Systematic department

In the systematic section the informative teaching aspect is again strongly pronounced: plant species are grouped here into plant families. Here, about 1,600 plant species that can be cultivated outdoors are arranged in a concentric arrangement according to their relationship to families and larger units. In the center are the most primitive flowering plant families, and in the peripheral areas are the groups that are the most developed and specialized. The regular arrangement in geometric beds provides a good overview.
Concentric circles and radial paths are also found here, meeting in the center in a small pavilion decorated with Art Nouveau elements. It was restored in 2007. Around this pavilion originally stood mighty elms, which have fallen victim to the elm dieback. Four sturdy tulip trees – from the magnolia family (Magnoliaceae) – replace the elms and offer a splendid picture during the flowering season from May to June.

New findings

The systematic section is laid out in such a way that the more developmentally primitive families are found in the center around the pavilion, the more modern ones in the periphery of the square layout. More recently, molecular studies of the plant genome have provided many new insights. In particular, the relationship of entire plant families could be clarified. In the current arrangement in the system of the Munich-Nymphenburg Botanical Garden, the view from the 1980s (according to Armen Takhtajan) is combined with more recent findings.