Aburi, Ghana

2019-06-19: The Botanical Gardens of Aburi, a bit of freshness and tropical greenery 35 km from Accra.

The Aburi Botanic Gardens in Ghana have been in existence for more than 120 years. These historic natural gardens have the particularity of being able to save endangered and extinct plant species. That's why the Aburi Gardens are famous.

The Aburi Botanical Gardens covers some 64 hectares, including 52 hectares for natural vegetation and 12 hectares for landscaped grounds.

These gardens were created by the British under colonization in 1890. Although the maintenance leaves something to be desired they are still worthy of great interest because of the variety of plants and trees that inhabits it.

Thierry in the gardens

The first phenomenon tree we find is the strangler fig tree. A typical tropical forest tree whose roots grow both downwards in the soil and upwards, wrapping around the host tree and ending up literally "strangling" it. They then serve as a fig tree trunk when the host tree dies. A trunk that has the distinction of being absolutely hollow.

Strangler fig tree

Inside

The most interesting to us are the superb 100 year old silk cottons trees. One of them (Lady Knutsford) estimated at more than 600 years of age is now only in the form of a gigantic skeleton, having ceased to live in 2012. It was the last survivor oft he original forest.

Its neighbor, majestic, is doing very well.

Majestic silk cotton tree

We also spend a long time in the small cocoa plantation. It is interesting to see how the pods grow directly on the trunk.

Christine and cocoa tree

We are also wondering what is this British WWII helicopter doing in the middle of this garden, if it is not used as a photographic motif.

 
 

We go back slowly to the parking lot by the magnificent 300-meter-long alley lined with palmyra palms, witnessing the grandeur of the gardens in the colonial era.