Eala Botanical Garden

Eala was founded in 1900 as a research garden for tropical agriculture, and at its height it held several thousand species across three hundred and seventy hectares along the river, with an arboretum, palm collections and experimental plots. Funding collapsed and the garden has been reclaimed in part by the forest around it, so what you walk through now is a mixture of planted specimens, overgrown avenues and secondary growth. The mature trees are the reason to go: enormous specimens planted over a century ago, now in a forest of their own making.

What you actually see

• The old plantings - century-old specimen trees, some enormous, along the original avenues.
• The palm collection - remnants of one of the larger palm collections assembled in Africa.
• The river frontage - the garden's edge on the Congo, with pirogues passing.
• The reclaimed sections - areas where the forest has grown back over the planted plots.

When to go

The drier windows, December to February and June to August, make the paths easier. Rain is possible in any month here. Mornings are best for birds and slightly cooler.

Honest expectations

The garden is not maintained to anything like its former standard and many collections are gone or unlabelled. Paths are overgrown and a guide from the gate makes the difference. Mosquitoes are abundant and the humidity is severe.

Nearby

Mbandaka is a short drive west along the river.