Primavera 2026: A Celebration of Rare Plants at the University of Montpellier

[Press Release] - Published on March 18, 2026 in Press Room

This This Sunday, March 22, 2026, starting at 10:00 a.m. on Boulevard Henri IV in Montpellier, the 21st edition of “Primavera,” the annual event dedicated to rare plants and the preservation of biodiversity, will take place. The event will be held at the Jardin des Plantes of the University of Montpellier, France’s oldest botanical garden.

This event began with a simple idea: an intern suggested organizing a festival dedicated to plants. The first edition took place on Sunday, March 20, 2005, as an intimate gathering for a select group of enthusiasts. Twenty years later, the event has established itself as a well-known annual gathering, bringing together enthusiasts of rare plants and individuals committed to environmental protection. With nearly fifty nursery owners and about fifteen organizations, the event offers a wide variety of plants: local or exotic, cacti or epiphytes, edible or dye plants, suitable for balconies, interiors, or gardens.

The schedule for the "Primavera 2026" event

66 exhibitor booths

The 2026 edition brings together 48 nursery owners from the south of France—including 7 new participants—as well as 13 environmental protection organizations, a specialized publisher, and 4 artists.

Three lectures, each lasting 45 minutes, are being offered at the Institute of Botany:

• 2:00 p.m.: “The Clementine Celebrates Its 100th Anniversary in Corsica: The Cultivated History of a Traveling Fruit” by Franck Curk, research engineer at INRAE, geneticist, and citrus specialist at the Agap Institute;

• 3:00 p.m.: “The Challenges of Biodiversity” by Arnaud Martin, President of the Espaces naturels de France Foundation and Professor the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Montpellier;

• 4:00 p.m.: “Charles Martins: Physician, Naturalist, and Traveler” by John De Vos, Professor the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Montpellier, Head of the Department of Cellular and Tissue Engineering at the University Hospital, and Director of the Jardin des Plantes.

Photo Exhibition at the Botanical Institute

A photography exhibition dedicated to the diversity of New Caledonia’s palm trees is on display, featuring works from the collection of botanist Jean-Christophe Pintaud. It highlights various species as well as the characteristics of the region that is home to them. A booklet accompanies the exhibition and provides additional information on fieldwork, the threats facing these species, and the conservation efforts being implemented. This exhibition was organized at the initiative of a group of scientists from the IRD (UMR DIADE – Plant Diversity, Adaptation, and Development), in partnership with the Master’s program in Heritage Promotion and Mediation at Paul-Valéry Montpellier University.