View source for Biology:Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich

{{short description|Garden od succulent plants in Zurich (Switzerland)}}
{{Infobox museum
|name = Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich
|image = File:Mythenquai - Sukkulentensammlung 2015-02-26 11-48-05.JPG
|caption = Main entrance
|location      = Mythenquai, Enge, Zürich
|publictransit = '''Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich:''' Bus line 161 and 165 stop ''Mythenquai''<br/>'''S-Bahn Zürich:''' S-Bahn line S8 stop ''Enge'' or ''Wollishofen''
|coordinates = {{coord|47|21|21.93|N|8|32|6.35|E|display=inline,title}}
|established = {{Start date|1931}}
|website       = {{URL|https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-_und_erlebnisraeume/sukkulenten-sammlung.html|sukkulentensammlung.ch}}
|owner = Stadt Zürich
}}
[[File:Sukkulentensammlung - Innenansicht 2015-01-05 15-49-37 (P7800).JPG|thumb|upright|Interior at the entrance area]]
[[File:Sukkulentensammlung - Innenansicht 2015-01-05 15-46-48 (P7800).JPG|thumb|upright]]
[[File:Sukkulentensammlung - Innenansicht 2015-01-05 15-47-21 (P7800).JPG|thumb|upright]]
[[File:Sukkulentensammlung - Innenansicht 2015-01-05 15-45-55 (P7800).JPG|thumb|upright|''Haworthia viscosa'']]
'''Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich''', literally [[Biology:Succulent plant|succulent plant]] collection of the city of [[Place:Zürich|Zürich]], is a botanical garden in the {{wipe|Switzerland}} municipality of Zürich. It also houses a botanic library, a herbarium and the International Organizations for Succulent Plant Research (IOS).<ref name="ios">{{cite web|url=http://www.iosweb.org/|title=IOS|publisher=Grün Stadt Zürich|author=|language=|date=|access-date=2015-01-02|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103014935/http://www.iosweb.org/|archive-date=2015-01-03}}</ref><ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung-ios">{{cite web|url=https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-_und_erlebnisraeume/sukkulenten-sammlung/weltweite_vernetzung.html|title=Weltweite Vernetzung|publisher=Grün Stadt Zürich|author=|language=German|date=|access-date=2015-01-02|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103014831/https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-_und_erlebnisraeume/sukkulenten-sammlung/weltweite_vernetzung.html|archive-date=2015-01-03}}</ref>

== Location ==
The greenhouses are located in district of Enge, on Zürichsee (Lake Zurich). They are a part of the Quaianlagen promenades, and are located on the southwestern lake shore. The collection is separated by the Mythenquai road from the lower lake shore promenade and the Enge harbour area, at the park facilities of the Mythenquai lido near the lower entrance to the Rieterpark.

== History ==
At the end of the 1920s, Jakob Gasser, a cactus grower from Zürich, tried to sell his collection of about 1,500 succulents to the city government of Zürich, but the venture failed. in 1929, Julius Brann Gassersche, a store owner, acquired the unique collection and made a gift of it to the city of Zürich. The collection was housed in the greenhouses at the former site of the municipal gardens (''Stadtgärtnerei'') at Mythenquai, and established as ''Städtische Kakteensammlung'', meaning urban cactus collection.<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung">{{cite web|url=https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-_und_erlebnisraeume/park-_und_gruenanlagen/arboretum.html|title=Sukkulentensammlung|publisher=Grün Stadt Zürich, Arboretum Zürich|author=|language=German|date=|access-date=2015-01-02|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141228185059/https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-_und_erlebnisraeume/park-_und_gruenanlagen/arboretum.html|archive-date=2014-12-28}}</ref>

Formally established in 1931, the collection houses one of the largest and most important collections of succulent plants.<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung"/><ref name="gsz-75jahre">{{cite web|url=https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/content/dam/stzh/ted/Deutsch/gsz/Natur-%20und%20Erlebnisraeume/Publikationen%20und%20Broschueren/Sukkulenten-Sammlung/Vom%20Buerkliplatz%20zur%20Sukkulenten-Sammlung1.pdf|title=Vom Bürkliplatz zur Sukkulenten-Sammlung|publisher=Grün Stadt Zürich|author=Grün Stadt Zürich|language=German|date=May 2006|access-date=2015-01-02|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305075257/https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/content/dam/stzh/ted/Deutsch/gsz/Natur-%20und%20Erlebnisraeume/Publikationen%20und%20Broschueren/Sukkulenten-Sammlung/Vom%20Buerkliplatz%20zur%20Sukkulenten-Sammlung1.pdf|archive-date=2016-03-05}}</ref> The main complex was built in 1947 and inaugurated in 1948. The succulent collection started in the existing greenhouse at Mythenquai, and was extended in 1948, 1954, 1961, 1984. In 2011, the entrance area was rebuilt and information for visitors improved. There are plans to redesign the Mythenquai area, including a renovation of the greenhouses.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}}

== Collection and structure ==
Succulents are plants from arid areas that survive by storing water, including [[Biology:Agave|Agave]]s, [[Biology:Aloe|Aloe]]s and stonecrop family, in addition to [[Biology:Cactus|Cacti]] and thick leaf plants. The collection features more than 6,500 different types of succulent plants from more than 80 different plant families of ''[[Biology:Orchidaceae|Orchidaceae]]'', ''[[Biology:Crassulaceae|Crassulaceae]]'', ''[[Biology:Euphorbiaceae|Euphorbiaceae]]'', ''[[Biology:Aizoaceae|Aizoaceae]]'', ''[[Biology:Cactaceae|Cactaceae]]'' and ''[[Biology:Apocynaceae|Apocynaceae]]''.<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung"/> The collection is funded by Grün Stadt Zürich and by the booster association, ''Förderverein der Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich''.<ref name="förderverein">{{cite web|url=http://www.foerderverein.ch/|title=Förderverein der Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich|publisher=foerderverein.ch/|author=|language=German|date=|access-date=2015-01-02|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150102212143/http://www.foerderverein.ch/|archive-date=2015-01-02}}</ref> Although internationally known for its scientific objectives, the Sukkulenten-Sammlung is perceived by the public as a collection. Periodic special displays provide an insight into the survival mechanisms used by succulents.<ref name="gsz-75jahre"/>

== Facilities ==
Surrounded by a park on the lake, the facilities house over 25,000 exotic plants in about 6,500 species and varieties on {{convert|4750|sqm|acre|2}}, including {{convert|700|sqm|acre|2}} in six greenhouses, 16 heated cold frame boxes and an outdoor area. The staff consists of nine employees who take care of 50,000 visitors annually. The greenhouses are open daily.<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung"/>

== IOS library, database and herbarium ==
Since about 1947, the institution has been involved in an international seed exchange between botanical institutes and gardens around the world. Currently, there are more than 200 botanical gardens involved. In addition, Sukkulenten-Sammlung houses a specialized library on succulent plants. These books are not allowed to leave the library, but can be seen when the collection is open. The library contains more than 30,187 titles.<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung-ios"/>

The [[Biology:Herbarium|herbarium]] was founded in 1950,<ref name="gsz-sukkulentensammlung-ios"/> simultaneously with the International Organizations for Succulent Plant Research (IOS),<ref name="ios"/> and has an extensive archive of plants with approximately 20,000 specimens and a meticulous tracking database. It is now under the patronage of the Swiss [[Organization:UNESCO|UNESCO]] commission.<ref name="gsz-75jahre"/>

== Förderverein association ==
Despite the uniqueness of the collection, in 1996 the municipal council (''Gemeinderat'') of the city of Zürich sought to either outsource the collection of succulents or to close the collection entirely.<ref name="gsz-75jahre"/> This political pressure led to the founding of the boosting association ''Förderverein der Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich''.<ref name="förderverein"/> The council then decided to suspend the motion, until it became clear whether the Canton of Zürich and the federal authorities would become involved in co-financing.<ref name="gsz-75jahre"/>

== Cultural heritage of national importance ==
Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich is listed in the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance as a ''Class A'' object of national importance.<ref name="kgs">{{cite web|url=http://www.bevoelkerungsschutz.admin.ch/internet/bs/de/home/themen/kgs/kgs_inventar/a-objekte.parsys.000108.DownloadFile.tmp/zh2015.pdf|title=A-Objekte KGS-Inventar|publisher=Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft, Amt für Bevölkerungsschutz|author=|language=|date=2015-01-01|access-date=2015-09-13|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001193946/http://www.bevoelkerungsschutz.admin.ch/internet/bs/de/home/themen/kgs/kgs_inventar/a-objekte.parsys.000108.DownloadFile.tmp/zh2015.pdf|archive-date=2015-10-01}}</ref>

== Literature ==
* ''Gartenbiografien: Orte erzählen''. vdf Hochschulverlag AG, ETH Zürich, Zürich 2013, {{ISBN|978-3-7281-3579-7}}.

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.foerderverein.ch/ Förderverein] {{in lang|de}}
* [http://www.iosweb.org/ IOSweb.org: International Organizations for Succulent Plant Research website]


{{DEFAULTSORT:Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zurich}}
[[Category:Succulent plants]]
[[Category:Botanical research institutes]]

{{Sourceattribution|Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich}}