Gardens reflects back on 50 years

A VIP in the horticulture community was surprised when he visited the Birmingham Botanical Gardens a few years ago.

“For all our garden is, it’s separate from the community,” he told Gardens Executive Director Fred Spicer. “It’s apparent you are very connected to the community.”

What he noted is a point of pride for everyone behind the Gardens.

“The Gardens have always been lots of things to a lot of people,” Spicer said. “We are free and open every day of the year. There are not many cultural institutions in the state with that accessibility.”

Since Spicer came on board as the Gardens’ first executive director in 2001, the Gardens has been rebranded with renewed focus on welcoming all kinds of people into its gates for a reality-based experience.

“More and more, I think people are looking for opportunities that are not on a device,” Spicer said. “We are real and provide exposure to the natural world. People come for solace, relaxation, quiet and immersion in the outside world.”

Since 2003, the Gardens’ programming has tripled, especially free hands-on science-based education for children. In fact, the Gardens reimburses transportation costs for field trips for City of Birmingham and Bessemer schools to ensure there is no barrier to access for the children.

It might come as a surprise to some that the public horticulture library, which is part of the Jefferson County library system, is the only one in the United States as far as Spicer knows. The Gardens also houses the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES) with its plant diagnostic lab, horticulture hotline and other services.

Out in the gardens, the Living Collection has plants from every continent, and the wildflower garden boasts arguably one of the largest collections in the Southeast. According to Spicer, there is no other structure in the world like the tea house in the 40-year-old Japanese garden, a unique feature for a city without a strong history of Asian immigration.

Its newly renovated conservatory is now open, and 10 major projects from Gardens’ master plan are currently being set in motion.

When asked about how the Gardens have evolved over the past 50 years, Spicer emphasized that they grow and change every day. 

“It marks the changing of the seasons even on a daily basis,” Spicer said. “A garden is never finished, and gardeners embrace that. Compared to many botanical gardens, we are a baby. Fifty years in some ways feels like we are just getting started.”

Spicer encourages people who generally only come to the Gardens for a wedding shower or portrait session to take a class, come to an evening event, come after work, come in the winter and come on a weekend to see the full diversity of what it offers and who it attracts.

“If people knew all the different facets, support would be more broad-based,” he said, noting how the Gardens, a “lean and mean nonprofit,” relies on the community’s financial support to operate.

Next up on the calendar is Earth Day at The Gardens, scheduled for April 26 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. in the Formal Garden in front of the Conservatory.

For the event, the Gardens is partnering with Community Garden Coalition for Birmingham to focus on the growing local interest in community gardening. Displays and demonstrations will feature topics such as vegetable garden design, raised bed construction, composting, trellising, rainwater irrigation and beekeeping. The event is free to the public.

For more, visit bbgardens.org.