Desert House

The Desert House was officially opened on 6 September 2007

Standing as an enclosed area within the Botanic Garden, it provides an opportunity for Namibians and visitors to see some of the rare and threatened species of the arid western and south-western parts of Namibia. In this specially built environment the plants are protected from excessive rain and cold. It is an added attraction to the Botanic Garden, where learners from schools and tertiary institutions as well as the general public can be made aware of the richness and diversity of our indigenous flora. It also contributes towards plant conservation and research through its ex situ collections.

The Desert House was developed with dolomite rocks from the Namib being delivered to Windhoek through the aegis of VKE Consulting Engineers, Rössing Uranium Ltd and URAMIN, sand coming from a farm in the southern area and the plants themselves from the ‘rescue’ operations within NamZinc’s and Namdeb’s mining concession areas as well as some being carefully collected by field staff of the NBRI.