Springtime brings forth the wonders that have been lying dormant all winter, just waiting to burst forth and blossom.
Although the Midwest is filled with ”garden spots,” some noteworthy locations are to be found in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Some are sprawling conservatories with rare collections, others are as serendipitous as a charming floral clock. Grab a map and a camera-but before you hit the road, consider consulting state tourism offices, who not only can supply information on the major attractions, but also get you there via the most scenic highways. The Alfred Boerner Botanical Gardens in suburban Milwaukee is internationally recognized for its formal and informal gardens of roses, perennials, wildflowers, annuals and herbs. In addition, the Todd-Wehr Nature Center (both facilities are part of Whitnall Park) contains 200 acres of prairie, oak savanna, woodlands and wetlands. (5879 S. 92nd St., Hales Corners, Wis. 53130; telephone 414-425-1132; open daily 8 a.m. to sunset mid-April through October; admission free; parking (beginning in April, $2 per car on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays and during special events.)
Milwaukee`s Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory, known locally as the Domes, is the only horticultural structure of its kind. Its three huge glass domes feature tropical, arid and seasonal plant displays. (524 S. Layton Blvd., Milwaukee, Wis. 53215; 414-649-9830; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day;
admission is $2.50 for adults; $1 ages 6 through 17; free parking.)
The University of Wisconsin Arboretum at Madison is a microcosm of Wisconsin`s plant communities. This well-known prairie display was the setting of the filming of the Walt Disney film, ”The Prairie.” Its lilac garden, one of the largest and most comprehensive collections in the world, fills the area with springtime fragrance. (1207 Seminole Hwy., Madison, Wis. 53711; telephone 608-262-2746; arboretum is open from dawn until 10 p.m. every day; its McKay Center (classrooms and exhibits) is open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, 12:30 to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; admission and parking are free.)
The 25 acres of formal English-style gardens at the Paine Art Center and Arboretum in Oshkosh surround a Tudor-style manor house. (1410 Algoma Blvd., Oshkosh, Wis. 54901; telephone 414-235-4530; open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, 1 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday; admission to the grounds is free;
admission to the house is $3 for adults; $2 for senior citizens; parking free.)
Iowa
The Des Moines Botanical Center is a horticultural and botanical oasis. The major feature is the 150-foot geodesic dome. The conservatory houses some 1,500 species and cultivars (varieties produced from careful cultivation) of tropical, subtropical and desert plants. The more than 250 species and varieties of cacti and succulents represent the flora found in the great deserts of the world. There are also tropical and jungle settings.
An exotic array of fruit grows here, along with papayas, loquats, guavas, starfruits, coffee, cocoa, pomegranates and many varieties of citrus. (909 E. River Dr., Des Moines, Iowa 50316; telephone 515-283-4148; open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, until 9 p.m. Friday, until 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; admission is $1 for adults, 50 cents for senior citizens, 25 cents for ages 6 through 17 and students; free parking.)
Also in Des Moines is Water Works Park. Stretched out along the Raccoon River, the park houses 300 varieties of flowering crabapple trees within its Arie den Boer Arboretum.
During the first week of May, when the trees are covered with pink and white blossoms, thousands of people drive through to view the scene and smell the fragrance.
In early fall the trees are laden with fruit; later their colored leaves provide a breathtaking view. (Even in the dead of winter their bare snow-covered branches are a photographer`s delight.)
These trees have come from all states and many countries. Each is mapped and labeled for record keeping in the arboretum. (Located at the intersection of Fleur and Valley Drives; mailing address is 2201 Valley Dr., Des Moines, Iowa 50321; telephone 515-283-8791; open 6 a.m. until 10 p.m. every day; free admission and parking.)
How does your garden grow? With silver bells, and cockle shells and butterflies. The Nelson Unit of Bellevue State Park, Bellevue, Iowa, provides visitors with not only a scenic drive through the woods, a rocky bluff, a view of the Mississippi River and displays of local flora and fauna but also one of the most unusual of treats-the Butterfly Garden.
In the largest such garden in Iowa, approximately 60 species of butterflies make their appearance each year.
Stocked with such natural foodstuffs as wild aster, ragweed, goldenrod, the garden has been designed to attract butterflies by providing nectar plants for adults and host plants for caterpillars.
Surrounding the area are cottonwoods, wild cherry, hackberry and willows, with a three-acre prairie site and wildlife food plots. (Located on U.S. Highway 52 just outside Bellevue, Iowa; telephone 319-872-4019; park open dawn to 10:30 p.m. every day, nature center open 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and holidays; free admission, parking.)
The Living Heritage Tree Museum at Storm Lake, Iowa, is a city park dedicated to planting seedlings from and cuttings of trees associated with famous people or events such as the ”Moon Tree.” The parent of this tree was grown from seeds carried to the moon and back by astronaut Stuart Allen Roosa on the Apollo 14 flight. The sycamore seed was germinated at the NASA Manned Space Center in Houston. (West Lakeshore Drive, Storm Lake, Iowa 50588; direct inquiries to Storm Lake City Hall; 712-732-5700; the park is open 24 hours a day; admission and parking free. Storm Lake is about 60 miles northeast of Sioux City.)
In 1975, Jackson ”Mac” Marshall gave his 55-acre farm to the City of Dubuque to be used as a park. A volunteer group leased 16.5 acres of it from the city and developed the Dubuque Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. Although still in its infancy, it boasts of award-winning rose gardens and flower, tree and shrub collections with an emphasis on ”seed savers” food gardening, a movement to preserve and cultivate food plants that are becoming extinct.
(Marshall Park, 3125 W. 32nd St., Dubuque, Iowa 52001; 319-556-2100; open 9 a.m. to sunset every day May through November; admission and parking free.)
Early in June, at the peak of their blooming season, 1,800 roses representing (about 145 varieties) can be seen at Davenport`s Vander Veer Park Conservatory and Rose Garden. Within this beautiful park setting lies the Vander Veer Conservatory, where five floral displays are presented throughout the year.
Vander Veer Park Conservatory and Rose Garden, 211 W. Central Park, Davenport, Iowa 52803; 319-326-7818. Open noon until 7 p.m. every day;
admission and parking free.)
When the settlers moved west, Iowa was a land of prairie grass. Over the years this has been turned into farmland and it is difficult for the traveler to envision how it must have looked. Today, along the Herbert Hoover Highway, are two sites where the original prairie may be viewed. Herbert Hoover National Historic Site at West Branch, 10 miles east of Iowa City, has a 76-acre tract that has been re-established as native Iowa prairie. In 1971 this former farmland was seeded with five species of native prairie grass. Although this project has required constant work to control the encroachment of woody species and weeds, today it is one of the largest re-established natural prairies in the state.
In addition to the prairie view, visitors can tour the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum and other buildings that played a part in the life of our 31st president. (Parkside Drive, West Branch, Iowa; 319-643-2541;
prairie areas open 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day; museum facilities open until 5 p.m.; admission to the prairie areas is free; $1 for the museum, $1 for the Hoover Birthplace; free parking.)
Minnesota
The University of Minnesota Landscape Aboretum contains more than 675 acres of hills, fields, formal gardens, lakes and marshlands that can be viewed from 6 miles of foot trails or with a 3-mile drive-through. More than 4,000 species and cultivars or ornamental plants are displayed. (Mailing address is 3675 Arboretum Dr., Box 39, Chanhassen, Minn. 55317; arboretum is located on Minnesota Highway 5; telephone 612-443-2460; open 8 a.m. to sunset every day; admission is $3 for adults, $1 for children under 16; members of the Chicago Botanic Garden admitted free; free parking.)
The seven and a half acres of the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden feature about 40 sculptures by 20th-Century artists. Its Cowles Conservatory also contains sculpture and many horticultural exhibitions. The complex is located opposite the city`s famed Walker Art Center and Guthrie Theater. (Address:
Vineland Place, Minneapolis, Minn. 55403; telephone for the Cowles Conservatory: 612-443-2460; for the Sculpture Garden, 612-375-7600; the conservatory is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; until 5 p.m. Sunday; the sculpture garden is open from 6 a.m. to midnight every day;
admission to both is free; parking costs $2 per car.) –
