Arboretums and Botanical Gardens to Visit in Seattle

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When considering a vacation, or even just a day out with the family, why not consider visiting a local arboretum or botanical garden?  You can enjoy a delightful getaway with a visit to one of these beautiful gateways to all that nature has to offer.

Arboretums and botanical gardens work to promote common respect and educate with a drive towards an appreciation of the world of gardening and the insects that work to pollinate our plants and flowers. 

These nature monuments are just waiting to be discovered and welcomes all visitors for a day of tranquility, enjoying their peaceful beauty.  Make sure to check out one of the arboretums or botanical gardens listed below.

Bellevue Botanical Garden

12001 Main St, Bellevue, WA 98005

The Bellevue Botanical Garden is an urban refuge encompassing 53 acres of cultivated gardens, restored woodlands, and natural wetlands. 

Seattle Japanese Garden

1075 Lake Washington Blvd E, Seattle WA 98112

Seattle Japanese Garden is a 3.5-acre urban sanctuary.  Winding paths and benches invite you to view the garden slowly and mindfully, in all of its detail – stones, water, lanterns, bridges, buildings, plants, and animals.  Seasonal changes are constant, and every visit refreshingly unique.

Kubota Garden

9817 55th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98178

In the late 1980s, when developers were eager to purchase the 20-acre property and build condominiums, community members advocated with the City of Seattle to purchase the garden. Councilwoman Jeanette Williams found the necessary funds to make the purchase in 1987. Several of those community members formed Kubota Garden Foundation in 1989 to continue a partnership with the City and assure the preservation of the entire garden as envisioned by the Kubota family. 

Dunn Gardens

13533 Northshire Rd NW, Seattle, WA 98177

The esteemed Olmsted Brothers Landscape firm designed the Dunn Gardens in 1915.  One hundred years later, the vision of the Garden’s as a place of timeless grace has been realized.  Notable features include naturalistic groupings of trees, broad lawns with borders of shrubs, and woodland walks.  Plants range from diminutive erythroniums to large rhododendrons and towering Douglas firs.

Carl S English Jr Botanical Garden

3015 NW 54th St, Seattle, WA 98107

Carl S. English, Jr. made a garden by the Locks, which join Puget Sound to Lakes Union and Washington. In 1931, he was hired by the Corps. His vision and expertise as a horticulturist and botanist transformed the grounds from a graveled extension of a construction site into a lovely English estate-style garden. Carl retired in 1974 as one of the Northwest’s leading horticulturists. He is credited with the discovery and naming of three rare plants -Talinum okanoganense (fameflower), Lewisia rupicola (bitter root), and Claytonia nivalis (spring beauty). Carl also helped to develop the waterside plantings along with the Fremont and Montlake Cuts that are part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal. The style of the planting design is gardenesque.

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