FAQs About the Closure of the Botany Library

Friday, 27 March 2026 will be the final opening day of the Botany site. From 28 March onwards, the library will be permanently closed: neither the reading room can be used nor can books be borrowed. Returns may be made via the University Library book return boxes (link to website), at the loans desk of the Main Library, or at the Departmental Library Biology & Botany at Djerassiplatz 1.

The holdings of the site will partly be transferred to the University Library storage facilities, partly to the basement stacks (not accessible or requestable), and partly relocated to the Departmental Library Biology & Botany at Djerassiplatz. During this process, not all items will be available for regular request until the end of the summer semester 2026. (Please also see the FAQ “Are there any restrictions on borrowing books from the former Botany site?”).

The Faculty of Life Sciences urgently requires additional space. In coordination with the Rectorate, the Faculty, and the Directorate of Library and Archive Services, it was therefore decided to close this library site.

You may use all other reading rooms and study spaces of the University Library. The location map provides a comprehensive overview of all facilities and services, including copying and scanning options at the University Library Vienna.

Books will be renewed until 30 April, either automatically or manually, provided that no reservation exists. From 30 April onwards, books will no longer be renewed and must be returned. Please also see the FAQ “Are there any restrictions on borrowing books from the former Botany departmental library?”.

Yes, items already on loan must be returned. In order to prepare all books for the new locations (see also FAQ “Are there any restrictions on borrowing books from the former Botany departmental library?”), each volume must be processed individually. Please therefore return borrowed books punctually by the end of the respective loan period, and no later than 30 April.

After the closure of the Botany site at the end of March, you may return books either via the University Library book return boxes, at the loans desk of the Main Library, or at the Departmental Library Biology & Botany at Djerassiplatz 1.

Yes, until 27 March 2026 you may request books from the Botany collection as usual and collect them by 27 March 2026 at the latest. Thereafter, the request function in u:search will be temporarily deactivated. From the current perspective, the relocated monograph collections at the Departmental Library Biology will again be available for borrowing from early July 2026. During the relocation process, borrowing will not be possible; see FAQ “Are there any restrictions on borrowing books from the former Botany site?”.

From 28 March until the end of June/beginning of July 2026, books will not be available for borrowing. This is because all items from the site must gradually be assigned new shelfmarks manually and relocated to other sites. While titles are being processed, they will not be requestable. By the end of June at the latest, processing is expected to have progressed to a point where there will no longer be any restrictions. We are endeavouring to complete this process as swiftly as possible so that the books can be made available again at the earliest opportunity.

The selected holdings stored in the basement stacks will, from the current perspective, be available for on-site use from July 2026. The monographs transferred to the Biology site should likewise be available again from July 2026. Journals archived in the Floridsdorf storage facility will no longer be available in print, but are fully licensed online. Journals stored in the Simmering facility may, from the current perspective, be requested for collection at the Departmental Library Biology & Botany from July 2026.

Reference collections and research collections for professors, the Chemical Laboratory, and the Botanical Garden will be retained.

Electronic literature may be accessed in all university buildings that provide Wi-Fi. An overview is available, for example, via the University Library Vienna location map.

Electronic resources may be accessed in all university buildings that provide Wi-Fi. An overview is available, for example, via the University Library Vienna location map.

The University Library will hand over the premises to the University. From July onwards, refurbishment works will commence in the former Botany site, with new offices, seminar rooms, and student spaces to be created.

Please use the purchase request form of the Departmental Library Biology and Botany for acquisition requests. E-books can be made available particularly quickly. You may also contact the team of the Departmental Library Biology and Botany at Djerassiplatz in person or by email at any time.

You can find information about targeted research support, training sessions, and workshops at any time on the Main Library’s webpages. Via u:rise, you have access to our extensive training programme. Should you require assistance on site, please contact the staff of the Departmental Library Biology and Botany at Djerassiplatz.

You can continue to contact the team of the Departmental Library Biology and Botany at fb-botanik.ub@univie.ac.at or fbbiologie.ub@univie.ac.at, or by telephone on +43-1-4277-16921 (Botany site) or +43-1-4277-16911 (Biology site).