied the vegetation of the Grodno region, and from 1781 he continued this work systematically in Vilnius. Here, he prepared and published the first works devoted to the flora of Lithuania, including Flora Lithuanica inchoata, regarded as the foundation of botanical science in the region.
The small botanical garden established in the courtyard at Pilies Street 22 became not only a site for cultivating plants but also a centre for scientific observation and for engaging students in floristic research. During this period, empirical material on the diversity of Lithuanian plants began to be accumulated, later serving as a starting point for more in-depth floristic studies.
Sereikiškės: The Flourishing of Science, Collections, and Systematics (1799–1842)
After relocating to Sereikiškės, the Botanical Garden gained the conditions necessary for rapid expansion and became one of the most important botanical centres in the region. Plant collections were developed in accordance with the most advanced principles of systematics of the time, initially following Carl Linnaeus and later Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu. This marked a transition from a primarily teaching collection to a scientifically structured approach to plant knowledge.
Under the leadership of Stanisław Bonifacy Jundziłł and his successors, the Garden became part of international exchange networks: seed exchange catalogues were published and links were established with other European botanical gardens. During this period, the Botanical Garden not only introduced plants but also conducted an inventory of local flora, which later enabled a better understanding of threats to plant diversity.
Destruction and Revival: Vingis (1919–1974)
The Botanical Garden in Vilnius was closed in the mid-19th century due to political circumstances. Following the 1831 uprising, the authorities of the Russian Empire implemented repressive measures: Vilnius University was closed in 1832, and the Botanical Garden in Sereikiškės was expropriated for military purposes and incorporated into the construction of the Vilnius Fortress (citadel). Some garden buildings were reconstructed, and most plant collections were destroyed.
After an almost 80-year interruption, the Botanical Garden was reestablished in 1919 in Vingis, during the period of the University of Stephen Bathory. On the initiative of the university’s natural scientists, a new botanical garden was created, becoming an important centre for the study of local plant communities, ecological observations, and academic training. Research focused on plant adaptation to urban conditions and the Neris River valley, as well as on sand, aquatic, and wetland habitats, alongside the collection and documentation of local flora.
During the interwar period, the Botanical Garden of the University of Stephen Bathory in Vingis developed into a significant centre for scientific research, teaching, and international seed exchange. The seed exchange catalogue published from 1923 onwards was highly valued internationally for its reliability and meticulous preparation. This was largely due to the work of K. Proszynski, the long-serving garden inspector (1919–1936), who oversaw every stage—from plant cultivation and seed collection to their preparation for exchange.
K. Proszynski also left an exceptional scientific and artistic legacy. Alongside his daily work at the Botanical Garden, he produced around 600 educational botanical drawings for the Department of Plant Systematics and approximately 4,000 mushroom illustrations for his personal fungal album. More than 280 plant drawings are preserved in the Vilnius University Herbarium, while the majority of the mushroom illustrations are held in the Manuscripts Department of the Wroblewski Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences (Fond F134).
At the end of the Second World War, during the Battle of Vilnius in 1944, the Botanical Garden in Vingis was severely damaged. Nevertheless, even under difficult wartime and post-war conditions, the Garden’s activities were not completely interrupted. Plant care and restoration were gradually resumed, and the preserved collections, herbarium material, and drawings became an important foundation for the continuation of floristic research.
Kairėnai Estate: Biodiversity Conservation and the Contemporary Mission (since 1974)
On 14 May 1974, by decree of the Council of Ministers of the Lithuanian SSR, a 148-hectare site in Kairėnai, then on the outskirts of Vilnius, was allocated to the Vilnius University Botanical Garden. This decision marked a major turning point in the Garden’s history, enabling a transition from spatially limited sites to long‑term, systematic development. Along with the land, the Garden took over the neglected Kairėnai manor estate, including historic buildings, a park, and a system of ponds.
The establishment of the Botanical Garden in the new territory was planned as a long‑term project addressing the needs of science, collections, and society. For several years, intensive discussions took place at Vilnius University regarding the Garden’s vision, structure, and functions. Ultimately, a comprehensive development plan was prepared by a team of specialists from the former Institute for Monument Conservation, including architects, landscape historians, and dendrologists.
In 1982, the master plan and engineering infrastructure project (approximately 40 volumes) was completed, dividing the territory into:
The new Botanical Garden was designed according to a geographical‑ecological principle, while the historic Kairėnai manor estate and park were preserved and enriched with thematic plant collections. A circular road connected the visitor areas. The initial development works were particularly challenging, involving the restoration of the pond system, installation of water supply and irrigation networks, construction of roads, and modernisation of engineering infrastructure. These works were financed by various ministries and later through state investment programmes.
Over more than five decades:
The Significance of the Vilnius University Botanical Garden
Today, the Vilnius University Botanical Garden in Kairėnai is an important cultural heritage site, where nature, architecture, and historical landscape coexist. Over more than 245 years, the Garden has evolved from a small university courtyard into an institution of national and international importance in science, culture, and natural heritage. Its activities include:
Each year, thousands of visitors come to the Botanical Garden to enjoy spring blossoms, summer greenery, and autumn colours. The Garden invites visitors to explore biological diversity through its plant collections and exhibitions, including extensive and impressive displays of rhododendrons, lilacs, climbers, peonies, dahlias, irises, daylilies, and many others.
Currently, more than 40 different plant collections are maintained for educational, interpretive, and scientific purposes. They are grouped into six categories: educational, thematic, scientific, breeding, biodiversity conservation, and cultivated plant gene‑pool conservation collections. Altogether, about 10,000 plant names are cultivated—from native species to exotic plants, from trees and shrubs to tropical and herbaceous ornamental plants.
The Vilnius University Botanical Garden actively participates in national and international biodiversity conservation programmes, conducts research on plant genetic resources, and maintains seed exchange and professional cooperation with hundreds of botanical gardens and scientific institutions worldwide. The Garden is a member of the Association of Lithuanian University Botanical Gardens, Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), the European Union Botanical Gardens Consortium, and actively participates in the International Plant Exchange Network (IPEN), adhering to international principles of plant exchange and biodiversity conservation.
MORE FACTS AND FIGURES
Short history of VU Botanical Garden – four locations and more than 245 years of activity
