Welcome to Suzy’s Garden Gardens of the World feature section where we highlight spectacular gardens from around the globe. We’re adding new gardens all the time so be sure to check back frequently for updates.
 
Exbury Gardens – New Forest, England
Amazing colors from rhododendrens and azaleas reflect on the calm waters of Exbury Lake…
Learn more here… Exbury Gardens of England

Exbury Gardens and Steam Railway – a magical place in the New Forest National Park in England.

The Gardens are a spectacular 200 acre (100 hectare) site, world-famous for the Rothschild Collection of rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and rare trees and shrubs. This earthly paradise offers a riot of colour in spring, an oasis of tranquility in summer followed by a splendid show as the leaves change in the autumn. Discover Exbury’s hidden beauty and escape the cares of the world as you explore a myriad of pathways. Let the train take the strain on a 20 minute journey or ride a chauffeur driven buggy to tour the Gardens.
 
Boboli Gardens – Florence, Italy
The Boboli Gardens, behind the Pitti Palace in Florence, Italy were groundbreaking in the early 18th century for their open design.. Learn more here… Boboli Gardens of Italy

The Gardens, behind the Pitti Palace, the main seat of the Medici grand dukes of Tuscany at Florence, are some of the first and most familiar formal sixteenth century Italian gardens. The mid-16th century garden style, as it was developed here, incorporated longer axial developments, wide gravel avenues, a considerable “built” element of stone, the lavish employment of statuary and fountains, and a proliferation of detail, coordinated in semi-private and public spaces that were informed by classical accents: grottos, nympheums, garden temples and the like. The openness of the garden, with an expansive view of the city, was unconventional for its time.
 
 
Yu Gardens – Shanghai, China
The 400-year-old Yu Gardens were built in the Ming Dynasty during the reign of Emperor Jia Jin, and restored in the 1960s. Learn more here… Yu Gardens of Shanghai

The garden was first established in 1559 as a private garden created by Pan Yunduan, who spent almost 20 years building a garden to please his father Pan En, a high-ranking official in the Ming Dynasty, during his father’s old age.

They were repaired by the Shanghai government from 1956-1961, opened to the public in 1961, and declared a national monument in 1982.
 

 
Mirabell Gardens – Salzburg, Austria
The world-famous Mirabell Gardens were built along a north-south axis and oriented towards the Hohensalzburg Fortress and the Salzburger Dom cathedral. Visit their site here… Mirabell Gardens of Salzburg

The original gardens were re-modelled according to plans by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach under the reign of Prince Archbishop Johann Ernst Thun in 1689.

Only some decades later, Franz Anton Danreiter altered them again in 1730, shaping what is now considered to be one of the most beautiful Baroque gardens of Europe. In the 19th century, the Mirabell Gardens were changed once again, several parts were destructed, such as the original Zwergerlgarten (dwarf garden), some arcades facing Mirabell square and the so-called Sala terena in the Northwest of the Mirabell Castle.
 
 
Butchart Gardens – Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
The Butchart Gardens at Todd Inlet, which lie around 14 miles from Victoria B.C., covers more than 55 acres of the 130 acre Butchart Estate. Learn more about it here.

Benvenuto, Italian for ‘welcome’, is the name the Butcharts used for their original estate, now a National Historic Site of Canada, and still privately owned by family descendants. The Butchart Gardens offers 22ha (55 acres) of wonderful floral display located in Greater Victoria on Vancouver Island. The family’s commitment to horticulture and hospitality continues to this day.
 
 
Gardens Of Versailles, France
This week we are off to France to one of the, if not THE most spectacular garden in the world, the Gardens of Versailles. In addition to the meticulous manicured lawns, parterres of flowers, and sculptures are the fountains, which are located throughout the garden. Dating back to the 1600′s, the garden has a storied past that you can learn about here.

Beyond the surrounding belt of woodland, the gardens are bordered by the urban areas of Versailles to the east and Le Chesnay to the north-east, by the National Arboretum de Chèvreloup to the north, the Versailles plain (a protected wildlife preserve) to the west, and by the Satory Forest to the south.

You can see more spectacular pictures of the gardens and fountains here. This is the official website (in French) of Versailles.Click on “diaporamas” on the lower left of the page and then the small image that will appear just below it to see a slideshow of the gardens.
 
 
Bennetts Water Garden, Weymouth, Dorset, England
This week we hop across the pond to England, famous for its gardens, and rightly so. Some of them are commercial enterprises and some are pure labors of love. Bennetts Water Gardens is a visitor attraction in Dorset. Set over 8 acres the gardens hold the National Plant Collection of Water Lilies with a Monet style Japanese Bridge, Tropical House, Woodland Walks and Museum.

The gardens were founded in 1959 in a former clay pit used by a brickworks. Here Norman Bennett carefully planted a collection of water lilies that has become one of the finest in the world. The site stretches to 8 acres of landscaped paths skirting peaceful lakes. Over 100 varieties of lilies are on display, and are at their best in the summer months. In addition to lilies there are a wide variety of pond and moisture loving plants on display and the garden is a haven for pond life.

For those that can’t visit, you can order plants online at Bennetts Water Gardens

 

 
Osborn Garden Brooklyn, New York
If you live near or have visited New York City, you are probably familiar with the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. It is a spectacular, year-round collection of indoor and outdoor gardens and displays. The Osborn Garden within the confines of the BBG comes to life every spring. Amazingly, about 30 minutes after I posted this, our local weatherman in New York did a live broadcast from the Osborn Garden. It is definitely the “garden of the week”.

Photo by Antonio M. Rosario.

Upon entering Brooklyn Botanic Garden from its Eastern Parkway entrance, the first space you encounter is the Osborne Garden, a semi-formal garden where the art of Italianate landscaping comes to life. With ten wisteria-draped pergolas framing an emerald lawn, a bolder wall with large plantings of varied colored and textured plants, several stone features, and benches, the garden is a soothing oasis in the midst of the city. In spring, daffodils, pansies, and tulips bloom, followed by crab apples and cherries, which gradually give way to azaleas, rhododendrons, wisterias and dogwood. The focal point of the plaza is a water basin more than 17 feet in diameter. The fountain sits within a semicircle of limestone benches with curious acoustic properties. Sit at one end, and you can whisper clearly to someone sitting at the opposite side. These “whispering benches” are a much beloved feature to this lush space.

 

 
White House Rose Garden Washington, DC
One of the most famous gardens in the world is featured this week. The White House rose garden in Washington, DC. It borders the Oval Office and the West Wing of the White House and is approximately 125 feet long and 60 feet wide (38 meters by 18 meters). The garden balances the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden on the east side of the White House.

The White House Rose Garden was established in 1913 by Ellen Loise Axson Wilson, wife of Woodrow Wilson, on the site of a previous colonial garden established by First lady Edith Roosevelt (wife of Theodore Roosevelt) in 1902. Prior to 1902, there were extensive stables, housing horses and coaches, located on the grounds of the present-day Oval Office, Cabinet Room, and Rose Garden. During the 1902 Roosevelt renovation, First Lady Edith Roosevelt insisted on a proper colonial garden to help replace the conservatory rose house that had stood here. In 1961, during the John F. Kennedy administration, the garden was redesigned by Rachel Lambert Mellon. Mellon created a space with a more defined central lawn, bordered by flower beds planted in a French style, but largely American botanical specimens. The present garden follows a layout established by Mellon. Each flower bed is planted with a series of ‘Katherine’ crabapples and Littleleaf lindens bordered by a low diamond shaped hedges of thyme. The outer edge of the flower bed facing the central lawn is edged with boxwood. The four corners of the garden are punctuated by Magnolia soulangeana, specimens were found growing along the Tidal Basin by Mellon. Roses are the primary flowering plants in the garden and include large numbers of “Elizabeth” grandiflora roses, and the tea roses “Pascale,” “Pat Nixon,” and “King’s Ransom.” A shrub rose, “Nevada Rose” adds a cool note of white. Seasonal flowers are interspersed to add nearly year round color. Spring blooming bulbs planted in the rose garden include jonquil, daffodil, fritillaria, grape hyacinth, tulips, chionodoxa and squill. Summer blooming annuals change year. In the fall chrysanthemum and flowering kale bring color until early.
 
Japanese Koi Garden Orlando, FL
You may have already visited our first featured garden. Its the Japanese Koi Garden at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT theme park. You can find at the World Showcase in the Japan pavillion.

Walt Disney World has some of the most breathtaking landscaping on earth and every spring they host the International Flower & Garden Festival at their EPCOT theme park.This year’s event is being held from March 3- May 16, 2010 and its filled with a colorful array of flowers, gardens, topiaries, live music and educational events.
For more information, visit WDW Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival 2010.