Over the Fence: Kanapaha Botanical Gardens
by Mary Adams
Old wives’ tales tell us that new beginnings can’t start until something else ends. One door closes, another door opens. Although I was fortunate to sell my house in March 2009, part of the purchase agreement was for me to move out in 20 days.
I was grateful that the friends who helped me move didn’t question the pots of dirt they carried for me. I had been potting up some favorite plants for quite a while. Those pots of dirt in the dead of winter were root balls of blue ginger, butterfly ginger, angel trumpet and other perennials of north Florida.
Follow the signs, or take the “joy of discovery” approach. Photo by Mary Adams
Still, I was leaving behind a yard full of landscape plants and my personal sanctuary. I became a gardener without a garden.
At the time I thought it was a coincidence, but perhaps subconsciously I knew what I needed. My new beginning was a house I rented bordering Kanapaha Botanical Gardens. Over the backyard fence was the entrance.
As a long-time resident of Gainesville, I was no stranger to Kanapaha. Through the decades I experienced first hand its evolution from narrow trails through a patch of woods to a fully-matured botanical garden.
Today the park is 62 acres with over 20 specialty gardens. There is a great variety of blooming plants along with visitor-friendly hardscaping, like paved paths, gazebos and benches. The original Eastern Garden, with its bamboo forest and red-brick pathways, is still there, but has expanded into a one-mile loop with Woodland, Hummingbird and Rock Gardens, as well as a boardwalk onto Lake Kanapaha. The newer Western Garden half-mile loop includes an arboretum, as well as the Rose, Butterfly and Camellia Gardens. In addition there are several water features, from ponds to small cascading waterfalls.
Red cannas draw lots of attention (and birds) to the Hummingbird Garden. Photo by Mary Adams
Kanapaha filled my need for a garden, when I needed one most. My identity as mother, wife, and daughter had evaporated prior to my move. My son moved out in 2007, all grown up and ready for his own life. Within months of my divorce finalizing in 2008, my mother died. No longer a wife or daughter, and with the title of “mother” relegated to a dusty shelf in the back of the closet, my emotions needed a lot of nurturing.
I started walking the trails at the garden with my dog and a camera. The variety of plants astounded me. It was with absolute delight that I discovered something new with almost each visit.
Then I wondered about prior visits. Had I rushed through, trying to see as much as possible as quickly as possible, and instead saw less? When you slow down, you see things differently.
The Cyad Garden at Kanapaha displays the most cold-hardy of these heat-loving plants. Photo by Mary Adams
I laughed at myself. When I taught gardening classes, I would tell my students that you can visit a garden the way you visit a video store — scanning titles without actually watching the movies. You might get a general idea, but you’ve missed the whole story.
On subsequent visits I confined myself to a specific area. The Herb Garden alone is actually made up of four smaller gardens: Medicinal, Scented, Knot Garden and a Native Florida Herb Garden.
There were many wonders to observe. Once while crossing a grassy area near the bamboo garden, I was alarmed to see pointy, dagger-like objects coming up through the ground. The next day they seemed to be twice as tall. Plants from hell? Finally I realized it was bamboo. I knew the statistics on how fast bamboo can grow, but to see it first hand was a revelation.
‘Harlequin’ cannas are one of the stars of the Bulb Garden. Photo by Mary Adams
I found parts of the garden I didn’t know existed. Oh sure, some people actually look at the map they pick up at the entrance. Mine was the “joy of discovery” approach!
When the rains came, my dog and I sought shelter at one of the many gazebos in the park. The gardens take on a dreamy quality in the rain. It was a perfect time for reflection. I remembered coming to the Spring Festival with my son when he was a little boy. With my back problems, he had to carry the plants I purchased. Once, while walking to the parking lot, I realized incoming visitors were laughing and smiling at both of us. I looked back to find that instead of carrying my Turks cap upright, he had been carrying it sideways. Almost all of the soil had emptied out and the plant was broken. Did I scold him? I hope not; it was only a plant. And it recovered quite well. When I left it behind at my old house it was well over 8 feet tall.
When my son was older, he enjoyed all the wild rides at a theme park in Orlando. The next day we went to Kanapaha. While deep in the bamboo forest, it was a proud moment for this nature-loving mother when he told me, “Wow! This is a lot better than Orlando!”
In the Children’s Garden, a Gulf Fritillary visits a lantana for some nectar. Photo by Mary Adams
If you are fortunate enough to live close to a botanical garden, visit often. As for me, I’m looking forward to spring when I’ll be a homeowner again and can plant a new garden. Until then, like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, “If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire, I won’t look any further than my own backyard....”
Mary Adams earned her degree in Environmental Horticulture from the University of Florida, Gainesville.
© 2010 Mary Adams. Originally published in Florida Gardening, Feb / Mar 2010. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Kanapaha Botanical Garden: www.kanapaha.org