Sitio Burle Marx

Burle Marx bought this farm in 1949 and used it for the rest of his life as a laboratory, collecting plants on expeditions across Brazil and planting them here in the massed drifts of single species that became the signature of his work - an argument that native tropical flora, then dismissed as scrub, could be the material of serious garden design. The collection runs to several thousand species, many rare and some named for him. The site holds his house, a studio, a restored seventeenth-century chapel and a modernist gallery for his paintings and textiles, since he worked as an artist throughout. It was inscribed as a World Heritage site in 2021, the first modern tropical garden listed. Visits are guided and must be booked.

What you actually see

• Massed native planting - the drifts of single species that defined his method.
• Several thousand species - the collection built on expeditions across Brazil.
• His house and studio - kept as he used them, with paintings and textiles.
• A restored colonial chapel - the seventeenth-century building on the site.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Entry is by booked guided visit at fixed times only, mostly in Portuguese, and turning up without a booking does not work. It is far from central Rio with poor public transport. Paths are uneven and there is heavy shade and humidity.

Nearby

Barra de Guaratiba is on the coast below; Pedra Branca park is inland.