The Empress Garden is in fact a botanical park situated near the Race Course Pune. The garden lies on a sprawling spread of approximately 59 acres of real estate and has an amazing collection of very rare species of trees, shrubs and flowers. The garden has many shrubs with flowers of various hues of colors. There are many trees of tamarind and mangoes in the garden.

History of the Empress Garden

The Empress Garden was known as the ‘Soldiers Garden’ and was originally owned by a native of Pune called Vithalrao Purandhare. The property was managed by General Finjer. The British government acquired the property in 1838 and was known as the ‘Garden of Dr. Don’ when it was under the control of Sir Charles Napier. The garden was named the Empress Garden after Queen Victoria was bequeathed the title of ‘Empress of India’. The garden was a place of recreation and fun for British soldiers during the reign of British. The property was transferred many times between 1845 and 1892 with the last known authority being the Bombay Government. The Empress Garden was transferred to the Agri-Horticultural Society of Western India.  

Why People Love Visiting this Garden

Even today, after so many decades of existence, the Empress Garden continues to impress nature lovers with a dazzling display of the largest variety of plants, shrubs, fruit-bearing trees and an exciting collection of flowers of every hue and shade. It is a popular picnic spot for school children. Grownups love to visit the garden to spend some time in the midst of nature and enjoy the fresh, unadulterated air of the garden that’s rich in oxygen.

The Main Produce of the Empress Garden

The main produce of the garden include cut flowers, mangoes of many varieties and tamarind. The garden is dotted with valuable shrubs including Acalypha God-Seffiana, Acalypha Hispida, Abutilon Hybridum and others. The garden has trees of many types such as the bottle brush or Callistemon Citrinus, Cassia Fistula, Cananga-Odorata, Brownea-Ariza, Delonix Regia, Cassia Lan-castri, Baikiaea Insignis and Sa-raca.

Visitors can come across a wide variety of flowers such as Gardenia Jasminoides, Vinca Rosea, Mussaenda Erythrophylla 'Rosea', Magnolia Mutabilis, Sarcocephalus Cordatus, Ixora Chinensis and many others. The garden has a 250 year old Banyan tree, a 150-year old Kanchan-Vel and a 30 meter tall giant bamboo in its precincts.

The Empress Garden is a popular place for evening sojourns and a favorite picnic spot for educational institutions as the garden has lots to offer in terms of educational information on various types of plants, flowers and fruits. It is estimated that the park receives approximately 4,000 visitors on weekends.

New Initiatives to Attract More Visitors

The garden is trying to attract more people and has planned a lot of initiatives to succeed in their endeavor. According to the managing secretary of Agri Horticulture Society of Western India, they have recently introduced a jogging park and constructed a garden exclusively for children inside the park. There is a special place ear-marked for senior citizens which include a Pagoda type canopy.

The jogging track has an aisle for paraplegics too. A Poly House is the latest development in the garden where fresh vegetables will be cultivated shortly. It will give children a hands-on experience at farming. Children love to go around in the pony carts available in the garden. There is a place for refreshments too inside the garden. The Empress Garden’s annual flower show draws huge crowds every year.

How to Reach

The Empress garden is located on Pune Sholapur Road and is near to Pune race course. There are city transport bus service from Pune bus depots and Pune railway station to the Camp area where the garden in located. Private cabs and auto rickshaws also ply passengers.