Conservatoire national du Pélargonium

Bourges, France, France

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The Conservatoire national du Pélargonium is France's largest municipal botanical garden specializing exclusively in pelargoniums (commonly called geraniums), located within the municipal greenhouses on Chemin Tortiot in Bourges, in the Cher department of the Centre-Val de Loire region.

Founded in 1982 by Daniel Lejeune and formally established as a collection in 1986, the conservatory has grown over time to include nearly 800 kinds of pelargonium collected from botanical gardens, private collectors, passionate amateurs, and communities across France. The current collection contains 250 pelargonium species and 1,100 cultivars, making it the largest such collection in the country.

The conservatory holds official recognition as a member of the French Conservatoire des collections végétales spécialisées (CCVS), which designates it as a nationally important specialized plant collection. Visitors can explore this diverse range of pelargoniums, including the last producer actively safeguarding pelargonium diversity in France, reflecting the institution's 25 years of dedication to preserving these plants' varieties.