ABOUT
About this spot
Koishikawa Botanical Garden is the botanical garden of the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Science, covering about 160,000 square meters in Hakusan, Bunkyo. It began as the Koishikawa Medicinal Garden opened by the Edo shogunate in 1684 and is regarded as the oldest botanical garden in Japan. Right in central Tokyo, it offers a calm green space. A medicinal garden founded in 1638 was moved to Koishikawa in 1684, and in 1722 the Koishikawa Infirmary was established on the grounds. It became part of the University of Tokyo in 1877 and was designated a national Place of Scenic Beauty and Historic Site in 2012. A new greenhouse opened in November 2019. It is also known as the place where Aoki Konyo began trial cultivation of sweet potatoes in 1735. The garden has a camellia garden, a plum grove, a Japanese garden, a public greenhouse and the Shibata Memorial Hall. Historic highlights include a tree known as "Newton's apple", Mendel's grape, the ginkgo linked to the discovery of sperm in plants, and the well of the infirmary. Autumn color is led by Japanese maples, usually at its best from mid-November to late December. It is open 9:00-16:30 (last entry 16:00); admission is 500 yen for high school students and older and 150 yen for junior high and elementary school students. It is closed on Mondays (the next day if Monday is a holiday) and over the New Year holidays. Hakusan Shrine is about 560 m away.
Last updated October 25, 2026