The Jardin des Plantes de La Rochelle is a botanical garden of about two hectares, tucked behind the Natural History Museum on Rue Albert 1er. It is one of the few genuinely shaded retreats in central La Rochelle on a summer afternoon. The garden was founded in the 17th century and still has several trees from that era — a magnificent ginkgo and a tulip tree among them — standing above the more formal flowerbeds.
The greenhouse shelters tropical and subtropical species and is open to visitors during the garden's regular hours. Entry is free. The Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle next door is also worth a visit for its natural history collections, including a remarkable cabinet of curiosities assembled by local botanists and travellers in the 18th and 19th centuries.