Orchid Days 3-12 March 2023

Between 3 and 12 March from 11:00 to 16:00 daily, Tallinn Botanic Garden will be holding an orchid exhibition, which has become a tradition over the years and provides a great opportunity to see rare natural species alongside the varieties resulting from people’s breeding efforts. The exact number of species and varieties presented at the exhibition will be established immediately before the opening of the exhibition, and may change during the event, depending on how quickly the flowers of the plants bloom or wither.

During our Orchid Days, we will be displaying natural species and varieties that result from breeding. In addition to commonly known moth orchids, you will be able to see a large selection of other tropical orchids, for instance, Venus slippers, Vanda orchids, boat orchids, Epidendrum species, Dendrobium species, Masdevallia and Oncidium orchids as well as cultivated varieties and hybrids.

As part of the exhibition, experienced specialists will provide advice on growing orchids at home. During the orchid exhibition, from 3 to 12 March, questions related to the growing of orchids can be sent to orhidee@botaanikaaed.ee. Questions are answered by gardeners and senior gardeners of the Tallinn Botanic Garden.

Orchids are also sold on site.

The orchid collection of Tallinn Botanic Garden boasts a fascinating history. “Our orchid collection was founded when Oskar Savik, an Australian orchid grower with Estonian roots, donated a selection of his best orchids to the botanical garden in the early 1960s. By now, numerous rare orchids growing in various natural habitats all over the world have been added to the historical collection of boat orchid varieties,” said Eevi Siibak, the senior gardener at Tallinn Botanic Garden and the curator of the orchid exhibition.

“The flowers and life patterns of orchids are so strange that it may seem Nature let her imagination run wild as she was creating these plants. Still, nothing about orchids is random. Every tiny detail of each petal has its purpose,” Siibak explained, “all the spots, fine hairs, stripes and exhilarating fragrances are meant for attracting pollinators.”

However, in addition to pollinators, orchids have also managed to enchant people. Jaan Mettik, head of the tropical and subtropical plants division at Tallinn Botanic Garden, says that the looks and patterns of life of orchids are so different from what one would consider ordinary, and the diversity of species is so impressive that people have spent centuries trying to ‘tame’ these exotic beauties. “In old times, orchids would only be found in the homes of very wealthy people, but they have become universally loved houseplants by now,” Mettik noted. “The list of bred varieties has become much larger than the number of species despite the fact that there are nearly 18,500 of the latter. Tallinn Botanic Garden will attempt to show you a glimpse of this fascinating world, including the creations of nature and people alike.”

The orchid exhibition will be open in the greenhouses of Tallinn Botanic Garden every day between 11:00 and 16:00. The price of the exhibition visit is included in the price of a regular ticket.

Attention! We recommend using a public transport or a taxi to arrive at the exhibition, as the parking lot of the botanical garden is tight this year due to construction works. Please see the map below, which indicates the possible additional parking places (in addition to the botanical garden parking lot, the TV Tower parking lot and the Metsakalmistu parking lot on Kloostrimetsa road).