KFU’s Botanical Garden to become protected federal natural reserve

The proposal was put forth by the University and Tatarstan State Committee for Biological Resources.

Garden Curator Niyaz Salakhov comments, “We are expecting a relevant document, hopefully this year.”

At the moment, over 40 university botanical gardens in Russia have this status.

“The Garden spans over 3.5 hectares. The greenhouse, the arboretum, and the open plantings comprise 1,786 taxa, including trees, bushes, decorative plants, and fruits,” explains the executive.

The garden was established in 1806, two years after the University itself, and was first located in the main courtyard. The new garden in the suburb was opened in 1985, but it really started actively expanding its collection a decade ago.

“Our collection is one of the youngest among university gardens. The main feature of the KFU Botanical Garden is that we have a tiered landscape. There are no other gardens like this in the Volga Region. We also have various regional expositions on different tiers, like Europe, North America, Far East, Asia, etc.,” continues the interviewee.

There are also greenhouses for tropical and subtropical species.

The status of a federal protected reserve will give more capabilities to handle unique natural objects, plants and animals, and to provide the best conditions for the reproduction of natural resources.