We saw some interesting things at
Florida Botanical Gardens as soon as we arrived. There was a tree with an odd shaped trunk aptly named "bottle tree," a fig tree with large fruit growing from the bark, and a white heron that arrived in the parking lot at the same time we did.
I wanted to see more, and followed the heron across a bridge.
The focal point of this scene is the Christmas tree in the Wedding Garden. The lines of the bridge seem to point right at it. If you look close you can see it in the midst of the palm trees. (You can click on the photo for a larger version.)
Pay attention and you might see an alligator, but don't get too close. The wildlife here is not in a zoo. It is their natural habitat.
We looked in the water and found some turtles.
The Christmas tree in the Wedding Garden.
A yellow hibiscus with colorful lights in the background.
It was interesting to see the transition between twilight and darkness as the lights came on.
Heron figures around a small pond. The white glow in the background is the Wedding Garden.
The Wedding Garden came alive with color after dark.
The gardens became a magical place.
Festive lamps on a bridge.
There are two properties adjacent to
Florida Botanical Gardens that would be worth seeing in the daytime.
Heritage Village is in a natural pine and palmetto setting with historic buildings. The pines seemed unusual for Florida. It reminded me of northern pine forests.
We wandered through an open gate and peaked inside some of the buildings right before closing.
The
Gulf Coast Museum of Art property has gardens with modern sculptures, classrooms, and the museum. They are closed at night, and there were signs directing us back to the light display area at Florida Botanical Gardens.
More pictures of our visit to Florida Botanical Gardens
We went for a walk through the tropical fruit garden at Florida Botanical Gardens. The banana trees were in bloom. I never realized how many different kinds of banana plants there are.
Thousand fingers bananas are tiny. They're only about 2 inches long. Bananas are botanically classified as berries. The fruit does look like berries on these plants.
The fruit is the female part of the flower containing the seeds. The bud on the end of the stem is the male part of the flower.
Close up of a banana flower.
You can see how the fruit develops between the flower petals on the Raja Puri banana flower.
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