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Naples Botanical Garden – A Gallery of Fabulous Flowers

Dale Dunlop The Maritime Explorer

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Saturday, May 17th, 2014

I’m sitting at the bar in the Village Pub in Venetian Village in Naples, Florida on the last day before we return to Novas Scotia. Alison is browsing the shops of this semi-interesting shopping area – that’s my highest rating for any shopping venue. I could get depressed about returning to work in two days, but we’ve just come from the Naples Botanical Gardens and I have been editing the photos while sipping on Yuengling. Here is a gallery of the best. Cheer up!

The stars of the Naples Botanical Gardens are undoubtedly the orchids, but there is an amazing variety of habitats in a very well laid out design that encompasses 170 acres in one of the priciest real estate markets in the United States. Some of the most interesting specialty gardens are the succulents, the Asian garden, the water garden, the Brazilian and the Caribbean gardens. There is also a children’s garden which seemed to be wildly popular on the day we visited as well as a butterfly house. People of all ages and abilities will enjoy the one mile paved pathway that makes its way around the artificial lake that is the centrepiece of the gardens. Along its shores there are examples of a pine flatwood forest, mangrove swamp, brackish marsh and Florida scrublands. It’s almost like you can discover every major type of Florida ecosystem in this one spot, including an everglades river of grass.

The Fogg Cafe in the Visitor Center offers a light menu with something for every one, including vegans.

Although the gardens date from only 1993, they were the youngest ever to receive the American Public Gardens Association’s Award for Garden Excellence in 2017.

Tickets must be purchased in advance so that they can control the numbers of visitors on any given day. You can buy them here. If you get tired of the great beaches of southwest Florida consider spending an afternoon at these wonderful gardens. Alternatively you can join me and Captain Jim Burnsed for a great day of fishing on Pine Island Sound.