Plants Gardens (Jardin des Plantes), Paris

The geometrical lines of the carres de la perspective garden greet visitors upon entering the Jardin des Plantes with marvelous effects of perspective created through careful planning and maintenance. Continuing further into the 65-acre (26-hectare) botanical garden, bejeweled by flowerbeds, brings visitors to an alpine garden, a greenhouse split between a tropical "winter garden" and a mexican desert ecozy stem, and a garden planned out for educational purposes, or a rose garden and iris garden to the other side of the "squares of perspective." Rare plants and trees grow throughout the gardens and greenhouse, or discover the small zoo and explore one of the museums on site, which include the Grande Galerie de l'Evolution and the Galerie de Paleontologie. The garden was first created in 1635 by Louis XIII's physician Guy de la Brosse to illustrate plants' medicinal properties to medical students and opened to the public in 1640. Today, these gardens continue to educate and delight everyone who steps through the well-tended entrance. Open hours vary slightly between the different attractions.