palm house at the botanic gardens

The Palm House is one of the earliest examples of a curvilinear and cast iron glasshouse. Its construction was initiated by the Belfast Botanical and Horticultural Society in the 1830s. The two wings were completed in 1840, and were built by Richard Turner of Dublin, who later built the Great Palm House at Kew Gardens. The 37 foot high elliptical dome at Belfast was only added twelve years later.

Over the years the Palm House acquired a reputation for good plant collections, and the visitor today can view similar plants to what the Victorians hailed as "vegetable wonders of the world". The cool wing houses all year round displays of colour and scent using plants such as geranium, fuchsia, begonia and bulb displays. The stove wing and dome area contain a range of temperate and tropical plants with particular emphasis on species of economic value.<