Montoso Gardens facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Montoso Gardens |
|
|---|---|
Alpinia purpurata plant in the Montoso Garden.
|
|
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Type | Botanical Garden |
| Location | Maricao, Puerto Rico |
| Area | 36 hectares (89 acres) |
| Created | 1987 |
Montoso Gardens is a special place in Puerto Rico. It is a farm and a plant nursery. Here, people grow many different plants. Some plants are for eating, and others are sent to other countries.
Montoso Gardens also has a private botanical garden and a nature reserve. This area is about 36 hectares, which is like 70 football fields! It is located in the Maricao area. Montoso Gardens is known around the world for its plant collections. It even has a special code, MGMPR, for its plant library, called a herbarium.
Where is Montoso Gardens?
This amazing botanical garden is found on a mountain slope. It sits on the southern side of Pico Montoso mountain. The garden is about 1,500 feet (457 meters) high. This area is known for growing coffee.
Montoso Gardens is right next to the Maricao State Forest. This forest is huge, covering 5,000 acres! It is home to 23 types of plants that grow only in Puerto Rico. These are called endemic species.
You can find Montoso Gardens on Highway 120, at kilometer 18.9. Visitors are asked to give a small donation. This money helps take care of the beautiful plants and facilities.
The History of Montoso Gardens
The story of Montoso Gardens began with a plant expert named Dr. Frank Martin. He was a horticulturist. Dr. Martin started collecting many different plants and trees. These plants formed the first part of the garden's collection.
The current owners took over and have been adding new plant species since 1987. They continue to grow the collection even today.
What Plants Can You See?
Montoso Gardens is full of amazing tropical plants. You can see them in all their beauty and variety. One of the main goals here is to protect these tropical plants. They want to make sure these species do not disappear.
Today, the garden has more than 1,800 different kinds of plants. These include many species and cultivars. There are over 600 different groups of plants, called taxa, growing here.
- Local Plants: Some plants grow only in this area.
- Fruit Trees: You can find trees like the Litchi chinensis (lychee), Canarium ovatum (pili nut), and Garcinia mangostana (mangosteen).
- Pretty Plants: There are many ornamental plants that are grown just for their beauty.
- Spices: The garden also grows plants used for Spices. These include Piper nigrum (black pepper), Durio zibethinus (durian), and Cinnamomum zeylanicum (cinnamon).
See also
In Spanish: Jardines Montoso para niños
- List of botanical gardens and arboretums in Puerto Rico
