Ranked among the ten most beautiful gardens in the world, the Jardin d’Essai d’El Hamma, which covers 60 hectares, is located between the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and the first hills of the city of Algiers, thus benefiting of a microclimate maintained by the sea air currents and protected from the winds coming from the South by the mountains which dominate Algiers. Unfortunately, urbanization has eaten up almost half of its area, but the remaining 32 hectares are definitely classified.
The term “Hamma” means in the Arabic language “fever”, it is to say the marshy state of this place where mosquitoes and insects coexisted and reproduced, constituting a real danger for human health.
Created in 1832, on the property of a Moor who owned a small countryside with about fifteen norias. The French authorities expropriate it.
When the military authorities had the idea of creating this large garden, in 1831, a few hectares of marshland were cleaned up, with the aim of transforming them into agricultural land.
At the proposal of the intendant Genty de Bussy, General Avisard signed the decree for the creation of the garden in December 1832. At that time, the major concerns were the establishment of this establishment and the creation of a garden. ‘test capable of propagating the cultivation of the most useful plants and suitable for the soil and climate of Africa. It was necessary to introduce all kinds of species and varieties that perform well in the Algerian countryside.
For the establishment of this establishment, the first two directors: Lieutenant de Vaisseau Barnier and the engineer commander Bérard, begin work on an area of 5 hectares, then will extend over 18 hectares. This important nursery, called “Central Government Nursery”, will provide arborescent, shrub and herbaceous species, first of European origin, such as hazelnuts, maples, orange trees and poplars, then, later, in 1835, we will introduce the casuarinas, then the phytolaca dioica, in 1836, the dragon tree Dracaena draco, in 1839, then the hibiscus rosa sinensis, in 1841.
When Auguste Hardy, agricultural engineer, renowned at the Muséum d ‘Histoires Naturelles in Paris, took over the management of the Jardin d’Essai from 1842 to 1866, he transformed it into a versatile organism by working to create favorable conditions, improving the soil fertility and regulate the sanitation of swamps by a drainage network of surplus water, to accelerate the development of agriculture and horticulture in Algeria.
The surface area increased from 13 hectares in 1842 to 58 hectares by annexing the Villa Abdeltif which overlooks the garden.
The introduction of the avocado tree in 1843 was followed a year later by the introduction of the araaucaria excelsa, then, in 1845, that of the mandarin tree. Banana, medlar, lemon, ficus, bamboo and jacaranda were introduced in 1860. In that same year, industrial plants were the subject of several trials including henna, tea, cotton, sumac, avage, flax and sugar cane.
From there, the Jardin d’Essai orients and determines the programs of ancillary nurseries created across the country: in Constantine, Annaba and Boufarik, as well as other towns. In order to overcome the problems of introduction and multiplication of plant material, Mr Hardy, publishes brochures and articles on cultivation methods to be applied in Algeria which remain, to this day, topical.
This garden, in view of the multiple varieties of plants, becomes a world-famous Botanical Garden. For better aesthetics, we create main aisles:
The alley of plants comes to life in 1845. Followed, two years later by the alley of dragon trees and bamboos, then, in 1863, the alley of ficus takes place.
Again, “The Central Government Nursery” changes its name to “Hamma’s Garden of Acclimatization.”
The Golden Age of the Hamma Acclimatization Garden:
Under the leadership of Auguste Hardy who directed the garden for 25 years, the field of agriculture and horticulture produced 3 million trees, 500,000 herbaceous plants, 8 quintals of seeds of forest species, 5 quintals of vegetable seeds, 280 kilos of seeds of ornamental plants, 9 quintals of seeds of industrial plants and 80,000 grafts of cuttings… The various exotic fruits of the garden were sent to European kings and dignitaries, from Paris to Moscow, passing through London, Vienna and Rome.
According to the botanist Martins, in 1864, the Hamma’s Garden of Acclimatization was the most beautiful botanical garden in temperate zones, and there were 1,672 genera of cultivated plants and 8,214 species and varieties.
The Archbishop of Algiers sent seeds from Rome for trials in the garden, just as the Emperor himself did from Litchis or from the Museum of Natural History in Paris, from all over the world.
The famous botanist Trabut, a specialist in the flora of North Africa whose mission was, among other things, to improve plants of an economic nature and to benefit the agricultural settlers of Algeria. During his in situ visit in 1865, Napoleon III noted the picturesque effect of the various species that have become acclimatized there.
For treatment, Karl Max stayed in Algeria from February 20 to May 2, 1882, according to Mr. L. Benhassine, he had come on the recommendation of his doctors, but particularly at the insistence of his friend Engels, in order to overcome bronchitis and pleurisy that affected him. The air and climate of Algiers as well as southern Algeria was highly recommended for patients with lung disease. (See our article “Karl Marx staying in Algeria.”).
The extension of the garden:
The authorities at the time, between 1914 and 1945 gave new directives to the Jardin d’Essai, the objectives of which were to keep it as a place for walking and relaxation, but also as a kind of agronomic laboratory where we would study production and propagation of useful plant species, as well as the introduction of the most diverse plants, with the aim of constituting botanical collections. Following the launch of a landscape architecture competition, embellishment and restoration work began in 1914. Of all the projects, that of Messrs. Régner and Guion was selected. A project through which a perspective of the French Garden extends from the North face to the South face, over an area of 7 hectares.
In 1918, the horticultural school and the housewife school opened their doors. The steep wooded hill was converted into a landscaped park and in 1923 became the hill of the arcades and the insectarium was developed which joined other scientific activities, also hosting the plant protection service.
Work on the Museum of Fine Arts, the work of architect Paul Guion, ended in 1930, thus finalizing the landscape of the upper part of the Garden. The other service which joins the scientific activities is the arboriculture service, in 1933, with the aim of improving the new varieties of fruit trees, where we specialize in the study of citrus among the varieties Thomson Navel, Washington Navel, Double fine and hardy species such as olive and fig.
The consequences of the Second World War:
The advent of the Second World War had severely hampered the scientific and technical activities of the garden. On November 8, 1942, the Allied troops occupied the premises to install the rolling stock depots, workshops and dining halls. During the night of August 26 to 27, 1943, it was subjected to aerial bombardments.
In the aftermath of the war, in 1946, the restoration of the site will be difficult in view of the great losses and damage to the garden: weeds had invaded the abandoned nurseries, military vehicles had smashed down the beautiful alleys and several valuable cash was lost, greenhouses and pipes damaged. The garden will not be open to the public until 1947, after its restoration.
The garden will remain under the management of Mr. Carra who will take care of it until the threshold of independence. Almost two decades during which he will lead the specialty of the garden in floriculture where new species will not only be acclimatized, but new varieties will emerge.
The Essai Garden was one of the specialized establishments of the international network in the exchange of plants and seeds.
The Garden of Essay after independence:
After independence; it was the Algerian Center for Agronomic, Sociological and Economic Research which took charge of the Essay Garden. In 1966, the National Institute for Agronomic Research (INRA) took over, making this space a research station whose objectives were very inconsistent with the original vocation of the Garden. For good reason, structures and plant collections were withering away and the result was felt through heavy losses, including the number of Taxa which had fallen from 6,000 to 3,000 species. The installation of annexes, on plots of land inside the Garden, caused extensive damage to the existing vegetation.
On December 20, 1967, the Jardin d’Essai was finally classified as a natural monument by Algerian law, according to Ordinance No. 67-281, of December 20, 1967, relating to excavations and the protection of historic sites and monuments.
Today, the Jardin d’Essai is a veritable space for strolling where thousands of people go there almost daily for walks through which they escape the hubbub of the city.
source : translated from https://babzman.com/le-jardin-dessai-enracine-a-el-hamma-depuis-188-ans/
