The 10 All-Time Best Botanical Gardens — Plant Care Tips and More

Huntington Botanical Garden, Pasadena CA — Photo Courtesy Orchid Digest

The U.S. has no shortage of beautiful outdoor spaces, but for a dose of tranquility and inspiration (not to mention a dreamy picnic spot!), we think that botanical gardens offer a truly special experience.

Because they’re frequently located in urban areas, botanical gardens are able to make the full spectrum of nature’s beauty accessible and offer us a glimpse into environments we might otherwise never see. (Where else but at a botanical garden could you find a desert landscape of cacti and succulents, and a water garden complete with lotuses and turtles!) Additionally, many botanical gardens in the US have put extra care into physical accessibility, which means that these outdoors spaces can be enjoyed by people with limited mobility- and that level of accessibility can be hard to come by in other public spaces and preserves, where paths are often less well-tended and accessibility-friendly landscape architecture is less common.

We’ve rounded up the very best of the best big botanical gardens in the US for this list. But if these far-flung locations are a bit outside your stomping ground, you still have a tremendous bouquet of options! There are so many local gardens across our country, both big and small, and all can offer a wonderful way to spend a day in contemplation and wonder with family and friends.

Huntington Library, San Marino, California — Photo Courtesy Visit Pasadena

1. Huntington Library- Pasadena, CA

A fine art museum, research institution and botanical garden, the Huntington Library is not to be missed if you find yourself in Los Angeles County. Featuring 120 acres of landscaped gardens, as well as a substantial collection of 17th to mid-20th century European and American art, The Huntington may well be the jewel in the crown of Pasadena, itself a city beloved for its abundant historical architecture and cultural institutions. Don’t miss the Huntington’s Amorphophallus titanum, or Corpse Flower, an enormous, carnivorous plant with a Jurassic appearance and, yes, an unforgettably funky odor!

2. San Francisco Botanical Garden- San Francisco, CA

Located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, the San Francisco Botanical Garden is renowned for its variety of beautifully curated gardens, from its tremendous Ancient Plant Garden to its Moon Viewing Garden, which features Japanese stone pagodas and enchanting pools. The San Francisco Botanical Garden is equally beloved for its events, including the Flower Piano series, a yearly event in which piano concerts are held al fresco in the Garden’s verdant groves.

3. Missouri Botanical Garden- St. Louis, MO

With over 4,800 living trees and 89 acres of gardens, The Missouri Botanical Garden is unforgettable to all who visit. Featuring an Ottoman Garden, Chinese Garden and a thriving rainforest of tropical plants within the Climatron Conservatory, this botanical garden is one of the nation’s largest. Its Japanese Garden alone spans over 14 acres, and with cultural days, plant shows and seed sales all on the calendar, the Missouri Botanical Garden offers an abundance of horticultural experiences year-round.

4. Atlanta Botanical Garden- Atlanta, GA

In the heart of Atlanta’s Midtown lies the Atlanta Botanical Garden. There are 30 acres of outdoor gardens to enjoy, including the iconic Storza Woods, which spans ten acres and features sculptural installations by Dale Chihuly. The Atlanta Botanical Garden has been dazzling visitors and fostering horticultural research since 1973, and is home to The Southeastern Center for Conservation, which works with partner institutions to foster habitat restoration, biodiversity research and more.

Fairchild Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Columbus, OH — Photo Courtesy Experience Columbus

5. Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens- Columbus, OH

Founded in 1993, the grounds of the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens encompass the historical John D. Wolfe Palm House, constructed in 1895. If you haven’t yet visited, we guarantee you’ve never seen anything quite like the John D. Wolfe Palm House: a massive, Victorian glass greenhouse which is home to 43 species of palms. The Palm House also features a Ficus lyrata, or Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree, that was planted around the time the house itself was erected. That’s right, a Fiddle from Victorian times! In case you’re wondering: yes, it’s massive, brushing the ceilings of the sky-high greenhouse itself!

ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden, Albuquerque, New Mexico — Photo Courtesy Trekearth

6. ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden- Albuquerque, NM

Albuquerque’s BioPark is itself a tremendous achievement, featuring a zoo, aquarium, botanical garden and a beach with fishing ponds containing trout and catfish. Clearly, there’s something for everyone! But we’re preoccupied by its exceptional botanical garden, which spans 52 acres and features a 10,000 square foot glass conservatory, a Japanese garden and a 10 acre heritage farm.

US Botanic Garden, Washington, DC — Photo Courtesy United States Botanic Garden

7. United States Botanic Garden, Washington DC

The United States Botanical Garden is the stuff of legend: it’s the oldest continuously operating public garden in the country, with construction dating back to the 1830s. The garden has seen various iterations of development since then, and now features a Primeval Garden, Hawaiian Garden, an Orchid Garden with over 5,000 specimens, and more. Its iconic, glass-clad greenhouse was built in 1933 and contains almost 29,000 square feet of growing space. The United States Botanic Garden’s National Garden is something that we can all be proud of: a three-acre array of plants endemic to the mid-Atlantic, featuring a Rose Garden and the First Ladies Water Garden, adorned with gorgeous tile fountains and dedicated to- you guessed it- America’s First Ladies!

8. New York Botanical Garden, New York NY

Located in the Bronx, the New York Botanical Garden was founded in 1891 on the northern half of Bronx Park, alongside the Bronx River, rocky gorges and 50 acres of old-growth American forest. At 250 acres, the New York Botanical Garden is the country’s largest, and it’s chock-full of diverse landscapes and gardens. Among the standouts are its Orchid Collection, located in the Conservatory’s Rainforest Galleries, an expansive conifer arboretum, and the Cherry Collection, which features over 200 flowering cherry trees, with blossoms in shades of pink and white.

9. Chicago Botanic Garden, Glencoe IL

Since 1965, the Chicago Botanic Garden has charmed visitors with its ample gardens, situated along six miles of lakeside coastline. It features a 17 acre Japanese Garden containing three islands, a renowned bonsai collection, and a sensory garden, cultivated to showcase plants that engage our senses of smell and touch as well as sight. (Tasting the plants might be taking it a little too far.) The six miles of coastline set the Chicago Botanic Garden apart as one of the most aesthetically beautiful and horticulturally diverse public gardens: the lake, and the six islands it contains, are home to an array of plant varieties you simply won’t see anywhere else.

Photo courtesy Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

10. Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Coral Gables FL

Constructed in the 1930s, the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden is the stuff green dreams are made of. This Miami wonder features a tropical flower garden, a collection of water gardens cultivated within 11 lakes and seven pools, breathtaking waterfalls and so much more. Floridians are renowned for loving their plants, and the moist environment enjoyed by the Fairchild (along with its passionate staff of horticulturalists) means that the tropical plants you’ll discover here are among the most gorgeous in the world. Don’t miss the Butterfly Garden or the frankly mind-blowing Jewels of the Caribbean exhibit, which features 7,000 plant species exclusively found on the Caribbean islands.

So there you have it- ten of the most breathtaking botanical gardens that the U.S. has to offer! Are you putting these on your to-do list? We know we are- what better way to explore the country than to visit its most vibrant and gorgeous public spaces?