Hengyang Botanical Garden

Hengyang Botanical Garden

Hengyang Botanical Garden is a national AAA-level tourist attraction.

Hengyang Botanical Garden is located in Wuxing Village, Yanfeng District, Hengyang City — a major central-southern city and a renowned historical and cultural hub. It lies to the east of the Xiang River, to the west of Xingfu River, and adjacent to the Heng-Kun Expressway, South Second Ring Road, Zhenyang South Road, and Zhenxiang South Road. The garden stretches 3.5 kilometers from north to south and 1 kilometer from east to west, covering a total area of 3,136 mu. It is a multifunctional wetland park integrating scientific research, science education, sightseeing, and recreation.

Hengyang Botanical Garden is a national AAA-level tourist attraction, a Chinese forestry science education base, a Hengyang science education base, a Hengyang wild plant conservation science education base, and a Hengyang youth science and technology education base.

The first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden covers an area of 270.75 mu, including 122,178 square meters of urban green space, 7,592 square meters of garden pathways, 7,692 square meters of squares, 4,496 square meters of parking lots, 16,683 square meters of water surfaces, and 2,115 square meters of building area.

In the first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden, 259 plant species are distributed across five themed gardens: the Native Plant Garden, Wetland Plant Garden, Hundred Bamboo Garden, Four Seasons Flower Garden, and Rare Plant Viewing Garden.

The first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden adopts a combination of traditional Chinese garden concepts and modern design techniques. It features five themed gardens — the Native Plant Garden, Wetland Plant Garden, Hundred Bamboo Garden, Four Seasons Flower Garden, and Rare Plant Viewing Garden — showcasing the plant diversity of the central-southern region, with a particular focus on purple soil plant species native to Hengyang.

The first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden cultivates 259 species of wild woody plants from 70 families, complemented by artificial structures such as viewing pavilions, thematic cultural corridors, waterfront promenades, and themed sculptures. These elements harmonize with the plant landscapes to create recreational spaces for visitors. Through the rational layout of the five themed gardens, the area integrates multiple functions including plant science research, science education, and ecological tourism into a cohesive whole.

Major Attractions

The first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden is situated in Xiangjiang Subdistrict, Yanfeng District (approximately 1.5 kilometers south of Hengyang Vocational Secondary Technical School). It is bordered by Zhenyang South Road to the east, Baisha Road to the north, Hongfeng Road to the west, and South Second Ring Road to the south, offering very convenient transportation.

The first phase of Hengyang Botanical Garden is divided into five functional zones: the Entrance Landscape Area, Plant Display Area, Waterfront Platform Area, Wetland Conservation Area, and Nursery Research Area. Each garden presents a unique scene, showcasing the charm of traditional Chinese garden landscapes, with a focus on the three main themes of air, sunlight, and water.

Entrances

The main entrance adopts an open spatial layout. A large stone weighing several dozen tons is placed at the entrance, featuring simple yet elegant three-dimensional sloped lettering displaying the name of the botanical garden. Additionally, a landscape sculpture is designed on the south side of the entrance to enclose the space and form a view-obstructing feature.

The east gate entrance employs a frame structure with a modern design concept. Linear compositions form the background, creating a simple and grand entrance landscape. A vertical large signboard is used for naming, altering conventional presentation methods to craft a contemporary entrance experience.

Lighting

As a wild plant park, the botanical garden mainly uses low-intensity courtyard lights, supplemented by lawn lights and floodlights. Underwater lights are installed in certain water areas to enrich the scenic ambiance. Energy-efficient landscape lamps with artistic designs are placed at the park entrance, while the LED landscape light strips are installed on the boardwalk of the artificial lake. Lawn lights are primarily arranged near tree clusters and garden pathways, and floodlights are mainly placed near sculptures and pergolas to enhance color variety. The entire area utilizes solar-powered energy-saving lights, providing softly glowing illumination that creates a tranquil, peaceful, and nature-immersive atmosphere.

Waterfront Platform Area

The Waterfront Platform Area consists of a fountain plaza and a children’s interactive water platform, serving as a public service zone located at the entrance of the botanical garden.

Native Plant Garden Area

Showcasing the theme of “air experience.” This area is a specialized zone primarily exhibiting terrestrial plants, 90% of which are locally adapted species, and 10% are cultivated specialty species. A park official shared that most of the plants are native, though a small portion were introduced and then acclimated for the first time.

Viewing Platform Area

Showcasing the theme of “light.” This area serves as a sunlit activity zone integrating science education, exhibition, and sightseeing. Located on the mountaintop viewing platform of the garden, it allows plants to better absorb sunlight and offers educational insights into plant light absorption.

Rare Ornamental Plant Garden Area

Showcasing the theme of “water.” Utilizing the artificial lake system within the park to embody the “water” theme, this area creates a leisure and recreation space centered around aquatic plants. It constructs environments for aquatic, wetland, and drought-tolerant plants, demonstrating the natural distribution patterns of vegetation along water bodies — featuring gradients from emergent plants, floating plants, submerged plants, to deep-water areas devoid of vegetation.

Rare Plants Garden

The Rare Plant Viewing Garden highlights the element of “rarity,” bringing together nationally protected species such as the dawn redwood and yew (Class I), as well as the ginkgo, liriodendron, and fragrant sweetgum (Class II). Visitors can admire these seldom-seen precious plants without traveling across the country.

The Rare Plant Viewing Garden is built near the southeast main entrance of Hengyang Botanical Garden, covering an area of approximately 1.56 hectares. In addition to nationally protected plants, it also cultivates rare or less-common native trees and plants, such as nageia, golden larch, purple michelia, red loropetalum, and red maple. Furthermore, it simulates ecosystems by arranging trees, shrubs, vines, evergreens, and deciduous plants according to natural patterns. Visitors can immerse themselves in a richly natural ambiance.

Four Seasons Flower Garden

In spring, azaleas and cherry blossoms bloom in a vibrant competition; in summer, lotus flowers and crape myrtles grace the season; in autumn, hibiscus and chrysanthemums complement each other beautifully; in winter, snow-white plum blossoms stand proudly on the branches. The Four Seasons Flower Garden will create an ever-blooming, perpetually beautiful garden through the harmonious arrangement of various woody and herbaceous plants.

The Four Seasons Flower Garden is located in the southwest corner of Hengyang Botanical Garden, covering an area of approximately 2.12 hectares. It mainly consists of flowering trees, shrubs, seasonal grasses, and flowers. Key species include cherry blossoms, azaleas, osmanthus, and camellias. Broadly categorized, there are over 30 species from the Theaceae family, and about 20 species from the Rosaceae, Magnoliaceae, and Ericaceae families.

Hundred Bamboo Garden

Bamboo is tall, graceful, and elegant, and is honored as one of the “Four Gentlemen” along with plum blossoms, orchids, and chrysanthemums.

Strolling through the Hundred Bamboo Garden, you can see over 40 species of bamboo plants, thoughtfully arranged by skilled artisans within a refined garden landscape, creating the ambiance of winding paths through bamboo groves and secluded, tranquil trails.

The Hundred Bamboo Garden is situated south of the west entrance of Hengyang Botanical Garden, covering an area of about 1.56 hectares. It utilizes existing bamboo groves and introduces various bamboo species such as Bambusa multiplex, Bambusa textilis, Bambusa ventricosa, Dendrocalamus affinis, and Bambusa vulgaris var. vittata. Visitors can admire the graceful and unrestrained beauty of bamboo while also experiencing the cultural symbolism of humility, integrity, and uprightness that bamboo represents.

Wetland Plant Garden

The Wetland Plant Garden integrates human-made architectural landscapes with natural scenery to form a series of distinctive aquatic-themed landscapes. Visitors can enjoy scenic pavilions, thematic cultural corridors, and water-friendly walkways while observing the fascinating aquatic plants in the lake and experiencing the harmonious beauty of nature seamlessly blending with water.

The Wetland Plant Garden is located west of the north entrance of Hengyang Botanical Garden, covering an area of approximately 2.41 hectares. Utilizing the site’s pond features, it has been designed as a water plant zone. On one hand, it showcases artificial aquatic architectural landscapes such as zigzag bridges and water-friendly walkways; on the other hand, it displays a series of aquatic plant landscapes. By combining a variety of riparian plants, it creates a rich and layered scenic effect. For example, lotus and Victoria water lilies are planted in the water, while weeping willows and metasequoia are planted along the banks. These elements complement each other to present a naturally wild and charming landscape—visiting the Wetland Plant Garden is like visiting West Lake.

Native Plant Garden

The Native Plant Garden is a conservation garden for indigenous flora, primarily dedicated to the protection and cultivation of native plants. The garden houses a variety of Hengyang’s local native plants, including some with high landscape value. If you want your children to learn more about Hengyang’s local plant life, this is a must-visit.

The Native Plant Garden covers an area of about 6.25 hectares. Through the creation of several typical plant communities, it showcases the natural community characteristics of subtropical hilly plants in Hengyang. The vegetation is dominated by species from the Fagaceae and Lauraceae families, mainly including Castanopsis sclerophylla, Lithocarpus glaber, Cyclobalanopsis glauca, Phoebe nanmu, and Cinnamomum camphora.

Transportation Routes

Within Hengyang City, you can take Bus No. 129 directly to the garden, or take Bus No. 102 or 167 and get off at the corner of Zhenyang South Road near Nanjiao Park, then walk 1.5 kilometers to reach the destination.