By: Dr. Judy Stout, Mobile County Master Gardener, www.MobileCountyMasterGardeners.org
Horticulture and gardening have always been a part of Mobile’s life. The French who came to establish the city had instructions from King Louis XIV to collect and send back botanical specimens. Iberville, busy with the establishment of a great new colony for the glory of France, was careful to obey his King’s instructions.
A plan of Mobile published in 1765 shows several small formal gardens with walks and parterres laid out in a fashionable European style. In 1777, William Bartram spent more than three months in and out of Mobile, collecting plants to be added to his Philadelphia collection and shipped to gardeners in England. Visitors to Mobile in the 1820's wrote of the “villas” along the bay shore, where luxuriant gardens were enclosed by hedges of Cherokee roses. Ship manifests of the 1830's show that large cargoes of camellias were consigned to purchasers in Mobile.
A thriving, internationally recognized plant nursery industry developed in the early twentieth century and continues supplying plants throughout the United States. Southern Alabama has a wide reputation for numerous renowned breeders and developers of new horticultural varieties. Just observe the beauty and wealth of gardening possibilities we have inherited and that flourish in our Mediterranean-like climate and rich coastal soils! So how can you make the most of our good fortune?
In 1970, six enthusiastic men, including landscape engineers, horticulturists, nurserymen and botanists created the dream of a botanical garden for Mobile to showcase our floral wealth and educate interested citizens. They founded the South Alabama Botanical and Horticultural Society and in 1974 entered into a lease with the City of Mobile for 65 acres of Municipal Park in Spring Hill to create the Mobile Botanical Gardens (MBG).
Now, fifty years later, MBG includes an additional 35 acres of rare longleaf pine and gopher tortoise habitat and six acres of former greenhouse and plant propagation facilities. The Gardens is a private/public partnership between the 501(c)3 not-for-profit Botanical and Horticultural Society and the City of Mobile and Mobile County. Public use of the Gardens and its programs are available through very economical membership fees or reasonable daily admission charges. In addition to members and local visitors, the Gardens hosts tourists from throughout the United States as well as international garden enthusiasts.
Whether you are looking for family activities, or just seeking relaxation and enjoying nature, an outdoor fitness type, or a serious gardener, MBG has something for you. Regular adult classes include multi-week classes in Botanical Art with Derek Norman (next in January - Drawing with Pen and Ink), twice weekly Tai Chi with Alla, Friday afternoon Sketch Club and the weekly “Writers in Nature” group led by Dr. Sue Walker (formerly Poet Laureate of Alabama). Advanced enrollment in each is limited and requires a registration fee.
First Friday seminars offer various topics from house plant care, lectures and guided walks about camellias and the longleaf forest, what plants to look for at plant sales, tree care, growing and processing your own tea, and many others. Several lengthier gardening seminars by national authors are available each year. Weekend workshops and multi-week short courses are offered irregularly e.g., On February 1, 8, and 15, 2025, Jan Johnson, fabric artist, will teach Dyeing with Natural Pigments.
Do you have a special focused gardening interest? Check out the K. Sawada Camellia Club or the Gulf Coast Herb Society or the Springhill Garden Club whose monthly meetings are hosted at MBG.
Children’s gardening and nature programs are available for all ages beginning with preschoolers and toddlers.
· Thursday morning “Tales and Trails” reading group
· Camps for older elementary students during spring break in cooperation with the Museum of Art (April 21-23, 2025)
· Week-long NatureBlast! in the early summer
· Veggie Kids each spring and fall, 3rd-5th-graders get their hands dirty over 6 Saturday mornings of learning about and growing their own food in the Veggie Kids garden.
· Pop-up kids’ classes recently included Nature Journaling and Beginning Sewing
· Family Fun Days for families in spring (March 29, 2025) and fall and weekly Wonder Walks.
· Kid’s Exploration Backpack is in the Gift Shop or ask in the office for self-guiding Scavenger Hunt Packs.
Student field trips and guided tours can be customized to fit a special focus request, a specific curriculum goal, or the nature of the group visiting—school classes, garden clubs, home school field trips, scouts, churches and Sunday school groups, bus tours, etc. Arrange in advance and secure the date with a reservation fee, online or by phone. For a group, individual admissions are charged at a reduced rate.
Learning on your own! The Gardens contains over 2 miles of maintained woodland trails, the 0.8-mile Piff Solar System Walk, and 2 miles of longleaf pine trails for observation, exercise, journaling, relaxation, and meditation. An additional 1.0 mile of paved display and feature garden trails make central garden areas accessible. Interpretive signage in special collections of camellias, rhododendrons, Japanese maples, herbs, and pollinator-support plants helps identify items you may want to add to your yard or landscape.
Annual spring and fall plant sales offer one of the largest inventories of plant varieties available along the mid-Gulf Coast, providing opportunities to add to your landscape planning. Unique and informative signage prepared by MBG staff provide pictures, cultivation guidance and size expectations. Signs also indicate native species for those desiring to focus on these plants.
For more information on all this, consult the MBG home page at https://mobilebotanicalgardens.org/ and look for the MBG Facebook page. You can also request a weekly MBG email newsletter for latest information.
COME HERE TO GROW!
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