An area of over 43 hectares and roughly 22,000 different varieties of plants make the Botanical Garden in Berlin the second largest botanical gardens in Germany and the fourth largest in the world. The site is cared for by the Free University in Berlin and has the status of a central facility that is independent of any specific faculty. Ten sub-projects consisting of new planning, further developments, and renovations situated between public use, teaching, and monument protection are being discussed and realized within the framework of a funding initiative.

The Botanical Garden opened at its new site in Berlin-Dahlem in 1904 based on the motto “The world in one garden.” More than a century later, it still holds a leading position among comparable gardens in the world. With roughly 300,000 visitors per year, the potential of the site has nonetheless still not been tapped to its full extent. Following the renovation of the large greenhouses from 2006 to 2015 and the reorganization of the area of marketing and public relations work, the focus now is on realizing extensive measures to improve the tourist infrastructure.

In cooperation with a team of specialist planners, we are designing and coordinating the most extensive aspect of the development measures: the open-air facilities. While taking monument protection into particular consideration, the primary aim is to emphasize the unique selling points of the garden in the long term and to considerably increase its attractiveness for visitors—among other things, by means of a new visitor center, a fundamental overhauling of the paths, a modern signage and information system, and a new design of various ornamental garden areas, including the magnificent Italian Garden.