University of Genoa Botanic Garden, Botanical garden in Corso Dogali, Genoa, Italy

The University of Genoa Botanic Garden occupies about one hectare at Corso Dogali, on the old Pietraminuta plots near the Albergo dei Poveri. Its six greenhouses cover roughly 1,000 m² on three floors, holding ferns, tropical trees, aquatic plants, succulents and cycads; outdoors grow century-old cedars, cypresses and sequoias.

Domenico Viviani founded the garden in 1803 on a strip of land behind the university palace, formerly belonging to the Jesuit College of San Gerolamo. Its early focus was medicinal plants, suited to a mercantile city. In 1892 Sir Thomas Hanbury funded its expansion to the current size and the Regio Istituto di Botanica, donating everything to the university that year, when the first international botanical congress held in Italy took place here.

The garden holds collections of rare tropical plants and medicinal herbs that students and researchers examine regularly. The collections reflect the university's effort to teach botanical knowledge through living specimens.

The garden lies at Corso Dogali, near the Albergo dei Poveri, on the old Pietraminuta plots. Its roughly one hectare is arranged over terraces and three levels of greenhouses, so allow time to move between the outdoor beds and the glasshouses. The fern house holds monumental Cibotium and Angiopteris specimens.

The garden contains specialized sections for ferns, water plants such as waterlily and papyrus, and a dedicated area for ancient plant species. These different habitats show botanical diversity in a small space.