You'll be stepping back in time -- WAY back -- when we visit Zilker Botanical Garden during the Austin Fling next May.
Why? My favorite garden there is the Hartman Prehistoric Garden, built where fossils were discovered (casts of them are displayed today), and planted with palms, ferns, cycads, magnolias, horsetail reed, ginkgos, and conifers -- primitive species that have survived from the age of dinosaurs. In the center of the garden, a bronze dinosaur seems to pause alertly, wondering where the strange, two-legged creatures looking at him came from.
The Isamu Taniguchi Japanese Garden is another popular garden at ZBG, with an arching moon bridge made of local juniper, koi ponds, a waterfall, and a small island reached by stepping stones. Fling planner Diana Kirby even got married there!
These are just two of the gardens at Zilker Botanical Garden, a beloved, 26-acre, park-like garden that for 60+ years has shown Austinites the variety of plants they can grow in our South-meets-Southwest climate, as well as offering half a million visitors each year a lovely place to stroll and explore near downtown. There's also a butterfly garden, a cactus and succulent garden that was recently redesigned, and a pioneer village with an operational blacksmith shop and two Swedish cabins.
Thanks to Austin Fling sponsor Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy, we'll have lunch one day in ZBG's auditorium and then explore the gardens afterward.
Zilker Botanical Garden
Conservancy was established in 2015 to raise funds,
increase visibility, and advocate for the garden. The Conservancy is working
closely with the City of Austin and Austin Area Garden Council (AAGC) to fundraise for a master plan for the garden and implementation. Its goal is to turn ZBG into a world-class garden!
We're proud to partner with ZBG Conservancy, which is working to get funding and resources for this much-loved Austin public garden, and we look forward to sharing the garden with you!
Zilker Botanical Garden
Visit: 2220 Barton Springs Rd., Austin, TX 78746
Garden hours:
9 am to 6 pm (last entry at 5:30 pm)
Thursdays open until 8 pm (last entry at 7:30 pm)
Find us online: