Palmetum of Santa Cruz de Tenerife

It is an artificial hill, with views of the ocean, located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.

The gardens include a large system of waterfalls, streams and ponds, a museum dedicated to palms, and a display shade house.

The palmetum is located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, capital city of the Western Canary Islands, in the district of Cabo Llanos, by the Parque Marítimo César Manrique.

The creation of the gardens was started in 1995 with funding from the European Union and the City of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, under the botanical direction of the Agronomist Manuel Caballero Ruano and the biologist Carlo Morici.

Today it is open daily and visited by locals and tourists, with thriving school programs and regular exchanges with other institutions.

The collection of Thrinax, Coccothrinax and Hemithrinax is one of the most complete in the world, as it proceeds from numerous field expeditions and collaborations with botanical gardens in the Caribbean, especially with La Habana, Cienfuegos and Las Tunas in Cuba, the Montgomery Botanical Center in Miami and the Jardín Botánico Nacional de Santo Domingo.

An outstanding case is Coccothrinax borhidiana, which is a slow and critically endangered species, represented in the palmetum by 17 specimens germinated in 1996, now fruiting in the Caribbean section.