10 Lessons from 50 Years of Building Botanical Conservatories.
Monday 16 March 2026
When the outside temperature reaches 53°C
Designing a botanical greenhouse is challenging under normal circumstances.
Now imagine designing one where the outside temperature regularly reaches 53°C.
At the Bayan Botanic Garden in Kuwait City, a complex of glasshouses houses six botanical gardens across four climate zones. Each zone must support a completely different plant ecosystem, while the surrounding desert climate pushes temperatures to extremes.
The challenge was not only to create the right climate for plants.
It was to keep the intense desert heat outside while still allowing enough daylight inside for photosynthesis.
Achieving this balance required:
- a highly engineered building envelope
- specialized glazing that filters solar heat
- precise climate control systems
Botanical Greenhouse Design:
10 Lessons from 50 Years of Building Botanical Conservatories
Projects like this illustrate a key reality: Botanical conservatories are among the most technically complex buildings in public gardens. Unlike commercial greenhouses, botanical garden glasshouses must simultaneously support:
- diverse plant collections
- precise climate conditions
- visitor comfort
- architectural transparency
- long-term operational reliability
Over more than 50 years, EdenParks by Smiemans has designed and realized complex botanical glasshouses for gardens, universities, and public institutions across Europe and internationally.
Across these projects, several design principles consistently determine the success of a botanical greenhouse.
1. Climate Design Must Serve Plants and Visitors
Botanical plant collections often require high humidity and elevated temperatures, while visitors expect a comfortable environment.
Successful greenhouse design balances:
- humidity gradients
- air movement and stratification
- temperature stability
- visitor circulation
This balance becomes critical in large public conservatories where plant environments and visitor comfort must coexist.
2. Climate Zones Improve Plant Health and Energy Efficiency
Different plant species require different environmental conditions.
Dividing a conservatory into multiple climate zones allows precise control of:
- humidity levels
- temperature ranges
- air movement
- plant growth conditions
At The Glasshouse at RHS Garden Wisley, advanced climate systems combine cooling, heating, humidity monitoring and screening technologies to create multiple botanical environments within one structure.
3. Natural Daylight Is the Most Important Energy Source for Plants
Light drives plant growth, flowering cycles and plant health. The structural design of a botanical greenhouse strongly influences how daylight reaches the plant collection.
At Flora Botanischer Garten Köln in Cologne, our tropical greenhouse reaches 18 meters in height and maximizes transparency through large glass surfaces and minimal steel profiles.
This design supports the growth of more than 6,000 ageing and endangered plant specimens, while simultaneously simulating tropical rainforest and arid desert climates.
4. Glass Technology directly influences Plant Growth
Modern greenhouse glazing technologies influence:
- Solar heat gain;
- Light spectrum transmission;
- Insulation performance;
- Plant growth conditions.
At Cactus Greenhouse in Überlingen, specialized glazing was selected to provide the light spectrum required for cactus collections. Material choices like this play a crucial role in botanical performance.
5. Technical Systems should remain invisible
Botanical glasshouses rely on complex technical infrastructure:
- heating and cooling systems
- irrigation and humidity monitoring
- ventilation, shading and screening
Visitors come to enjoy plants and landscapes, not machines. Successful conservatories blend these into the architecture.
6. Botanical Glasshouses may also support Animal Environments
Plants need stability, whilst animals seek comfort and safety; it is essential to adapt the environment to their specific needs.
At Wildlands Adventure Zoo, the Butterfly Temple required a controlled light spectrum suitable for both tropical plants and butterflies. The structure uses ETFE foil, which provides high light transmission while keeping the structure lightweight.
7. Natural ventilation can help control humidity
In certain environments, natural ventilation strategies can significantly improve humidity management. At Goethe University Campus Riedberg Greenhouse in Frankfurt am Main, natural ventilation plays a key role in controlling excess humidity while maintaining stable plant conditions.
8. Maintenance must be designed from the start
Botanical greenhouses are long-term infrastructure. Many remain operational for 40–50 years or more. Successful projects incorporate maintenance considerations early in the design phase:
- Safe cleaning access
- Corrosion-resistant materials
- Service access for installations
- Long-term durability
9. Climate Improvements don't always require major constructions
Targeted climate techniques can significantly improve plant conditions in existing glasshouses. At Heritage Garden Inverewe in Scottish Highlands, carefully implemented climate solutions improved growing conditions while keeping the investment limited.
10. Botanical conservatories must remain relevant for decades
Botanical gardens operate with long time horizons. Glasshouses must remain adaptable to:
- new plant collections
- evolving climate technologies
- changing visitor expectations
Historic botanical environments such as Hortus Botanicus Leiden demonstrate how well-designed conservatories can remain relevant for generations.
Download the Whitepaper
10 Lessons from 50 Years of Building Botanical Glasshouses
This article highlights only part of the knowledge gained from decades of designing complex botanical environments. In our whitepaper we share deeper insights from international projects, including:
- engineering strategies behind botanical conservatories
- climate design for complex plant collections
- lessons learned from large public gardens
Discover how we design greenhouses for leading botanical gardens, successfully combining botany, architecture and climate control.
→ Download the whitepaper and explore the full insights.