Terra Nostra Garden dates back to 1780. Thomas Hickling, a Bostonian merchant then US Consul in São Miguel Island, had his summer residence (Yankee Hall) built on this luxurious location.  This was originally a simple wooden house built upon the mound where Casa do Parque now stands and surrounded of trees mostly from his native North America.  None of these appear to have survived, except for a pollarded English oak.  The garden, then a 2 Ha property, was later extended and developed by its subsequent owners, respectively the Viscounts of Praia and the Bensaude family.

In 1848, Visconde da Praia, who built the present Casa do Parque on the site of Hickling’s old Yankee Hall, purchased the property.  The original 2 hectares garden was enlarged and laid out in grand style in the middle of with water, dark groves of trees and parterres of flowers.  After his death, in 1872, his son, the Marquis of Praia and Monforte, continued his parents’ work, introducing additional improvements in the garden with the assistance of Portuguese and British gardening experts who helped in developing the serpentine canal, grottoes, lush avenues and trails then lined with orange trees.  A significant number of today's impressive trees date back from that period, some of which were shipped from as far as North America, Australia, New Zealand, China and South Africa.
In the thirties, Vasco Bensaude acquired the property, which he regarded as a necessary complement to the recently completed Hotel Terra Nostra.  Vasco also purchased small portions of surrounding land, bringing the garden to its present size of 12.5 Ha.

Recognizing a need for major restoration, Vasco Bensaude, a keen gardener himself, entrusted his Scottish head gardener John McInroy with the task of restoring and developing Terra Nostra Botanical Park (1934-1939). Significant improvements were introduced, including the restoration of Casa do Parque, the adaptation of the spring iron water thermal pool, which was covered and circled with local basaltic stone, the restoration of the Park’s roads and lakes, including the design and planting of the Ginkgo Biloba avenue, as well as the introduction of a large number of new species in the garden. Extensive maintenance and improvement have been continued by the next Bensaude generations. By 1990, Filipe Bensaude, Vasco’s son, asked English horticulturist David Sayers, together with arborist Richard Green to undertake the identification and treatment of approximately 2,500 trees as well as the planting of more than 3,000 new trees and shrubs. Subsequently, Patricia and Joaquim Bensaude have carried on the task of maintaining and developing the Park’s botanical resources with the invaluable support of Terra Nostra’s head gardener Fernando Costa.  Out of the most recent and on-going tasks, new gardens have been added to the Park, namely a collection of endemic species, a fern garden, a cycads garden, a garden of annual flowers and plants, and the creation of a camellia collection. 

Endemic plants collection

Here you are invited to sample the main endemic plants of São Miguel Island.  Initiated in 1993, this collection offers our visitors the chance to observe the richness of the endemic flora of the Azores archipelago.  This flora has some similarities with other regions of Macaronesia, which include, besides the Azores, Madeira, Canaries and Cape Verde archipelagoes. There are 56 unique species in the Azores archipelago.  Among those, you can find here the following species: azorina vidalis, juniperus brevifolia, laurus azorica, vaccinum cylindraceum, erica azorica, ilex perado, myrica faya, and frangula azorica.

Fern Garden

In this area of the park, next to the iron water stream cascading from the pool, one can find a vast fern collection of approximately 220 varieties (some of which are endemic plants).  This collection began in 1995 and allows for the observation of this group of plants, whose natural habitat is in various areas of the planet, in semi-tropical and temperate climates with some degree of humidity and with a preference for shady wooded areas.

Vireya Collection

Originally from Malaysia, a varied collection of vireyas – Malaysia rhododendrons – has been progressively introduced in the park over the last 10 years.  This collection blooms throughout many months of the year.  Benefiting from the mild climate of the Azores, these plants offer a vast array of lively colors, ranging from white, orange, pink, salmon or red, and provide outstanding color intensity to their location near the Fern Garden.

Azalea Collection

The Terra Nostra Park contains a significant number of sites with azalea plantations, which bloom in March and April, and provide an interesting chromatic range, ranging from whites to reds to lilac colors, traditional of São Miguel Island.

Cycads Garden

Started in the year 2000, this part of the park’s old orange orchard was readapted to host a collection of cycads. This group of plants, presently considered an endangered species, has been around for millions of years. They were first introduced in Europe from their native lands (Africa, Australia, Central and South Americas, South East Asia) in the early 17th century.  Today, you can find here some 85 varieties - the largest national collection.  The cycads are adapting well and even propagating. 
A rare plant was planted in this spot in 2009 – Nobilis-Wollemi pine (Wollemia Nobilis-Araucariaceae), discovered in 1994 in Australia.  This special pine joins the other live vegetable fossils in the Park:  Cycas, Gingkos, Araucarias, Agathis and Tree Ferns.
Surrounded by a low tea plant hedge, Camellia sinensis, and protected by a century-old taller hedge (Pittosporum undulatum and Syzygium), we filled the space in between with Clivia Miniata, which bloom in the spring.  This collection sits on a privileged spot, where one can enjoy a magnificent view over the hills encircling Furnas Valley.

Camellia Garden

The creation of a Camellia Garden is taking place in four Park areas and contains more than 600 camellia varieties.  The first area houses Reticulata, Hybrid and Japonica species.  The second area in the back is delineated by Hybrid species, the Sasanqua species lives in a deeper and darker section and to the right of the Flower Garden in an extensive zone in the middle of Palm Trees are the Japonica species.  Most of the Camellias have already been identified and tagged accordingly.