Native to Nepal
These plants grew in Nepal’s forests and hills long before anyone planted them in a garden. Many are woven into daily life, festivals, and worship.
Peepal
पीपल
Ficus religiosa
The tree under which the Buddha is said to have become enlightened, and sacred to Hindus too. Each heart-shaped leaf ends in a long “drip tip” that helps rain run off.
Rhododendron
लालीगुराँस
Rhododendron sp.
Nepal’s national flower, the lali gurans, is a rhododendron, and about 30 kinds grow wild in Nepal’s hills and mountains. Their leaves are poisonous, so grazing animals leave them alone.
Nigalo
निगालो
Drepanostachyum sp.
A slender bamboo of the Himalayas. In Nepal’s hills, nigalo is split and woven into doko baskets and mats, and its young shoots are eaten.
Chiuri (Butter Tree)
चिउरी
Diploknema butyracea
Chiuri grows wild in Nepal’s hills. Its seeds give chiuri ghee, a vegetable butter used in cooking and on skin, and bees make honey from its flowers.
Phrynium
Phrynium sp.
Its big, tough leaves have long been used to wrap food, and even as plates, across South and Southeast Asia.
Lapsi
लप्सी
Choerospondias axillaris
Nepal’s own hog plum. Its sour fruit is made into lapsi candy and achar, and each hard stone has five little holes at one end, where the seedlings come out.
Photinia
गजफूल
Photinia integrifolia
Its new leaves come out bright red before turning green. This photinia grows wild in the Himalayas, including Nepal’s hill forests.
More in Looks, Scents, and Surprises
The garden is alive and changes through the year. Some plants flower, fruit, or rest only in certain seasons, so what you see depends on when you visit.
See them for yourself
Every plant here grows on our campus in Bhaktapur. Walk the garden on your visit.
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