Mobile Botanical Gardens, Botanical garden in Mobile, Alabama.
Mobile Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden in Mobile, Alabama, displaying collections of azaleas, camellias, and native plants across landscaped sections and woodland pathways. The grounds feature informative signs that explain plant species and design details throughout the various themed areas.
The Mobile Botanical Gardens Foundation was created in 1974 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit, funded by donations, grants, plant sales and membership dues. Its endowment is invested to cover operating and capital costs while the capital itself is kept intact for future generations. The Millie McConnell Rhododendron Garden was extensively renovated in 2005, and the Kosaku Sawada Wintergarden was dedicated in December 2010 to the local nurseryman who founded Overlook Nursery in 1914.
The herb garden, dedicated in 2010 to longtime member Sybil Burnett, is tended by the Gulf Coast Herb Society, founded in 1985 to teach herb cultivation and use. The Fragrance and Texture Garden was designed for visually impaired visitors, with benches, a Japanese-style walkway and a koi pond. The winter garden was named in December 2010 for Kosaku Sawada, who founded Overlook Nursery in 1914.
The gardens are open year-round from dawn to dusk, and the Fragrance and Texture Garden has an asphalt path suited to wheelchairs and visitors who have trouble with uneven ground. The Herb Garden sits on relatively high ground sheltered from cold winter winds by tall beds and a longleaf pine canopy. The gardens are at 5151 Museum Drive in the Spring Hill community.
The 40-acre Longleaf Pine habitat is a preserved remnant of the southern longleaf pine ecosystem that once covered much of the American South. A May–June 2007 survey catalogued 49 vascular plant families, 159 vascular plant species, 72 woody species and 21 naturalized species there.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,933 contributors worldwide.