Scientific Name: Angraecum sesquipedale Common Name: comet orchid Family: Orchidaceae Origin: Madagascar Prominently on display in the tropical Conservatory at Selby Gardens’ is the magnificent Angraecum sesquipedale. This dramatic Angraecum is not only a beautiful orchid but has a fascinating history that supports the theory of natural selection and will only be in bloom for […]
Acer rubrum (Sapindaceae) Origin: Eastern United States Found from Eastern Texas to the coastal forests of North Carolina and Nova Scotia all the way south to the Everglades, red maple is one of the most common trees in the Eastern United States. It is adapted to a mind-blowing number of climatic and soil conditions; from […]
If you’re looking to immerse yourself in the wonder of nature, a botanical garden may be just what you’re looking for. Vibrant paths of beautiful green foliage and exotic flowers will have you feeling as though you are walking through a tropical wonderland. To ensure we provide an unparalleled experience to each visitor, Selby’s botanical […]
Following an international search, Jennifer Rominiecki has been named the new President and Chief Executive Officer of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. She will begin her new duties February 9, 2015. She brings 15 years of extensive professional background in capital planning and funding, institutional operations, management, special events and exhibition projects with The New York […]
Florida is a land of many habitats. Coastal dunes, river banks, dry scrub, wet prairie, and pinelands all vary from each other, and all feature different plants. They also feature some of the same plants. One they all share in common is saw palmetto. Bane to the existence of early explorers and modern botanists alike, it gets its common name from the minutely-toothed petioles, which can really do a number on your shins when hiking through a dense clump of the small palms. Unlike most palms, which feature a vertical trunk and grow to be very tall, saw palmetto forms a trunk which scrambles around on top of the ground, sometimes for many meters. When they do grow vertically, they rarely reach over three or four meters tall.
Fall is one of the best times of year in Florida to see native wildflowers blooming. We have so many different habitats represented in our state, from sandy beaches to wet swamps and everything in between, and wildflowers can be found in all of them. A versatile genus which has species represented in many of these diverse habitats, and can be seen blooming everywhere right now, is Solidago. This wildflower can be found from the beaches to the prairies to recently burned pinelands.
Unlike artwork in a museum, the Selby Gardens’ collections are made up of living plants (unless they are part of our spirit or herbarium collections) that require care and maintenance for healthy growth and development. Despite best efforts, nothing lives forever. Therefore some of the field expeditions conducted by the botanical researchers at Selby Gardens […]
The Many Gardens of Selby Botanical gardens are a great way to escape, unwind and enjoy all that nature has to offer. From gorgeous flowers to centuries-old banyan trees along the shores of Sarasota Bay, Selby Gardens is truly a garden paradise. Unlike many gardens, Selby is actually made up of smaller gardens within a […]
Bamboo is one of nature’s most interesting plants. Although it looks like a tree, Bamboo is actually a perennial evergreen in the grass family. There are over a thousand different species in the world, with a tremendous diversity of sizes, growth habits, and environmental preferences. The largest grow to 120 feet tall with twelve inch […]
This legacy of love is a perpetual gift IT BEGINS WITH A CHEMIST AND A MIDDLE SCHOOL ART TEACHER, ORIGINALLY FROM CHICAGO, WHO FOUND THEIR WAY TO SARASOTA COUNTY AND SELBY GARDENS FOLLOWING A LONG AGO HONEYMOON IN SOUTH FLORIDA. It ends with a shared love of this tropical, urban oasis on Sarasota Bay that […]