This plant even made it onto the five-franc coin. It is a symbol of Switzerland and emblematically represents the mountains that define the country. The edelweiss has an unmistakable symbolic value and is, moreover, beautiful to behold. A small detail: there isn't just one type of edelweiss. In these latitudes, the Alpine edelweiss is commonly known. The species originally hails from the Himalayas. The full diversity of this impressive flower can be found in the botanical garden of Hotel Schatzalp in Davos.
“We probably have the largest edelweiss collection in the world,” notes Fabian Reppel, head gardener at Schatzalp. With this collection, they aim to show that there isn't just one type of edelweiss, but a wealth of varieties. The Schatzalp Alpinum, as an alpine garden is known, makes it possible for the most diverse edelweiss varieties to reunite after centuries and millennia of migration. Much to the delight of visitors, who can discover this unique diversity on guided tours.
But it's not just the legendary edelweiss that blooms in the often seemingly barren alpine landscape. According to Reppel, a particularly unique and comprehensive flora can be found especially in the zone around the tree line. This also explains the 5,000 different plant species and varieties from all over the world that bloom and thrive in the Schatzalp Alpinum.
