Marie Selby Botanical
Garden
Sarasota,
Florida
December, 2010
This 11-acre garden is world-famous for its collection of
epiphytic plants, with large collections of orchids and
bromeliads.
From the admissions area you’re directed into the
Conservatory, an introductory greenhouse showing the beauty
and diversity of epiphytes. It is planted so densely that I
found it a little overwhelming and it was difficult to find
labels for any of the plants. This detracted a little from
the educational aspect of the introduction but the sheer
mass of the plantings certainly conveyed the beauty and
diversity lesson.
Stepping out of the Conservatory, you encounter a landscape
nearly as lush as in the greenhouse. Much different than
the arid southwest where I’ve spent most of my career.
There are bromeliads almost everywhere you look, in the
trees and on the ground, but the Bromeliad Garden provides
a great showcase for them. Here they are beautifully
displayed and very well-labeled so you can really
appreciate their beauty and diversity.
Right next to the Bromeliad Garden is the mansion which
houses a museum of botanical and conservation-related art.
It was nicely decorated for Christmas during my visit. I
especially like the bromeliad Christmas Tree in front of
the building.
It was a cold and blustery day when I visited, threatening
rain any minute. I was feeling bad that I’d come on such a
miserable day until I walked into this stand of timber
bamboo. The sound of the wind clattering the stems together
was the sound of the most beautiful wind chimes I’d ever
heard. Sometimes beautiful moments come at the most
surprising times.
I also loved the walkway through the Mangrove swamp. The
twisted and gnarly mass of roots and trunks has an
otherworldly look that I find visually fascinating.
There are lots of other great things about this garden: the
Succulent Garden, with its mix of traditional succulents
and arid-loving bromeliads; the displays of cycads and
palms; the Tidal Lagoon; the Butterfly and Fragrance
Gardens. But the other display that really stands out to me
is the Banyan Grove. The massive aerial roots of these figs
has always astounded me, and although I’ve seen much larger
individual banyans, this grove is quite a sight.
This is a very special garden. It has a spectacular
location, almost surrounded by water, and it makes the most
of that water with interpretation, views and walkways. The
plant collection is also spectacular and they interpret it
well. In addition to being a great display garden, staff
are also involved with important research and conservation
work. My only complaint would be that there is almost no
interpretation of this research and conservation work. The
average visitor would have a great visit but leave knowing
nothing of the garden’s most important work. Still. I can’t
imagine anyone not throughly enjoying a few hours here.
To see more photos of the Marie Selby Botanical Garden,
click here.
Click here to visit the garden's website.
