Young bottlebrush tree in bayfront exhibit. Inset: Weeping stem and leaves of bottlebrush (Photos by Aaron Fink)Written by Shawn McCourt, Ph.D., Plants Record Keeper Claude Monet’s famous paintings of his gardens and home at Giverny in France have been brought to life...
Gardens Blog
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
Whats in Bloom
Spring is in the Air!
Written by Shawn McCourt, Ph.D. Plant Records KeeperDendrobium nobile var. cooksonianum in MSBG’s greenhouse collection.When most people think of spring flowers, they tend to think daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, cherry blossoms, or azaleas, but here at Marie Selby...
Botanical Spotlight: Red Silk Cotton Trees
Written by Shawn McCourt, Ph.D., Plant Records Keeper Some of the largest, and showiest, exotic trees planted in parks and gardens here in southwest Florida include several members of the mallow family, the Malvaceae. Among these are the deciduous spring-blooming red...
Botanical Spotlight: Cherries
Written by Shawn McCourt, Ph.D., Plant Records KeeperFigure 1. Blooming flatwoods plum (P. umbellata) draped in Spanish moss on the perimeter of MSBG’s downtown campus (Photo by Sandra Robinson)Figure 2. Chickasaw plum (P. angustifolia) in bloom along Mound Ave. at...
Botanical Spotlight: Cattleya percivaliana
Cattleya percivaliana blooming in Wedding Oak at downtown campus (Photo by Aaron Fink) Blooming now in the “Wedding Oak” just west of the Payne Mansion at Selby’s downtown campus is a beautiful lavender-colored orchid with large flowers that is often underlooked by...
What’s in Bloom – Bougainvillea
Bougainvillea are familiar to us as common thorny shrubs, vines, or trees bearing colorful papery “flowers” which are in fact modified leaves or bracts enclosing three simple waxy true flowers that are normally white or off-white in color. They are members of the...

The Tradition of Mistletoe
Mistletoe has had a variety of meanings and uses throughout many different times and cultures, including the well-known holiday tradition of kissing under the mistletoe. This week, one of Selby Gardens’ botanists found mistletoe growing in a laurel oak tree on the...

What’s Blooming at Selby Gardens
In summer there are exciting new blooms throughout Selby Gardens. Take inspiration from our own horticulturists this summer, and add a little extra splash of color to your own garden. Stop and take a closer look at these plants that are blooming in August at Selby...

The “Queen” is Coming – Selenicereus Blooming May 31
UPDATE: Our Selenicereus the spectacular night-blooming cactus, appears ready to bloom tonight, May 31! Join us from 8 to 11 p.m. in front of the Botany Building on Palm Avenue* to witness this annual blooming. The event will take place rain or (moon)shine. Things to...

Baby on Board: Titan arum
What do you get when you cross one of the world’s most foul-smelling plants with another purely putrid-scented plant? The world will soon find out. Audrey and Seymour - Selby Gardens’ two corpse plants - are having babies. Lots and lots of babies. In summer 2016 when...