Just a stone’s throw from the hustle and bustle of Ljubljana, a nature reserve delights townspeople and well-informed visitors with its forests, parks, and wetlands. Recognized since the 1980s, the Tivoli, Rožnik, and Šiška Hill Protected Area also hides an unexpected bounty of life.

About three quarters of the protected area consists of forest, with most of the rest being made up of grasslands. It was here that the 18^th century botanist Franz Wulfen first described the European false stitchwort, a rare flower. More than 400 other types of plants are commonly found in the area, among them the native eleocharis carniolica, a member of the sedge family that named after the inner Slovenian province of Carniola. The area is also a refuge for birds.

Despite its proximity to a big city, the protected area even contains several wetlands, which give life to a wide variety of amphibians, as well as stone crayfish and rare beetles.

Also a part of the protected area is Ljubljana’s Tivoli Park. The origins of the park date back to the French occupation and the year 1813: That’s when a man named Jean Blanchard drew up the first master plan for the park. In the 20^th century, the famed Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik reimagined large parts of Tivoli, giving the park its present appearance. It now includes spacious lawns, tree-line promenades, and even a pond.

The protected area includes a conservatory that houses exotic plants, but one of its most interesting attraction is Jesenko’s Trail. It was conceived by the geneticist Fran Jesenko in the early 20^th century. Determined to protect Tivoli from urban encroachment, he created a tree-lined trail three kilometers in length. By walking the length of the trail, visitors pass by no fewer than 30 different varieties of trees.

Unusually rich by any standards, the protected area is especially remarkable for lying virtually in the heart of a busy European capital.