Selby Gardens Helps Train Local Residents for Good Jobs via Master Plan Project
Eighteen community members have graduated from tuition-free training for in-demand local jobs in the construction trades thanks to donors to the campaign for the Master Plan at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota campus. With an investment of...
Botany Brief: Taking it to the Seed Bank
Florida supports one of the highest levels of plant diversity in the country, with about 3,200 native species. However, according to the nonprofit Center for Plant Conservation (CPC), hundreds are at high risk of extinction. Selby Gardens is a partner in a new...
Selby Gardens Receives $1-Million Gift for Master Plan
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens announced yesterday at the annual Chairman’s Circle Dinner that philanthropist Richard Matson has made a $1-million pledge bequest to support the Master Plan for our Downtown Sarasota campus. Matson and his wife, Cornelia, are...
Crystal Bailey Joins Selby Gardens as Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel
We are delighted to announce that Crystal Bailey, Esq. has joined the staff of Selby Gardens in the newly created position of Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel. Bailey comes to Selby Gardens from the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, where she...
Community Foundation of Sarasota County, Selby Gardens Bring Families Together for Lights in Bloom®
About 1,000 children and youth, their families, and local educators enjoyed complimentary access to our Lights in Bloom® holiday light show during two recent Family Togetherness Nights sponsored by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. Through the Family...
Botanist Dr. John Clark Joins Team Selby
John L. Clark, PhD, officially joined the Selby Gardens staff this January. The field botanist with expertise in gesneriads has been contributing significantly to science at Selby Gardens for more than two decades. Since 2009, Clark has been affiliated with Selby...

“Rainforest Masks of Costa Rica” Exhibition Returns to Selby Gardens in January
The popular Rainforest Masks of Costa Rica art exhibition will return to Marie Selby Botanical Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota campus from January 7 to 22, 2023. Featuring the traditional art of the Indigenous Boruca tribe of the Costa Rican rainforest, the show will...
Selby Gardens’ Lights in Bloom® Wins National Recognition from USA TODAY for Second Year in a Row
Lights in Bloom® is a repeat winner in the USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice contest for Best Botanical Garden Holiday Lights. USA TODAY announced that Selby Gardens’ annual holiday light show earned sixth place this year out of the 20 botanical garden light displays...
New Multiuse Recreational Trail Opens to the Public on Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota Campus
A new Multiuse Recreational Trail, or MURT, has opened along the perimeter of Selby Gardens’ Downtown Sarasota campus. The 800-linear-foot MURT gives pedestrians, joggers, cyclists, and others safe access to the campus as well as to the Sarasota Bayfront from...
Selby Gardens Receives $60,000 Arts Appreciation Grant from Gulf Coast Community Foundation
Gulf Coast Community Foundation has awarded Marie Selby Botanical Gardens a $60,000 Arts Appreciation Grant. The grant is funded in part by the Mildred and Garrett Eelman Charitable Fund at Gulf Coast. The grant will provide vital support for two key...