The Arboretum Volčji Potok, Kamnik, Slovenia
We’ve spent a huge amount of time in Slovenia over the past 17 years, but this year (2023) is the first time we’ve visited Arboretum Volčji Potok, located in Radomlje near Kamnik.
The most visited botanic garden in Slovenia
Given that it’s only 20 minutes away from our holiday home, you’d have to surmise that we’ve actively not wanted to go there. Well, you’d be right – we much prefer to stroll through wildflower meadows than through sculptured, manicured gardens. Which is what, to be honest, we expected Arboretum Volčji Potok to be like.
But now we’ve been there at last, we must admit that we were wrong in our preconceptions. We’d recommend that anyone wanting to get away from the tourist crowds in Bled and Ljubljana, or to get a better understanding of Slovenian nature without heading into up the mountains, pays Arboretum Volčji Potok a visit. Not that it’s quiet: it’s very well known to Slovenes and is the most-visited botanical park in Slovenia. But it’s huge (85 hectares) and absorbs its visitors well – we wandered round for several hours and saw few people, especially once we got into the more ‘wild’ and forested areas.
Only 20km from Ljubljana
Arboretum Volčji Potok lies beneath the Kamniske Alpes, which provide a stunning backdrop.
The gardens were created by the Souvan family more than 100 years ago and lie in the grounds of their old manor house. Today only a few ruins remain, and what appears to be the manor house on the website and in promotional material, is in fact a projection onto a large screen!
There are wildflower meadows aplenty, loads of trees and wooded areas (as you’d expect for an arboretum!) and various gardens created along different themes, such as the French Garden. Two thousand tulips flower in spring (one for each Slovene) and the rose garden must be incredible when it’s in full bloom in June (we visited at the end of May during a late spring, so only a few roses were in flower).
The flower beds change every year – we were especially inspired by the planting of alliums among hostas – looked amazing and also remarkably slug and snail free (especially remarkable given that slugs and snails in Slovenia are enormous!) There are also various sculptures all around the park – all made of natural materials and really adding to the beauty of the landscape.
Together with countless village churches and hay racks, bee houses are typical element of Slovenian rural architecture and a recognisable symbol of Slovenia. Indeed, Slovenia has been labelled the “heart and soul of beekeeping” in Europe, being known for the quality of its honey and its long tradition of apiculture.
We were taken aback by the extent of wildlife in the gardens: in addition to incredible birdsong, there were also loads of frogs and toads (very noisily croaking and mating when we were there), turtles, butterflies, bees and immense numbers of fish with huge gaping mouths in the many lakes. You feel really close to them all (probably because you are) and therefore also close to nature. Far removed from the sterile municipal planting found in many council-run British public parks and gardens – although some local councils are seeing the light at last, and the National Trust are of course beacons of best practice in that respect. But I digress!
There’s a traditional Slovene beehive at Arboretum Volčji Potok, with painted panels and countless incredibly busy bees.
Arboretum Volcji Potok Slovenia
We’d recommend eating before your visit to Arboretum Volčji Potok: there’s a great café but it only (as far as we could tell) sells tea, coffee and cakes, rather than being a restaurant. There are plenty of things to entertain children, including a playground and amazing mammoth and whale sculptures. Plus, the arboretum stages many creative and musical events throughout the year – it’s a really active community hub.
Take a look at its Facebook page.
So all in all, an unexpectedly enjoyable discovery, and one that probably wouldn't be on the usual beaten tourist track for Slovenia. But for a highly accessible insight into Slovene nature, flora and fauna, we’d definitely recommend it.