4 Pennsylvania Gardens Delight Visitors

The H.O. Smith Botanic Garden in State College opened in 2009 and is nestled in the 370-acre Arboretum at Penn State, which dates to 1914. The botanic garden has 10 acres of themed gardens and another 14 acres of meadows and paths. My favorite spots were the Childhood’s Gate Children’s Garden and the three-acre Pollinator and Bird Garden.

The Childhood’s Gate Garden displays plants that thrive in Pennsylvania and replicates the commonwealth’s terrain with a man-made limestone cave, hills and a wading stream.

At the Pollinator and Bird Garden, rocking chairs in a shady overlook by a marsh invite visitors to linger. Volunteers equip guests with binoculars and record on a whiteboard the varieties of birds they spot -- 18 on the morning I was there.

Bonus: The garden entrance is adjacent to the Palmer Museum of Art, one of Pennsylvania’s largest art museums. The free museum, which opened in its new location in June, shares a parking lot with the garden. It features both permanent and traveling exhibits, including an art nouveau show coming next year from our own Chrysler Museum of Art.

The Smith Botanic Garden’s children’s area engages young gardeners.

Pittsburgh Botanic Garden, which opened in 2015 outside Pittsburgh, is one of Pennsylvania’s newest public gardens. With 460 acres, it is among the 10 largest botanical gardens in the United States. It sits on reclaimed land that was strip mined for coal and then abandoned leaving behind polluted water, deep ravines, and little plant life.

The Horticultural Society of Pennsylvania worked for 25 years to transform this scarred wasteland into a plant-filled oasis. On-site water filtration systems and 16,000 tree seedlings helped the garden win the Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence.

Seven distinct gardens invite guests to wander along shady paths. My favorites included the Woodland Gardens, including the Asian Woodland circling a pond reclaimed from a mining pit. In the Alleghany Plateau Woodland I checked out “newspapers” stashed in mailboxes by significant trees. Each edition of The Tree Times highlighted the specific tree and significant events happening when it first sprouted.

Don’t miss out: Across the road from the garden’s main entrance are a nature play area, a restored 1795 log cabin, pioneer garden and an apple orchard. 

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh dates to 1893 when industrialist Henry W. Phipps built and donated to the city a Victorian-style glasshouse in Schenley Park. His goal was to create “a source of instruction as well as pleasure to the people.”

The spectacular 14-room conservatory has undergone major restoration and expansions but retains its original character. This year the Phipps was among five winners of the National Medal for Museum and Library Services. It was honored for advancing green-building practices, sustainable gardening, environmental awareness, and climate action.

With 23 different gardens, the Phipps overflows with plants adapted to specific environments. It is hard to pick a favorite among the various rooms dedicated to orchids, palms, bonsai gardens, ferns, fruits and spices, desert plants and more. Springing from the plants are fanciful creations by Dale Chihuly and other glass artists. The Phipps always has special exhibits -- currently ones featuring whimsical sea creatures and Hawaiian plants.

You could spend all day wandering indoors at the conservatory. But don’t forget the outdoors. The Phipps’ 1.6 acres of walking paths pass by herb, medicinal, perennial, native and other specialty gardens. If that isn’t enough, the conservatory is in the 456-acre Schenley Park, which has numerous trails to explore.

Tips for visiting: Buying Phipps tickets in advance online is recommended to save you time. Limited street parking is available but can be challenging to find so go early or head to garages listed on the Phipps website.