Secondary Growth Forest

The pre-montane secondary forest existing in the Garden represents one of the few recovered areas in the urban zone of Costa Rica's Central Valley . In 1973, the year the Garden was inaugurated, most of the land was pasture land and abandoned crops. The natural succession received human assistance through planting native and very varied introduced species. With an area of approximately six hectares, visitors can find native species adapted to the secondary forest; tree species from the country's lower lying, humid areas; ornamental ground plants; numerous epiphytes; and climbing araceae. The secondary forest is also home to a large number of bird species, small mammals, reptiles, and insects.