The Boselgarten
Table of contents
Blick von der Bosel nach Sörnewitz
History
In the early 20th century, the eminent botanist Prof. Oskar Drude, director of the Botanical Institute and the Botanical Garden at the Dresden University of Technology, studied the plant communities of the Elbe Hills. This region encompasses the Elbe Valley and its surrounding hills between Pirna and Hirschstein. Compared to the rest of Saxony, it has higher average temperatures and lower precipitation. Many of the heat- and light-loving plant species found here migrated into the region from the steppe regions of southeastern Europe after the Ice Age. Climate changes and the gradual encroachment of the forest later forced them into refuge areas. Typical examples of such refuge areas in the Meissen region are the Knorre, the Göhrisch-Felsen, and the Bosel.
Blick von Sörnewitz auf den Boselfelsen
Apart from its botanical significance, the Bosel Rock has always been a striking landmark of the region and a popular vantage point. In 1904, the quarry at the Bosel Rock was taken over by the Dümling company. The change in ownership led to such an intensification of quarrying that local historians and botanists feared for the site’s future. Since nature conservation laws did not yet exist at that time, the “Landesverein Sächsischer Heimatschutz” (LSH), on the advice of Prof. Drude and with the support of the Meissen Beautification Society, acquired a parcel of land near the quarry’s edge in 1908—the nucleus of today’s Bosel Garden. This established a property boundary for the quarry. The endangered plant species were preserved and were intended to spread out again from the garden. From 1928 to 1930, Prof. Arno Naumann, a student of Drude’s, implemented the concept for the Boselgarten, which remains largely valid today.
Lactuca perennis - Blauer Lattich
The LSH is also credited with the permanent preservation of the Boselspitze: The first Reich Nature Conservation Act of 1935 made it possible to impose strict conditions on the quarry; after many years of efforts by the LSH to acquire the quarry site, this led to success in 1943. The purchase price was 50,000 RM—a substantial sum for an association of private individuals in the midst of World War II. In 1948, the LSH’s entire property at the Boselspitze was designated a protected natural monument. The surrounding Spaar Mountains have enjoyed the status of a landscape conservation area since 1974. Following the unlawful expropriation of the LSH in 1949, the Bosel Garden fell under the jurisdiction of the “Central Administration of State Palaces and Gardens.” In 1957, thanks to the initiative of Dr. Thielemann from Meissen and Prof. Herbert Ulbricht, a professor of botany at the Technical University, the garden became a branch of the Dresden Botanical Garden, thereby securing a solid foundation for the future.
Blick in den Garten
Plant Collection
Covering a total area of approximately 2,500 m², the Boselgarten features about 800 different plant species. To this day, the focus remains on the heat-loving (=thermophilic) species of the Elbe Hills region. The morphological adaptations to arid conditions can be clearly observed in the garden. In addition to plants that hikers still encounter relatively frequently in the scenic Elbe Valley, the garden features many species that have become rare or even extinct in their natural habitats. About 200 of them are listed on Saxony’s Red List: For example, in the upper part of the garden, visitors can see the two species of grass lilies (Anthericum liliago and A. racemosum), the blood-red cranesbill (Geranium sanguineum), the blue lettuce (Lactuca perennis), the meadow pasqueflower (Pulsatilla pratensis ssp. nigricans), the rock cinquefoil (Drymocallis rupestris), or rare grasses such as the dwarf sedge (Carex humilis) or the steppe timothy (Phleum phleoides).
Climatic conditions similar to those in the Elbe Hills prevail in nearby Bohemia and Thuringia. The geographical location (the introduction of plants from the east and west, respectively) and a higher prevalence of calcareous soils have allowed a particularly rich thermophilic flora to develop there. The central section of the Boselgarten features plants that are absent from the Elbe Hills but are native to Thuringia and/or Bohemia. Here, visitors will find attractive perennials such as white dictamnus (Dictamnus albus), the spring pheasant’s eye (Adonis vernalis), and various feather grass species (e.g., Stipa pulcherrima), which surprise the attentive visitor at seed maturity with a sophisticated seed-dispersal mechanism.
Geranium sanguineum - Blutroter Storchschnabel
To contribute to the long-term conservation of selected endangered species at the Boselgarten, special measures are necessary: For example, we cultivate a large number of individuals of the purple mullein (Verbascum phoeniceum) and the Bolognese bellflower (Campanula bononiensis) with the greatest possible genetic diversity under conditions that closely resemble their natural habitats. The source material consists of seeds from the Meissen region, whose origin is precisely documented. Visitors can find these conservation cultures, as well as a small collection of field weeds that were once native to Saxony and are now, in some cases, threatened with extinction, on the terraces near the lower garden gate. Here, for example, corn cockle (Agrostemma githago), field snapdragon (Misopates orontium), and the seed-leaved glebion (Glebionis segetum) grow.
Visitor Information
The Boselgarten is open every Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from April 1 through October 3. Visits outside regular opening hours are possible by appointment.
ATTENTION! The Bosel Garden will be closed on July 15, 25 and 26, 2026.
May and June are the best months to see the garden’s signature plants in bloom: Many of the plants on display take advantage of the spring moisture to complete their development and reach seed maturity before the summer dry season sets in.
Directions
Parkmöglichkeiten und Fußwege zur Bosel.
- Elbe Cycle Route to Sörnewitz
- Take the S-Bahn to Coswig, then continue by regional bus to Sörnewitz
- Take the S-Bahn to Meißen, then take city bus line A to Oberspaar
- Parking available on Boselweg and Meißner Straße in Meissen (see map)
- The walking paths to the Boselgarten are signposted
© Botanischer Garten Dresden
Boselgarten bei Meißen
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Postal address:
TUD Dresden University of Technology Botanischer Garten - Boselgarten Stübelallee 2
01307 Dresden
Office hours:
- Wednesday:
- 10:00 - 17:00
- Saturday:
- 10:00 - 17:00
- Sunday:
- 10:00 - 17:00
Closed during the winter season from October 4 to March 31.