OMAN BOTANIC GARDEN

Thanks to the know-how of the Scots, creators of the superb Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh, the pharaonic project of a conservatory of Omani flora is being developed on four hundred and twenty hectares. Once completed (at a date that remains absolutely unknown for the moment, especially since the pandemic has delayed the construction - 2024?), this botanical garden will be one of the largest in the world. Conceived as a research and preservation site, it will have a resource and information center for the public and will eventually present the eighty endemic species of the sultanate and a large sample of the twelve hundred species identified throughout the different ecosystems. Located in Al Khoud, in a wilderness area, twenty kilometers from Muscat and about thirty minutes west of the airport, the garden will gradually open to visitors. The site was not chosen by chance, it is one of the few places in the world where the old seabed is still visible after tectonic activity raised the bed to a hundred meters above sea level. The landscape designers and engineers worked with the existing natural ridges and ravines to design the various buildings and walkways that will ultimately form a spectacular hilly landscape. Visitors will be able to wander around the wadis, mountains and deserts of Oman in a few hours. Two of the most sensitive biomes (ecozones) will be developed in huge spherical buildings that will replicate the natural temperature and humidity of these unique habitats. A sinuous glass enclosure will house the Northern Mountain Ecozones and their ancient terraced plantations. A shimmering undulating glass sphere will protect the rich and varied habitats of the Dhofar region and immerse visitors in a green rainforest similar to that of the Salalah area during the Khareef (monsoon) season. The buildings and the garden site have been designed to meet the internationally recognized LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for high environmental quality buildings and sites. A strategy has been developed to ensure that water, a particularly precious resource in the region, is produced in a sustainable manner and that not a drop is wasted. By its size, its ambition and its richness, it is certain that this project will make this conservation area an exceptional botanical garden. To be continued...