Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Bégonia Conservatory is a municipal museum in Rochefort, labeled "CCVS National Collection". This specialized botanical garden, located on the edge of the Charente, preserves more than 1,500 varieties of begonia, making Rochefort the "capital of begonia". Although located on the margins of the historic centre, it is recognized by tourist guides as the Michelin Green Guide.

The origin of the conservatory dates back to the maritime history of Rochefort. The begonia owes its name to Michel Bégon, intendant of the Navy in the seventeenth century, who sent the botanist monk Charles Plumier to the West Indies in 1688. The latter discovered the plant, which he named in honour of Begon's wife. Rochefort then became a hub for importing exotic plants, including coffee, in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The creation of the conservatory was initiated in 1986, when the city acquired the Millerioux collection, a local horticulturalist specializing in begonias, with 200 species. In 1988, a 650 m2 greenhouse was built to house this collection, followed by an expansion of 350 m2 in 1993 to accommodate plants from South America and Cameroon. The museum opened to the public in 1990 and was equipped in 2010 with a museum space of 100 m2, accessible to people with reduced mobility.

Today, the conservatory extends over 1,100 m2 of greenhouses, divided into two spaces. The main greenhouse, inaugurated in 1988, features 1,500 begonias in four traditional forms, illustrating the evolution of these plants since 1845. The second greenhouse, opened in 2010, offers an immersive scenography evoking tropical forests, with didactic panels and spacious aisles. Despite its ex-centre, the conservatory remains a global reference for the conservation of begonias.

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