Bamberg blooms! — Day of the Open Nurseries

A City with Gardens in its Heart

Bamberg is one of the few cities in Europe where traditional commercial nurseries still operate right in the city center, nestled between the Cathedral, the Old Town Hall, and the Sand district. The Bamberg Gärtnerstadt — characterized by narrow, long plots behind the townhouses, with greenhouses, beds, and courtyards — has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage site "Old Town of Bamberg" since 1993. It is one of the rare examples of urban vegetable cultivation since the Middle Ages that is still practiced today.

Bamberg blooms! — a spring festival since 2011

Since 2011, the Bamberg Gardeners' Interest Group, together with the Bamberg Cultural Office, has been organizing the Day of the Open Nurseries. Every year at the end of April, twelve of the traditional nurseries open their gates — a mix of plant market, courtyard tours, and a folk festival where the public can get to know the true custodians of the World Heritage site.

What the twelve nurseries offer

• Over 100 old tomato varieties as seedlings — from 'Bamberger Hörnchen' to 'Ochsenherz' and 'Roter Russe'.
• Bamberg specialties — the famous 'Bamberger Hörnla' potato, 'Bamberger Knoblauch' (garlic), 'Bamberger Süßholz' (licorice), and 'Bamberger Rettich' (radish).
• Spring bloomers and summer flowers — geraniums, petunias, pansies, perennials, and ornamental plants from their own cultivation.
• Herbs and medicinal plants — from fresh fields and dried crops of the nurseries.
• Plant advice from master gardeners — on sustainable gardening, variety selection, soil, and climate issues.

Supporting program — more than just a plant market

Throughout the day, hands-on activities take place in the nurseries: flower arranging, planting salad bowls for children, bouncy castles in the courtyards, culinary stations with vegetarian specialties, smoked sausages from regional butchers, and Franconian beers. An e-mobility shuttle connects the quarters free of charge for visitors with limited mobility.

More than 12,000 visitors per year

The event has developed into one of the most popular spring festivals in Franconia. More than 12,000 people come every year — Bamberg families, weekend visitors from Nuremberg, Würzburg, and Erlangen, and increasingly, garden tourists from all over Southern Germany. Free admission.