Address: M. K. Čiurlionio St. 110, Vilnius
Email: regina.juodkaite@bs.vu.lt; Phone: +370 673 17430
Vingis Department of the Vilnius University Botanical Garden is located on the lower terrace of the Neris River, in the western part of Vingis Park, where the landscape rises gently along a slope and opens into the surroundings of centuries-old pine trees. This is a place where an exceptional natural landscape is closely intertwined with a rich historical heritage.
From the early 16th century, this part of the Vilnius outskirts—then known as Lukiškės—belonged to one of the most influential families of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Radziwiłłs. Between 1551 and 1565, the estate was owned by Mikołaj Radziwiłł the Black, Grand Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Voivode of Vilnius. Here he built spacious wooden manor houses; one of the first Reformed schools in Lithuania operated on the site, and the first Protestant community—the “zboras”—was established. For this reason, the origins of the Reformation in Vilnius are directly linked to the territory of today’s Vingis Department.
From the late 16th to the late 18th centuries, Lukiškės was home to the summer residence of the Vilnius Jesuit Academy. Ornate palace buildings were erected here, and medicinal gardens were planted, where herbs were grown to produce medicines. In 1714, the territory was enclosed by an arched brick wall, the remains of which survive to this day. Until the suppression of the Jesuit Order, Lukiškės served as an important intellectual and cultural centre as well as a place of leisure. The rulers of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth, Sigismund Vasa and Władysław Vasa, visited the site, and ceremonial academic degree conferrals—promotions—of the Vilnius Jesuit Academy were held here.
After the First World War, in 1919, the territory was allocated for the establishment of the Botanical Garden of Stefan Batory University. In the spring of 1920, the first botanical garden plants were planted, marking the beginning of a new stage in the development of the Vingis area.
Plant Collections and Displays at the Vingis Department
The dendrological collection is one of the oldest and most valuable parts of the Vingis Department (Map No. 13). Visitors are first welcomed by one of the garden’s oldest spaces—the small‑leaved linden alley (Map No. 1), whose age is believed to exceed 250 years. This alley already appears on a 1770 map of the Jesuit estates of Lukiškės, and written sources attest that lime trees were also planted here in 1827. It is a living historical element of the landscape, bearing witness to several periods in Vilnius's development.
The territory of the Garden is home to trees that date back to the period of the Stefan Batory University Botanical Garden or to the post‑war years. Some species—such as hackberry (Celtis occidentalis) and the Canadian black walnut (Juglans nigra)—are extremely rare in Lithuania. Particularly notable are mature and exceptional specimens, including black poplar, large‑leaved mock orange, and grey fir. In the central part of the Garden, on the site of the former Jesuit palace, grows a tree of exceptional genetic value—× Cerapadus michurina. In spring, it is covered with white blossoms, and in summer, it produces dark red fruits. The trunk circumference exceeds 3 metres, and its oval crown is about 18 metres in diameter. At the end of April, the serrated cherry trees—sakura (Map No. 3)—come into bloom. These trees, covered in soft pink flowers, were planted in 1998 and bear glossy, purplish-black fruits every year. The area is equally impressive in autumn, when the sakura leaves turn vivid shades of pink and burgundy.
Twelve of the most valuable trees and tree groups have been granted the status of Lithuanian Plant Genetic Resources. Following the renewal of the path system, new rhododendron displays were established on the upper terrace, enriching the dendrological collection and adding a new aesthetic accent to this part of the Garden (Map No. 19). Photographs show the Cerapadus tree.
Rose Garden (Map No. 4). The rose collection, renewed in 2000, features more than 150 cultivars of roses and thorns. Flowering lasts from June until the first frosts. The most fragrant are hybrid tea and English roses; polyantha roses stand out for their profuse small blooms, while floribunda roses are notable for the diversity and abundance of their flowers. Miniature roses charm visitors with their compact shrubs, and the most resilient part of the collection consists of modern shrub roses, which bloom profusely and continuously throughout the season.
Diversity of Plant Life Forms and Morphotypes Collection (Map No. 15). A new display established in 2025 invites visitors to explore the diversity of plant leaves, stems, flowers, and fruits. In spring, thermopsis, noble fumewort, and medicinal scopolya are in bloom; in summer, leafy spurge, ramsons (wild garlic), and sages flower, while in mid-summer, white dittany, southern rattle, and fragrant red‑flowered clematis come into bloom. Horsetails and grasses remain decorative until late autumn.
Rock Garden Hill and Hosta Collection (Map No. 12). The rock garden hill, reconstructed between 2019 and 2021, features more than 50 plant species and cultivars. In spring, hellebores, erythroniums, and epimediums bloom here; in summer, stonecrops, geraniums, and fragrant thymes; while in autumn, Japanese anemones are especially striking. Various ferns and evergreen plants thrive in shaded areas. Nearby, a Hosta display established in 2023 comprises over 200 species and cultivars, ranging from 10–15 cm tall plants to impressive specimens reaching nearly one metre in height. Read more about this collection HERE. Photographs show the Hosta collection.
Restored Section of the Jesuit Medicinal Herb Garden (Map No. 7). A large medicinal herb garden that once lay next to the Jesuit residence is mentioned in 1646. Based on a unique 18th century Plan of the Jesuit Medicinal Herb Garden preserved in the Vilnius University Library, a fragment of the garden has been recreated at its original location. Today, the site features a mint collection comprising more than 160 species, cultivars, and hybrids, remarkable for their rich diversity of aromas.
Flower Beds (Map No. 16). The flower beds in the central part of the garden showcase plants native to Lithuania’s flora—such as meadow sage, great masterwort, and branched strawflower—alongside numerous decorative perennial alien species. In summer, large‑flowered oxeye daisies, coneflowers, lavenders, daylilies, and dahlias are in bloom.
Native Flora. More than 200 representatives of Lithuania’s native flora grow in natural and semi‑natural habitats within the area. The greatest diversity can be found on the steep slope, in the spring‑fed fen, and on the lower terrace.
Cultural Heritage Objects
A tall arched masonry wall of the former Jesuit residence (Map No. 14), built in 1714, encloses the northern and western parts of the Garden. In the past, the inner niches of the wall were decorated with plant motifs and images of birds of paradise and exotic animals, but these paintings have not survived to the present day.
The pond, dating back to the Jesuit period (Map No. 5), restored in 2023, is today not only an important historical element of the landscape but also a pleasant place for relaxation, offering refreshment on hot summer days.
In the central part of the area once stood the residence palace of the Jesuit Academy, among the most ornate buildings of its time in Vilnius. Around 1870, the palace was demolished. In 2022, archaeological investigations uncovered fragments of the palace foundations dating to the 17th–18th centuries.
Between 1794 and 1812, when the Vingis manor served as the residence of governors general appointed by the Russian tsar, two auxiliary buildings were constructed in front of the main palace: the manor office and the stables (Map Nos. 17, 18). Today, the former manor office houses staff offices, while the former stables are used for storage.
The historic M. A. Šulcas Gate (Map No. 8) commemorates Mykolas Angelas Šulcas, a professor of architecture at Vilnius University, who in 1812 designed a light colonnaded pavilion erected in preparation for a ceremonial ball in honour of Tsar Alexander I. Unfortunately, shortly before the festivities, the structure collapsed; the shocked architect ran out through the gate and drowned in the Neris River.
“Medinukas” – a former summer house (late 19th–early 20th century) (Map No. 2). This historic wooden building recalls the period when, from 1850, a dairy and kumis farm operating in the Vingis area (“Vingis Farm”) gradually became a recreational site by the end of the 19th century. Several wooden summer houses were built at that time, one of which has survived to the present day. It is a rare and authentic example of wooden architectural heritage preserved within a rapidly changing urban landscape.
Greenhouse Complex (Map No. 9). A small part of a Jesuit‑period greenhouse has survived to this day—although it was later reconstructed—bearing witness to the early traditions of cultivating plants under glass in Vingis. In 2025, the greenhouse complex of the Stefan Batory University Botanical Garden, built between 1926 and 1929 (Map No. 10), was partially revitalised and is now used as a multifunctional space for exhibitions and cultural events. Another part of the greenhouse complex, dating from the second half of the 20th century (Map No. 11)—the large greenhouses built during the Soviet period—was restored and adapted for events in 2014. A stage has been installed here for seminars, concerts, and other cultural activities. Further reconstruction of the complex is planned.
Footprints of History
