Botanical Gardens You Should Visit

As winter begins to fade and transition with the arrival of spring, there is a new sense of color, warmth, and life. The trees are budding, the flowers are blooming, and there is a renewed sense of warmth in the day. It’s a time where nature reawakens, finally letting people step outside and appreciate the beauty of nature. Here is a list of 6 Botanical Gardens you can visit this spring to enjoy the lush and vibrant scenes that spring has to offer. 

1. New Jersey Botanical Garden 

• Located within Ringwood State Park, the New Jersey Botanical Garden spans 96 acres atop a scenic mountaintop, offering sweeping views and a peaceful escape into nature. The gardens feature a rich mix of formal plantings, seasonal displays, and themed garden areas, all thoughtfully designed to highlight the beauty of the landscape throughout the year. Surrounded by miles of wooded parkland, it feels both expansive and secluded and is an ideal destination for leisurely walks, plant enthusiasts, and anyone looking to immerse themselves in a serene and natural setting.

2. Laurelwood Arboretum

• Laurelwood Arboretum is a beautiful 30-acre property in Wayne, New Jersey, filled with diverse kinds of plant life. It has peaceful woodland trails, gardens, ponds, and hundreds of different trees and plants to see. Gravel paths weave throughout the arboretum, making it a great place to visit, whether you’re into nature, hiking, art, or photography. 

3. Van Vleck House and Gardens 

• Located in Montclair, New Jersey, Van Vleck House and Gardens is a former private estate that is now run as a non-profit. It features a public botanical garden of mostly flowering plants that have been developed over several centuries. The garden features azaleas, wisteria,  roses, and is set around historic Mediterranean revival architecture. Van Vleck House and Gardens is truly a place where nature and history bloom together. 

4. Conservatory Garden

• The Conservatory Garden, located in Central Park, is divided into three distinct sections, each with its own unique style. The French-style North Garden showcases vibrant seasonal displays, with tulips in the spring and chrysanthemums in the fall. The Italianate Center Garden features a striking central fountain framed by a semicircular pergola that is covered in wisteria. The English-style South Garden offers a more natural feel, with a variety of plants that change beautifully throughout the seasons, and also features the Burnett Fountain, which is dedicated to the author Frances Hodgson Burnett. 

5. Brooklyn Botanic Garden 

• Located in the borough of Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden spans 52 acres in the heart of the borough. Its landscape features a diverse collection of specialty gardens, along with a group of buildings along its eastern edge. A gentle brook flows from the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden in the north to the Water Garden in the south. The garden also features more formal elements, like the Osborne Garden, a scenic overlook, and a cherry-lined esplanade, adding not only structure but also charm.

6. Shakespeare Garden 

• Tucked along the west side of Central Park between 79th and 80th Streets, Shakespeare Garden is a four-acre garden that is inspired by the works of William Shakespeare. It features hundreds of plants mentioned in his plays and poems, creating a lush landscape filled with flowers, shrubs, and trees that attract a wide variety of wildlife. In the spring, the garden comes alive with daffodils, tulips, fritillaries, anemones, and many other blooms.

From the mountaintop landscapes of the New Jersey Botanical Garden to the vibrant displays of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, each destination transforms with the changing seasons. Each garden captures a different moment in the seasons’ unfolding and reminds visitors of the beauty in changing seasons.