Work on new Evolution Garden has started

Project leader Jaime Loupatty (l) and hortulanus Gerard van Buiten (r) discuss the construction drawing with the employees of Schagen Infra BV. Photo: Ivar Pel

The work on the new Evolution Garden in the Utrecht University Botanic Gardens has started. In the upcoming months,  the site that forms the basis for the new garden will be prepared. The garden will be opened to the public in 2024.

The project has the working title 'The green time machine, evolution of plants' and will be built next to the Discovery Garden. The preparatory work will be carried out by Schagen Infra BV on behalf of Real Estate & Campus and the Utrecht University Botanic Gardens.

Innovative design

The new Evolution Garden has an innovative design that was developed by Hemelse Natuur in cooperation with the Botanic Gardens and is designed according to the latest scientific insights. The main division of plant groups is represented in the design by repeating mathematical patterns. These so-called 'fractals' represent that evolution never stops as long as there is life and that the processes of speciation and extinction continue infinitely. In the new Evolution Garden, visitors will be able to see the entire evolutionary development of the plant kingdom.

The garden will be made climate-proof by, among other things, the construction of wadis to collect water. In addition, sustainable materials will be used as much as possible. The story we tell in the Evolution Garden is interesting for the general public as well as for students and researchers.

Different phases

Due to the size of the project, construction takes place in phases. The preparation of the new site of the Evolution Garden will be completed by Schagen Infra BV before summer. Then the fractals with the corresponding groups of plants will be laid out and the information for the public will be worked on. Visitors will be able to admire the garden in 2024.