in Madison, Wisconsin. Named for its founder, Michael
Olbrich, the gardens
are owned and operated jointly by the City of Madison Parks and the
non-profit Olbrich Botanical Society. The gardens were officially
established in 1952. Noteworthy additions to the gardens were the Bolz
Conservatory in 1991 and a Thai pavilion or sala, a gift to the
University of Wisconsin Madison from the Thai Chapter of the Wisconsin
Alumni Association and the government of Thailand through its king.
Opened in 2002, it is one of only four sala outside of Thailand and one
of two in the United States (the other is located in Hawaii). Stroll 16
acres of outdoor
gardens featuring stunning landscapes and Midwest-hardy
plants. Visit the tropics in the Bolz Conservatory, filled with exotic
plants, flowers, orchids, birds, and a waterfall. Outdoor Gardens are
free and open daily. Voted one of the
top ten most inspiring gardens in North America by Horticulture
Magazine. The
gardens are made up of several separate garden areas. The Sunken Garden
is in the form of a traditional English Garden. Surrounded by limestone
terraces and hedges, it contains an 80-foot long reflecting pool –
designed to connect the garden thematically with nearby Lake Monona.
The Thai Garden contains the sala and is joined to the gardens proper
by a 155-foot arched footbridge crossing Starkweather Creek.
This garden has a shallow reflecting pool near the pavilion and is
littered with small examples of Thai sculpture.
The plants in this garden were carefully selected to give a tropical
appearance to the garden in the summer, while choosing plants capable of
surviving Wisconsin winters. A Rock Garden is constructed of a rocky
hill, designed to simulate a mountain slope. Plants here are mostly
conifers or alpine and two streams flow through it, forming a waterfall
and small pond. Here again, a wooden footbridge crosses the stream. A
Meadow Garden combines perennial grasses, wildflowers, and plants grown
from bulbs. The grass in the meadow garden is mowed only once or twice a
year. The small Wildflower Garden contains wildflowers, ferns, berries
and native trees and shrubs. An Herb Garden is a collection of smaller
gardens of herbs separated by use; they include medical, dye, and
kitchen (spice) herbs, as well as 'touch' and 'smell' gardens. A
perennial garden displays perennials and three ponds, with a waterfall.
Aquatic plants are displayed in the ponds. The Rose Garden is an
ongoing project featuring more than 700 varieties and 125 rose
cultivars, including hybrid teas, floribundas,
grandifloras, and hardy shrub roses. The Starkweather Creek and Atrium
Shade Gardens features a semicircular atrium and plants such as
astilbes, hostas, lungwort, bishops' caps and ferns. The Eunice Fisher
Hosta Garden features hostas hybridized by Wisconsin-native, Eunice
Fisher. The Bolz Conservatory is a greenhouse housing over 750 plants
representing over 70 families and over 550 different species and
cultivars. The plants are native to tropical and subtropical regions.
The structure itself is a glass pyramid
measuring 100 by 100 ft and rising to 50 ft at the
apex. The temperature is maintained between 65 and 80 degrees
Fahrenheit, although the sun may warm it to 95 °F in the summer. The
relative humidity is maintained at 60% or above. In addition to the
tropical plants, the conservatory is home to species of birds including
canaries, waxbills and coturnix. There is also a koi pond, featuring koi
and goldfish, frogs, toads, and geckos are also present.
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