The history of botanical gardens in Russia goes back to great inquisitive reformer Peter the Great, of course. The first botanical garden in Russia was established in Moscow in 1706. It was called the Pharmaceutical Garden, as it was also meant to cultivate medicinal plants. It can still be found near the Alekseevskaya Metro Station. After the Moscow-based Pharmaceutical Garden, there was the same one on Crow Island in Saint Petersburg. In the 19th century, gardens were opened in the south: Nikitsky in Crimea, in Sukhumi and a tree nursery in Sochi. After the Revolution, gardens were opened everywhere. However, the most important one was still unavailable. Prominent scientist-botanist Nikolay Vasilyevich Tsitsin insisted that a garden was necessary. Battles were still raging in Europe, but the victory was not far off, and so authorities decided to create a garden! It is impossible to describe all the work performed by Nikolay Vasilyevich who became the first director of the garden and its employees. However, the results are impressive. These are the living collections of 8,220 species and 8,110 varieties of plants representing the flora of almost all continents and climatic regions. Today the garden bears the name of its founder and covers an area of over 360 hectares of a park plus a greenhouse with a rich collection of tropical plants. It also means fresh air for quite many Moscow residents.
