Stories written in the Soil, or Gardens and Parks in the Czech Republic

For visitors, gardens and parks are places for relaxation, nice moments and romantic stories. For professionals, they are the opportunity for growing and breeding of unique plants. Do you know anybody who does not feel good in a garden or park?

The Flower Garden in Kroměříž ranks among the most precious of gardens in the Czech Republic. It was built in the 17^th century on 16 hectares with the central Rotunda, roads in high espaliers and a 244-metre long gallery of statues of ancient gods and historical characters. The Čestný dvůr/Honourable Courtyard from the mid-19^th century is surrounded by two big greenhouses (Hrubý/Rough and Tropický/Tropical) with a valuable collection of tropical and subtropical flora. This complex flora was listed in the List of the World Heritage Sites UNESCO.

The gardens at Prague Castle and Palace Gardens rank among the most frequently visited ones because they connect Prague Castle and Lesser Town. Many cultural and social events take place in the representative area and you can even have a wedding ceremony there. The St Wenceslas Vineyard and Villa Richter have been in the spotlight since 2008 when it was completely reconstructed. According to legend, it is the oldest vineyard in Bohemia where duke Wenceslas, the patron of Bohemia, cultivated “God’s vineyard”.

You can visit another UNESCO site, which can be found several kilometres south of Prague – the Průhonice park, which is a top landscape work in Europe. The Botič Brook and its tributaries with weirs, overflows and blind arms play a great role here. The adaptations as well as Podzámecký, Labeška and Bořín ponds increase air humidity, which positively influences the growing of coniferous trees and rhododendrons. There are about 1,600 species of Czech and exotic woody plants and the exceptional collection of rhododendrons consists of about 8,000 pieces of 100 species and cultivated varieties. Apart from them, several Czech fairy-tales have made the Průhonice park popular.

The nice atmosphere of Lednice castle is supported by a French park and English garden with romantic buildings – a minaret, waterworks, aqueduct and many more. A chateau pond with 15 little islands was built there as well. The first exotic woody plants were brought here in the late 18^th century and they served as the base for a unique collection of North-American woody plants. The park is traversed by a circular route of almost four kilometres. You can even go on boat trips in the park from April to the end of November. The chateau in Lednice belongs to the Lednice-Valtice Cultural Landscape of almost 300 km2.

There are numerous special gardens and parks in the Czech Republic. The Prague Botanic Garden with the Fata Morgana greenhouse, French Garden of the Kratochvíle Chateau, Botanical Garden of Medical Plants in Hradec Králové, Herbal Garden Botanicus in Ostrá by Lysá nad Labem. Come and experience your fairy tale!

For more information, please visit:

CzechTourism Scandinavia and Finland
Villagatan 21, 114 32 Stockholm
Tel: 08 44 04 239
E-mail: info-se@czechtourism.com
www.czechtourism.com

CzechTourism is a state-funded agency of the Ministry for Regional Development. Its main activity is to promote the Czech Republic as an attractive tourist destination. More information is available at http://czechtourism.com