Search form

menu menu
  • Daily & Weekly newsletters
  • Buy & download The Bulletin
  • Comment on our articles

New Plant Palace opens at Botanic Garden Meise

18:49 25/09/2017

The Botanic Garden Meise, just outside of Brussels, has opened its new Plant Palace following years of fundraising and renovations. The installation houses 10,000 tropical and sub-tropical plant species.

Flemish minister for tourism Ben Weyts and his colleague Philippe Muyters, in charge of science policy, inaugurated the new structure at the botanical garden yesterday, following renovation of the northern entrance and a complete makeover of two rainforest installations.

The development is part of a master plan for the garden, which involves a complete renovation by 2026. For years, the Botanic Garden was co-managed by the federal and Flemish governments, and the lack of investment saw the site fall into disrepair.

When the garden became a fully Flemish jurisdiction in 2014, the master plan for renovations was put into place. “I am enormously proud that the opening of the new Plant Palace represents the first major step in our master plan for the Botanical Gardens,” Muyters said. “Flanders is investing €100 million to turn this into the Botanical Garden of Europe.”

VisitFlanders is investing €3 million in a campaign centred on the garden. “We hope to attract visitors from all over the world,” said Weyts. “The Botanical Garden is an international attraction that will strengthen our position as a tourist destination.”

Photo: Minister Ben Weyts (left) and Philippe Muyters officially open Plant Palace on Sunday ©Courtesy Botanic Garden Meise

Written by Alan Hope (Flanders Today)