Hesperidengärten

Hesperidengärten is a garden park in Nuremberg featuring several sections with stone fountains, sculptures, and traditional plantings arranged along the former city walls. The layout includes different elevation levels and pathways that connect the various garden areas together.

Wealthy merchants and patrician families established these gardens outside the city walls during the Middle Ages when urban growth consumed inner-city green spaces. This period also saw the development of the citrus cultivation tradition that defined these gardens for centuries.

The gardens take their name from Greek mythology, where nymphs guarded golden fruits, reflecting Nuremberg's citrus cultivation tradition. This link to ancient stories shapes how people understand these green spaces today.

Entry is from Johannisstraße between house numbers 43 and 47, and opening hours vary by season. Visitors should check current opening times beforehand and wear sturdy footwear for the various pathways and elevation changes.

Johann Christoph Volkamer recorded these gardens in his two-volume botanical work 'Nürnbergische Hesperides,' documenting the citrus varieties grown during the 18th century. This historical record makes the gardens an important testimony to the region's horticultural past.