Spring Walk through Olbrich Gardens

A late afternoon excursion to one of Madison’s urban green spaces to indulge in Spring and her beauty, the Olbrich Botanical Gardens is always a treat – especially when it is sunny and 65 degrees. ( I kept remembering the snowy winter days I spent photographing white and gray subjects from November until mid-April!)

Sixteen acres of displays provide an unusual garden perspective – a Midwestern interpretation of garden design, which at Olbrich takes on the dimensions of a stunning art form.

The entrance to the Gardens, the prairie-style Donors’ Arbor, provides access to ten specialty gardens – a few examples are the Herb Garden, Eunice Fisher Hosta Garden, Atrium Shade Garden, and Thai Pavilion and Garden. The botanical gardens and adjoining Bolz Tropical Conservatory have been prominently featured in the Seeded Earth including a winter post on the Thai Pavilion.

The Lussier footbridge connects the woodland Wildflower Garden to the left with the Alpine Rock Garden. In the summer, the pond is filled with aquatic flowering plants.

Attractive iron ‘sculptures’ provide background for the hardy rose shrubs just now leafing in the Rose Garden. The garden has been designed to highlight the shrub roses instead of formal garden roses that require chemicals to control disease and pests plus many gardening hours to cover each plant prior to the winter season for survival in Wisconsin.

The Meadow Garden offers paths for strolling, benches for relaxing, flowering trees for admiring. It is dotted with innumerable spring bulbs and demonstrates a no-mow alternative to the typical urban grass-scape which requires high maintenance and way too much time. It is planted with drought-resistant fescue grasses which require only two mows a year. My kind of lawn!

Wherever you find yourself within the spaces of Olbrich Gardens, there is always a choice of pathways to take you to new delights. From the tall native grasses in the Perennial Garden to the brightly colored spring bulbs in the Meadow Garden to the tiny conifers in the Alpine Rock Garden, Olbrich inspires all visitors-dedicated gardeners and casual wanderers alike- with its grand showcasing of Wisconsin and its botanical wonders.