Falling in Love with Florida's Gardens

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Trumpet flower in the Rainforest exhibit at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Coral Gables

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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Tropical foliage at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Coral Gables

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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A stream and pond at Kanapaha Gardens in Gainesville

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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A planter with succulents at Harry P. Leu Gardens in Orlando

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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Tropical foliage at Harry P. Leu Gardens in Orlando

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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Harry P. Leu Gardens in Orlando has walks showing different kinds of paths, going through the Butterfly Garden.

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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Camelias in bloom at Alfred B. Maclay Gardens in Tallahassee

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

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A gazebo and pond at Washington Oaks Gardens State Park in Palm Coast

Photo Credit: Lucy Beebe Tobias, VISIT FLORIDA Authentic Florida Expert

Florida’s gardens are verdant sanctuaries for the botanically inclined. Explore the Sunshine State through its gardens for a peaceful day trip, or maybe try a statewide tour of these gardens.

Gardens, gardens, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love your winding paths, your benches in just the right places and the way you bloom in every season.

I used to think we would never get together. Why, I asked, should I visit a Florida garden destination that on any given day looks better than my backyard can ever hope for?

Garden paths are designed to make you meander. The winding paths slow you down, easily removing any stress baggage you may have and putting a lift into your step.

Now I know the answer. You go to Florida gardens to be inspired and infatuated.

For me, it was love at first sight at the Harry P. Leu Gardens in Orlando. I walked along a garden path and entered a tropical garden. This must be the Amazon, I thought, but no, this is a jungle by design in Orlando. Plants grew over and under each other in a zillion shades of green with leaf patterns so beautiful they took my breath away.

Instantly enamored, I wanted more. And Leu delivered. The idea garden shows things you can do at home such as gardening in a raised bed so you don't have to stoop over. Along the way to the idea garden are different styles of walkways – bricks and stones and concrete, playful walkways with lots of patterns. Instead of being intimidated, I thought, wouldn't it be fun to make a garden path? Ah, inspiration.

In the butterfly garden, I found myself surrounded by butterflies. But I was just a passing fancy. They were there for the nectar flowers and certain plants to lay their eggs, like the passion vines growing on a garden arbor.

Check out their schedule of garden demonstrations and classes. A friend and I went to a cooking class that including fresh herbs picked that morning from the herb/vegetable garden. Then we got to eat the pasta and soup. Yum!

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota is best known for its 6,000 orchids. The garden areas have something for everyone, including a children's corner. Known as the leader in the study, conservation and display of epiphytes (plants that live on other plants) and their canopy habitats, the Selby collection of epiphytes is the best in the world. More than 130,000 visitors come each year to experience the new and ever-changing display of rare and exotic orchids, bromeliads and other luscious plants in the Conservatory and in the Gardens.

On our excursion, my son, Chris, and I quickly realized that garden paths are designed to make you meander. The winding paths slow you down, easily removing any stress baggage you may have and putting a lift into your step.

Selby goes from low to high. A boardwalk curves through a mangrove forest where mangrove roots take hold, making new territory along the water's edge. Further along the garden path is an elevated boardwalk 10 feet off the ground called Canopy Walkway of the World up in the branches of a banyan grove. This is a favorite with children who like to go back and forth through the trees at top speed. Can you say ‘Tarzan’?

A visit to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami's Coral Gables turned a passing fancy into a passion. Another son, Martin, and I thought to spend an hour or two and ended up staying for half a day.

This garden has as its mission saving tropical plant diversity. Anyone who loves plants and gardening will love Fairchild.

At Fairchild, my suggestion is to start with a tram ride for an overview of the 83 acres. Trams embark on a 45-minute ride around the garden with an option stop to disembark at Cycad Circle. Fairchild has 10 ponds, two miles of walkways and distinct plant worlds including the Windows to the Tropics Conservatory, Arid Garden and the Richard H. Simmons Rainforest.

Gardens Around Florida

Florida gardens come in all sizes and styles: formal, native, meditative, botanical plant collections, historic landscapes and showcase theme gardens. Here are more of my favorites, listed geographically:

North Florida

• Eden Gardens State Park in Point Washington in northwest Florida is small but intense. An old forest of live oak trees shelters azaleas and a butterfly garden. This is a real taste of Old Florida, complete with a two-story white mansion and a reflecting pool.
• The Alfred B. Maclay Gardens in Tallahassee shows the tender care of the Maclays who wintered here for many years. Rolling hillsides are transformed into botanical beauty. Maclay is justly famous for both its azaleas and camellias. A blooming chart near the main gate tells what is in bloom every month.
• Kanapaha Botanical Gardens in Gainesville has 62 acres with 27 different gardens, including the state's largest display of bamboos.
• Ravine Gardens State Park in Palatka features a sweet 1.8-mile drive down the ravine. Azalea season, late January to April, is the peak flowering season.
• Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens in Jacksonville has 1.5 acres of formal historic gardens facing the St. Johns River.

Central Florida

• Washington Oaks Gardens State Park in Palm Coast (north of Daytona Beach) is another example of a family connection to the land that grew into a historic landscape garden. Washington Oaks is a bit off the beaten path, so think about bringing a picnic lunch. There are picnic tables near the Matanzas River.
• Sholom Park in Ocala is a peace and meditation park. The landscaping reflects the park theme. Walk through a formal garden, navigate a labyrinth, stroll through a savannah and a forest, then feed the koi at the large pond. Sholom is another place to bring a bag lunch, a camera and a sketchbook.
• The Florida Botanical Gardens in Largo are living proof that variety is the spice of life. From containers to tropical plants to a native plant area, these gardens have something for you to contemplate and enjoy.
• Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales combines the tranquility of meandering gardens with Edward Bok's Singing Tower. The 60-bell carillon has daily concerts. These gardens were also voted the best in Florida.

South Florida

• Butterfly World in Coconut Creek (near Fort Lauderdale) has more than 10 acres of aviaries with butterflies, birds and botanical gardens loaded with plants that attract butterflies.
• McKee Botanical Garden in Vero Beach is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. McKee is well known for its sub-tropical hammock covering 18 acres.
• Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach is Palm Beach County's oldest and largest public garden with plants from around the world.
• Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach was ranked 14th in 2008 among among North America's best Japanese Gardens built outside Japan. The Journal of Japanese Gardening gave it this honor.
• Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Garden is the only "frost free" botanical garden existing in the continental United States.