The Toulouse botanical garden suffering from drought
Since August 9, it is forbidden to water the gardens in Toulouse because of the drought, which threatens rare plants in the Toulouse botanical garden.
The fourth heat wave that hits France during the 2022 summer season worsens the drought situation in which the country finds itself. long spared, the Toulouse conurbation is subject to a series of water restrictions since the beginning of August. And since August 9, the watering of lawns, public and private green spaces, pleasure gardens, sports fields is prohibited.
This latest water restriction is very bad news for the Toulouse Botanical Garden. Without watering, certain species of plants, some of which are very rare, are threatened, which would be a disaster from a scientific point of view. Concern is growing day by day within the teams, as our colleagues from 100% Radio.
The Toulouse Botanical Garden attends a derogation during the drought
The botanical garden is waiting for a derogation allowing it to spray with water during the drought. He would have obtained an oral agreement from the Directorate of Territories. Corn the services of the Haute-Garonne prefecture have not yet issued a derogation in accordance.
“A lot of these plants are tropical. They are kept in pots to protect them from the cold in winter. They already have problems with drought. And Without water, they won’t last long.. It takes a lot of time and money to replenish them. But here, it’s clear, with the drought, we’re going to lose some or else they’ll be damaged”, regrets Jean-Yves Marc, crop manager at the Toulouse botanical garden, in the columns of France 3.
More than 3,000 species are preserved in the Toulouse Botanical Garden. Some are very rare. “During the creation of the Petit-Saut dam in Guyana, scientists brought us plants so rare that they were not even listed,” recalls Jean-Yves Marc, to 100% Radio.