The Glass House with Terrarium

A special attraction in Trauttmansdorff:

The Glass House is home to tropical crop plants and orchids. The Terrarium, next to the greenhouse area, offers an up-close-and-personal encounter with insects like leafcutter ants.

During the planning phase, a great deal of emphasis was placed on functionality and a distinctive appearance: the object was designed to integrate harmoniously into Forests of the World and, in a sense, grow out of the ground and towards the light. The red wall at the back acts like a protective earthen barrier, while the irregular silhouette of the structure evokes the unusual contours of the Texel Group.

Plants

The greenhouses feature exotic crop plants, tropical fruit trees including papaya, avocado and mango, plants for consumption such as sugar cane and coffee, and perfume plants including patchouli and ylang ylang. The greenhouse also houses fibre plants such as cotton, and a display case of carnivorous plants.

Terrarium

The leafcutter ants are the highlight of the Terrarium. Their custom-built formicarium provides visitors with a fascinating insight into their everyday life – their fungus chamber, feeding chamber and waste chamber and all of the paths which connect them – without disturbing the animals unnecessarily.