Norfolk Botanical Garden

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Norfolk Azalea Garden
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Bridge at Norfolk Botanical Garden
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Location6700 Azalea Garden Rd., Norfolk, Virginia
Coordinates 36°54′10″N76°12′22″W / 36.90278°N 76.20611°W / 36.90278; -76.20611
Built1938
ArchitectCity of Norfolk
Architectural styleNaturalistic Landscape
NRHP reference No. 05000895 [1]
VLR No.122-1007
Significant dates
Added to NRHPAugust 17, 2005
Designated VLRJune 1, 2005 [2]

The Norfolk Botanical Garden (158 acres [3] ) is a botanical garden with arboretum located at 6700 Azalea Garden Road, Norfolk, Virginia.

Contents

History

The Norfolk Botanical Garden was founded through the collaboration between Norfolk City Manager Thomas P. Thompson and horticulturalist Frederic Heutte. In 1938, the pair were granted 75 acres (300,000 m2) of high, wooded ground plus 75 acres (300,000 m2) of reservoir for a city garden. Later that year, under a Works Progress Administration (WPA) grant, 200 African-American women and 20 men cleared the site. By March 1939, 4,000 azaleas, 2,000 rhododendrons, several thousand miscellaneous shrubs and trees, and 100 bushels of daffodils had been planted. and another grant was quickly secured to expand the garden. [4] [3]

In 1958, the Old Dominion Horticultural Society took over maintenance and changed the garden's name to Norfolk Botanical Garden. The garden did at one point contain 175 acres, but the neighboring Norfolk International Airport expanded and took away 20 acres. A number of gardens were added through the 1950s and 1960s, including a Japanese garden, desert plants garden, colonial garden and rose garden. [3] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. [1]

Gardens

The grounds include numerous theme gardens, including:

Tours offered

Tram

The tram starts behind the Baker Hall Visitor Center, in the designated tram circle. The tram tour takes approximately 25 minutes, and has nine stops around the garden. On weekdays during the designated tram season, the tram runs hourly from 10:00AM to 4:00PM daily. Private tours for larger groups can be booked by contacting the Visitor Services team. The tram is driven by a Garden Guide that will explain the different gardens passed by during the tour.

Rose Walking

This tour is an in depth view of the Bicentennial Rose Garden. It was completed in 1976 in honor of America's 200th birthday. Inside the 3.5 acres there are 3,000 individual rose bushes representing roughly 400 cultivars. It was previously one of 23 testing sites for the All-American Selection for roses (All American Rose Selection), and now it is a designated display site only.

Boat

A 45-minute tour that starts and end at the boat basin right behind Baker Hall and next to the Japanese Garden. The tour goes out onto Lake Whitehurst, where you learn about the lake and all the inhabitants and is offered seasonally from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 Cheryl S. White (December 2004). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Norfolk Azalea Garden" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources. and Accompanying four photos
  4. "History – Norfolk Botanical Garden" . Retrieved November 11, 2019.