Jardín Botánico Viera y Clavijo

Spain, Spain

---

Jardín Botánico Viera y Clavijo (also called Jardín Botánico Canario or simply Jardín Canario) is a large botanical garden on the island of Gran Canaria, located in Tafira just outside Las Palmas, along the steep slopes of the Guiniguada ravine.

Founded in the early 1950s by Swedish botanist Eric Ragnor Sventenius and named after 18th‑century Canarian naturalist José de Viera y Clavijo, it was created to gather in one place the rich native flora of the Canary Islands and has since grown to about 27 hectares, making it the largest botanical garden in Spain.

The garden focuses on wild plants of the Canary archipelago and the wider Macaronesian region (Azores, Madeira, Cabo Verde and Salvage Islands), with themed areas such as the “Camino de los Dragos” (dragon tree walk), palm squares, island-specific sections and a “Macaronesian ornamental garden,” showcasing hundreds of endemic and rare species in terraces that follow the natural terrain.

It functions as a major centre for research, conservation and environmental education, maintaining living collections, seed banks and publications (including the journal “Botánica Macaronésica”), while offering free entry and trails, viewpoints and shaded paths that let visitors experience Canarian landscapes and plant diversity in a single, extensive garden.