The Best Gardens in Sarasota

this article: Whether you have a green thumb, and can grow almost anything you plant, or are a notorious plant killer with an appreciation of gardens cultivated and cared for by folks who know how to wield a trowel and pruning shears, there are green (and gold, purple, pink) spaces throughout Sarasota County where you can wander in beauty.

Botanical Gardens & Green Spaces in Sarasota

An oasis on the edge of downtown Sarasota, Marie Selby Botanical Gardens occupies almost 15 acres on Sarasota Bay. It’s the only botanical garden in the world dedicated to the display and study of orchids, bromeliads, gesneriads, epiphytes, and tropical plants, so there’s lots of native greenery to admire.

But a stroll around the scenic grounds also takes visitors through fern, bamboo, and succulent gardens and into a sprawling banyan grove that’s home to the Ann Goldstein Children’s Rainforest Garden, where pint-sized plant lovers can run and play among the trees.  Explore a boardwalk that travels among mangroves and visit a tidal lagoon surrounded by a hardwood hammock. While there, be sure to make time for the gardens’ many rotating exhibits.

Farther north, you’ll find tropical plant life on display at Sarasota Jungle Gardens. More than 3,000 different varieties of trees and shrubs can be found at the site that’s remained a popular tourist attraction ever since its 1939 founding. Brick pathways travel throughout the gardens past specimens like a group of sky-high royal palms, a Ponderosa lemon tree that produces football-sized fruit, and the rainbow eucalyptus tree, which is located near the site’s flamingo population. When the bark peels off the eucalyptus, it creates a rainbow-like effect.

Meanwhile, you could wile away a day just wandering the grounds at the Ringling Museum complex, the one-time home of circus magnate John Ringling and his wife, Mable. Its 66-acre Bayfront Gardens include tucked-away gems like the Dwarf Garden, where creepily cool stone statues peek out from among the plant life. (It’s modeled after 18th- and 19th-century Italian and German gardens.) You’ll see loads of grand banyan trees here too (14 to be exact) among bromeliads and bougainvilleas in Mable’s Secret Garden, where she and John are buried.

Centrally located on the property and set in a wagon-wheel shape, Mable’s Rose Garden features some 1,200 rose plants producing blooms in varying hues, shapes, and sizes. While none of the original roses Mable planted survived the Sarasota site’s period of disrepair during the 1930s and ’40s, many of the current plants are the same varieties she grew. Tke note: the Ringling cuts back all of the roses every February and October, and it usually takes about six weeks for new flowers to reappear.

It’s free to visit just the grounds of the Ringling. For an in-depth look, take a garden tour, a 90-minute walking tour that takes participants throughout the grounds and offers information about both the botanical specimens at the site as well as the property’s history.

For a green space that’s more fanciful than formal, head to the Children’s Garden in Sarasota. It offers a whimsical take on the garden concept, with features like a hedge maze, a Fairy Garden with oversized mushrooms, and Fruity Oops Mountain, a colorful pile of tires kids can scramble up to pose for pictures at the summit.

But it’s not all make-believe here. Real-life winged insects visit the site’s butterfly garden, and regular classes and special events teach kids about everything from growing veggies to making crafts from garden finds.

Hidden amidst the hustle and bustle of downtown Sarasota is the Sarasota Garden Club. Open every day at no cost for visitors to enjoy, the one-acre site includes 14 themed tropical gardens and a butterfly garden filled with colorful flowering plants.

Explore the Gardens at Historic Spanish Point in Osprey

Down south, situated on Little Sarasota Bay, Historic Spanish Point in Osprey sheds light on the area’s prehistoric and pioneer past. It’s a great place to see plant life, with over than 50 percent of the native species found in Sarasota County represented at the site. Nature trails wind throughout the 30-acre property, leading visitors to lush spots like the sweeping Duchene Lawn and the Jungle Walk (complete with a funky but functional aqueduct). Some of the gardens, like the elegant Sunken Garden, were planted by Chicago socialite and Sarasota landowner Betha Palmer, who lived at the site in the early 20th century.

Gardens & Arboretums in Venice and North Port

Located in West Blalock Park, Venice’s Monty Andrews Arboretum was created in 2006 to teach the public about Florida-friendly plantings. Today dozens of trees can be found at the peaceful site a few blocks south of the heart of downtown Venice. There’s almost every kind of palm imaginable, from several towering Washington palms to a diminutive windmill palm. But visitors will also find Japanese blueberry, crape myrtle, sweetgum, and other trees. Helpful signs offer stats on growth rates, mature heights, and weather and light requirements, along with info on when flowering trees bloom. (Head to the arboretum during the spring, for example, to catch the yellow jacaranda awash in its namesake color or during the summer to see the weeping hibiscus in its full glory.)

In North Port, the 16-acre Garden of the Five Senses creates a sensory experience meant to encourage an appreciation of nature. Wheelchair-accessible concrete pathways wander past native plantings that attract butterflies and other wildlife. A small waterfall provides soothing background noise, while a ground-level sundial lets visitors use their own shadows to tell the time. Small pavilions and porch-style swings offer spots for sitting and enjoying the serene setting.