Here’s an easy way to feel like you’ve cleansed your soul, just a little bit – take a stroll around your local botanical gardens.
There are around 100 botanical gardens in California that are open to the public, according to Botanic Gardens Conservation International. They vary considerably in size and scope, but all have in common a peaceful, welcoming atmosphere generated by beautiful scenery and interesting plant life. Botanical gardens in California are excellent destinations for a family day out, with many featuring a children’s garden and spaces to play.
You don’t need to be a gardening enthusiast to enjoy visiting botanical gardens, but you will probably go home more knowledgeable about native species. Some of the best botanical gardens in California have world-class collections and conduct important horticultural research. This makes them incredible resources for gardeners, both online and in person. Plus, many have nurseries with all kinds of unusual plants for sale.
The next time you need a day out, some fresh air and the restorative power of nature, head over to one of these beautiful botanical gardens in California.
California Botanic Garden
California Botanic Garden in Claremont (in the Pomona Valley, eastern Los Angeles County) is notable as the largest of all botanical gardens dedicated to California native plants. Founded by botanist Susanna Bixby Bryant in 1927, it’s now an 86-acre living museum featuring more than 22,000 California native plants, including rare and endangered species. Habitat zones represent the state’s diversity and include a Channel Islands garden, wildflower meadow, Tongva village, fan palm oasis and Joshua tree woodland, among others. Take it all in from the ¾-mile Mesa Gardens Loop, 1-mile California Habitats Loop or a hiking trail that winds over rougher terrain.
Details:
California Botanic Garden
1500 N. College Ave, Claremont, CA 91711
Ventura Botanical Gardens
Panoramic views over the entire city of Ventura, across the Pacific and to the Channel Islands are a major draw for visitors to Ventura Botanical Gardens. Rivaling the views is remarkable plant life – more than 100,000 specimens – and the chance for a decently leg-stretching uphill hike. Start at the Merewether Welcome Center, which houses a gift shop and nursery, and wind your way through distinct landscapes representing the world’s five Mediterranean climate zones.
There’s the California Ramble with its oaks and lemonade berries, among other native species; Mediterranean Garden with 40 cultivars of olive trees; and the Chilean Gardens with soapbark trees and endangered Chilean wine palms. The South African Fynbos Gardens display bright protea and geraniums, while old-growth eucalyptus evoke Southern Australia. Connecting these zones, and crossing a dry creek bed, are wide paths and staircases lined with benches and engraved memorial stones.
Details:
Ventura Botanical Gardens
398 Ferro Dr, Ventura, CA 93001
Santa Barbara Botanical Garden
The Santa Barbara Botanical Garden is one of the city’s most popular outdoor destinations, with 5.5. miles of trails winding around its rugged 78 acres. The garden has more than 1,000 native plant species, ranging from delicate wildflowers in the central meadow to mighty redwoods in the forest section. Desert and manzanita gardens contrast with the shady coast live oaks, big leaf maples and California bay laurels along Mission Creek, which has seasonal water flow around its jumbled boulders.
Visitors explore the peaceful trails, take in ocean and mountain views, and learn about local history. Within the gardens are historic structures including a caretaker’s cottage and sandstone steps from the early 20th century, plus the remains of the 1806 Mission Dam and Aqueduct, a state historic landmark.
Read more: “Places to Play: Santa Barbara Botanical Garden.“
Details:
Santa Barbara Botanical Garden
1212 Mission Canyon Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93105
San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden
San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, which covers 150 acres inside El Chorro Regional Park, is dedicated to the plant life of the world’s five Mediterranean regions. Wander along the 1.5-mile Discovery Trail and stop to read signage detailing the views, the volcanic landscape and native flora and fauna. Highlights include a human sundial, a display garden of wildfire-resistant plants, hilltop benches with views as far as Morro Bay, and a children’s garden designed for hands-on exploration.
An intriguing work in progress is the weaving restoration garden, which is being developed with assistance from a member of the Chumash tribe. The ethnobotanical garden will highlight medicinal, edible and cultural uses of native plants, including those used for basket weaving. Check the events calendar for plant sales, art events, nature nights, free family days and festivals like the April orchid fest.
Visiting San Luis Obispo? Discover Incredible Eats in SLO.
Details:
San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden
3450 Dairy Creek Rd, El Chorro Regional Park, San Luis Obispo, CA 93405
San Francisco Botanical Garden
A living museum in Golden Gate Park, the San Francisco Botanical Garden covers 55 acres of landscaped gardens and open spaces. It features more than 8,000 kinds of plants from all over the world, all arranged in thematic zones such as ancient plants, the conifer lawn, great meadow and Moon-viewing garden. A jewel in this California botanical garden’s crown is its renowned and conservationally important collection of magnolias. See them bloom at their peak from mid-December to the end of March. A 90-minute public tour is included with admission.
Details:
San Francisco Botanical Garden
1199 9th Ave, San Francisco, CA 94122
The Conservatory of Flowers
If you are visiting the San Francisco Botanical Garden, it makes sense to add a stop at the Conservatory of Flowers, another landmark of Golden Gate Park. The historic wood and glass conservatory structure – the oldest of its kind in North America – is almost as interesting as the remarkable plant collection inside. The conservatory opened to the public in 1879 and is a national, state and local landmark. Inside are five distinct galleries, each representing a unique ecosystem.
The greenhouse structure allows for the accurate recreation of very different climates in which many rare and unusual plants can thrive. The Highland Tropics gallery, for example, evokes a misty cloud forest filled with mosses, ferns, rhododendrons and delicate orchids. Tropical fruit trees in the Lowland Tropics gallery are some of the oldest specimens in the collection and include a pygmy date palm brought in for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exhibition. They share space with jasmine, coffee, cacao and heliconia. End your visit with a restful stop in the West Gallery, a serene space with lots of seating amid ancient ferns.
Details:
Conservatory of Flowers
John F. Kennedy Dr, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA 94118
Descanso Gardens
Descanso Gardens, one of the biggest and best botanical gardens in Southern California, is known for its outstanding camellia collection. The La Canada-Flintridge property’s original owners, the Boddy family, developed the land specifically for cultivating camellias. Today’s expanded collection includes rare varieties of the flowers; visit from early fall to spring to see them in bloom.
Another highlight of Descanso Gardens is the Japanese Garden, which was created in the 1950s by all-volunteer labor and funding from the local Japanese-American community. It features a traditional teahouse, minka (country farmhouse), arched bridge, koi stream and all-native Asian plant species. Also check out the Ancient Forest with its cycads, ferns, ginkgo and redwoods; the Rose Garden with over 1,600 roses; the arts exhibits at the Sturt Haaga Gallery; and the restored 1930s Boddy House. Children love the Enchanted Railroad, a 1/8th scale replica of a diesel train that loops around the gardens.
Details:
Descanso Gardens
1418 Descanso Dr, La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011
Humboldt Botanical Gardens
Are you seeking some of the best botanical gardens in Northern California? Humboldt Botanical Gardens, near the Humboldt Bay just south of Eureka, comprises 10 distinct gardens over 44.5 acres. The unique position of the gardens spans Pacific Marine and Mediterranean climates, allowing for an uncommon diversity of plant life. Numerous microclimates within the gardens include a temperate woodland garden in a sunny bowl. Delicate species are able to take hold in this pocket of warmer, wind-protected land. Among the most interesting is the Wollemi pine, a very rare specimen only known from 120-million-year-old fossils until the discovery of a living tree in Australia 1994.
Don’t miss the chance for a meditative walk into, and out of, Peter Santino’s “All Happy Now” Earth Sculpture. The artist created a 100-foot-across earth and grass installation inspired by the labyrinth, ziggurat and the “Spiral of Fermat” mathematical equation. Visitors are encouraged to experience the sculpture barefoot.
Details:
Humboldt Botanical Garden
7707 Tompkins Hill Rd, Eureka, CA 95503
Huntington Botanical Gardens
San Marino’s Huntington Botanical Gardens are part of a renowned institution and popular tourist destination that also includes an art gallery and library. These Southern California botanical gardens cover 130 acres, organized into 16 themed gardens and starring more than 83,000 living plants. Impressive orchid, cycad and bonsai collections are on display throughout the 16 gardens.
Just a few of the Huntington’s thematic attractions include Australian, California and palm gardens, the Shakespeare Garden with plants mentioned in the Bard’s plays and sonnets, and the Chinese Garden completed in 2020. In the fall of 2023, the Huntington will unveil a restored 320-year-old Japanese Heritage shōya house in its Japanese Garden.
Details:
Huntington Botanical Gardens
1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino, CA 91108
More about the Huntington: “See a Gutenberg Bible – the Printed Book that Changed the World – at the Huntington Library.”
San Diego Botanic Garden
San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas is a 37-acre “urban oasis” with 29 themed gardens, 4 miles of trails and expansive ocean views. Its 5,300 plant species and varieties represent 15 diverse regions of the world. The fully accessible property features demonstration gardens, including subtropical fruit, herb, incredible edibles and a fire safety landscape garden. Its Native Plants and Native Peoples Trail is dedicated to the ecological knowledge and practices of the local Kumeyaay people.
San Diego Botanic Garden boasts the largest living collection of bamboo in North America, with over 100 species and cultivars. Another highlight is the largest children’s garden on the west coast, plus two smaller children’s gardens, a treehouse, miniature railroad and mountain stream for water play. These features make it an excellent botanical garden in Southern California for a family day out. Don’t miss the Overlook Tower for ocean views through a free telescope.
Details:
San Diego Botanic Garden
300 Quail Gardens Dr, Encinitas, CA 92024
University of California, Davis Arboretum and Public Garden
One of the biggest botanical gardens in California, spanning 5,300 acres, is the University of California, Davis Arboretum and Public Garden. It’s a top outdoor destination in the Central Valley, and is open to the public every day, 24 hours a day, free of charge. Dogs on leashes are welcome as well. Download a visitor map and discover three suggested walking tours, or just head over and meander through the historic arboretum, demonstration gardens, redwood grove or Putah Creek Riparian Reserve. There are picnic areas throughout the gardens. Check the schedule for regular events such as plant sales and festivals.
Details:
University of California, Davis Arboretum and Public Garden
Valley Oak Cottage, 448 La Rue Rd, Davis, CA 95616
Wrigley Memorial & Botanic Garden
If you’re planning a trip to Santa Catalina Island, put the Wrigley Memorial and Botanic Garden on your must-see list. The botanic garden has its origins in Ada Wrigley’s circa-1935 private collection of desert plants. After becoming a public garden in the 1970s under management of the Catalina Conservancy, the focus shifted to plant species native and endemic to the island. The garden’s 80-foot-high centerpiece, the Wrigley Memorial, is made from local stone and lined with Catalina tile. The gardens are within walking distance of downtown Avalon, and offer unrivaled views down Avalon Canyon, across the coast and as far as the mainland.
Details:
Wrigley Memorial & Botanic Garden
Avalon Canyon Road, Avalon, CA 90704
You might also like to read: “Where to See Fall Foliage in California.”
