Visiting the cactus garden in Barcelona
Originally posted: 2023-07-31
I think I´ve seen quite many interesting places in Barcelona but there is one place that has been on my todo-list for FAR too long and that is the cactus garden on the hillside of Montjüic.
The cactigarden or “Jardins de Mossén Costa I Llobera” as its called is a 3.16 hectares park totally devoted to different types of cacti and succulents. It was first opened in the 1970s and they estimate to have around 800 different types of cacti and succulents growing here!
I think this is a kind of “Cholla” or “Cylindropuntia”
I am an avid lover of plants and especially cacti! There is something about these tough plants that make them a little more interesting than many other plant families. Maybe it´s their ability to endure tough conditions and just adapt to what ever life is given to them, or maybe it´s all the interesting forms, formations and sharp spikeys that fascinates me?
Anyway I was quite excited to finally get to visit the park!
Look at that flowering aloe
Uphill Montjüic and free entrance to the cactus park
The sun was shining and I had my good shoes on so I decided to walk to the park (Barcelona is a great city for walking). I had SOME kind of idea of which side Montjüic the garden could be located so I headed towards Parallell and the graffitipark Jardins de tres Xemeneies.
It was actually quite easy to find the right side of Montjüic but the garden it self seemed to be hiding!
After wandering around a bit on top of Montjüic I walked passed the restaurant Terazza Martinez – and there it was! A very discrete entrance to the garden! And also no entrance fee.
Different types of cacti
The sea was peaking through the sunny shrubbery and I ended up walking around the park for a good 1,5 hours. Some cacti were taller than trees! While others were small and fat or tried to resemble slithering spikey snakes.
I also saw blooming Aloe Vera plants and Prickly Pear cactuses full of fruits.
This weird tree had lost all of it´s leaves.
I think it´s a silk floss tree, Ceiba Speciosa.
The bark form it´s stem is sometimes used in Brazilian traditional medicine to make a sort of tea. The tea is said to lower cholesterol and glucose levels
And this cacti might be a Eurphobia Ingens.
Eurphobia Ingens contains poisonous latex milk and is used to poison fish in some parts of Africa.
So if you are into nature and plants and cacti – the garden is a nice place to visit – can recommend!
xoxo/Salla V
Originally posted: 2023-07-31