Olbrich Botanical Gardens
Encyclopedia
Olbrich Botanical Gardens is located in Madison
, Wisconsin
. Named for its founder, Michael Olbrich, the gardens
are owned and operated jointly by the City of Madison Parks and the non-profit Olbrich Botanical Society. The gardens were officially established in 1952.
Noteworthy additions to the gardens were the Bolz Conservatory in 1991 and a Thai pavilion
or sala
, a gift to the University of Wisconsin–Madison
from the Thai Chapter of the Wisconsin Alumni Association and the government of Thailand
through its king, Bhumibol Adulyadej
. Opened in 2002, it is one of only four sala outside of Thailand and one of two in the United States
(the other is located in Hawaii
).
The gardens are made up of several separate garden areas. The Sunken Garden is in the form of a traditional English garden
. Surrounded by limestone
terraces
and hedges
, it contains an 80 feet (24.4 m) long reflecting pool
– designed to connect the garden thematically with nearby Lake Monona
.
The Thai Garden contains the sala and is joined to the gardens proper by a 155 feet (47.2 m) arched footbridge crossing Starkweather Creek. This garden has a shallow reflecting pool near the pavilion and is littered with small examples of Thai sculpture
. The plants in this garden were carefully selected to give a tropical appearance to the garden in the summer, while choosing plants capable of surviving Wisconsin winters.
A Rock Garden is constructed of a rocky hill, designed to simulate a mountain slope. Plants here are mostly conifers
or alpine
and two streams flow through it, forming a waterfall
and small pond. Here again, a wooden footbridge crosses the stream.
A Meadow Garden combines perennial
grass
es, wildflower
s, and plant
s grown from bulb
s. The grass in the meadow
garden is mowed only once or twice a year. The small Wildflower Garden contains wildflowers, fern
s, berries
, and native tree
s and shrub
s. An Herb Garden is a collection of smaller gardens of herb
s separated by use; they include medicinal
, dye
, and kitchen (spice
) herbs, as well as 'touch' and 'smell' gardens. A perennial garden displays perennials and three ponds, with a waterfall. Aquatic plant
s are displayed in the ponds.
The Rose Garden is an ongoing project featuring more than 700 varieties and 125 rose
cultivar
s, including hybrid teas, floribunda
s, grandifloras, and hardy shrub roses.
The Starkweather Creek and Atrium Shade Gardens features a semicircular atrium
and plants such as astilbe
s, hosta
s, lungwort
, bishops' caps, and ferns. The Eunice Fisher Hosta Garden features hostas hybridized by Wisconsin-native, Eunice Fisher.
The Bolz Conservatory is a greenhouse
housing over 750 plants representing over 70 families and over 550 different species and cultivars. The plants are native to tropical and sub-tropical regions. The structure itself is a glass pyramid
measuring 100 by 100 ft (30 by 30 m) and rising to 50 ft (12 m) at the apex. The temperature is maintained between 65 and 80 degrees fahrenheit
(between 18 and 26 °C), although the sun may warm it to 95 °F (35 °C) in the summer. The relative humidity
is maintained at 60% or above.
In addition to the tropical plants, the conservatory is home to species
of bird
s including canaries
, waxbills, and coturnix
. There is also a koi pond
, featuring koi
and goldfish
. Frog
s, toad
s, and gecko
s are also present.
While admission to Olbrich Botanical Gardens is free, a small fee is charged for entry into the conservatory.
Madison, Wisconsin
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. Named for its founder, Michael Olbrich, the gardens
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
are owned and operated jointly by the City of Madison Parks and the non-profit Olbrich Botanical Society. The gardens were officially established in 1952.
Noteworthy additions to the gardens were the Bolz Conservatory in 1991 and a Thai pavilion
Pavilion (structure)
In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...
or sala
Sala (architecture)
A Sala , also known as a sala Thai, is an open pavilion, used as a meeting place and to protect people from sun and rain. Most are open on all four sides. They are found throughout Thailand in Buddhist temple areas, or Wats, although they can also be located in other places. A person who builds a...
, a gift to the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
from the Thai Chapter of the Wisconsin Alumni Association and the government of Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
through its king, Bhumibol Adulyadej
Bhumibol Adulyadej
Bhumibol Adulyadej is the current King of Thailand. He is known as Rama IX...
. Opened in 2002, it is one of only four sala outside of Thailand and one of two in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(the other is located in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
).
Gardens and grounds
English garden
The English garden, also called English landscape park , is a style of Landscape garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal, symmetrical Garden à la française of the 17th century as the principal gardening style of Europe. The...
. Surrounded by limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
terraces
Terrace (gardening)
In gardening, a terrace is an element where a raised flat paved or gravelled section overlooks a prospect. A raised terrace keeps a house dry and provides a transition between the hard materials of the architecture and softer ones of the garden.-History:...
and hedges
Hedge (gardening)
A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced shrubs and tree species, planted and trained in such a way as to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area. Hedges used to separate a road from adjoining fields or one field from another, and of sufficient age to incorporate larger trees, are...
, it contains an 80 feet (24.4 m) long reflecting pool
Reflecting pool
A reflecting pool or reflection pool is a water feature found in gardens, parks, and at memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a calm reflective...
– designed to connect the garden thematically with nearby Lake Monona
Lake Monona
Lake Monona is a freshwater drainage lake in Dane County, Wisconsin surrounded on three sides by the city of Madison, Wisconsin and on the south side by the city of Monona, Wisconsin. It is the second-largest of a chain of four lakes along the Yahara River in the area and forms the south shore of...
.
The Thai Garden contains the sala and is joined to the gardens proper by a 155 feet (47.2 m) arched footbridge crossing Starkweather Creek. This garden has a shallow reflecting pool near the pavilion and is littered with small examples of Thai sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
. The plants in this garden were carefully selected to give a tropical appearance to the garden in the summer, while choosing plants capable of surviving Wisconsin winters.
A Rock Garden is constructed of a rocky hill, designed to simulate a mountain slope. Plants here are mostly conifers
Pinophyta
The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being...
or alpine
Alpine climate
Alpine climate is the average weather for a region above the tree line. This climate is also referred to as mountain climate or highland climate....
and two streams flow through it, forming a waterfall
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
and small pond. Here again, a wooden footbridge crosses the stream.
A Meadow Garden combines perennial
Perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
es, wildflower
Wildflower
A wildflower is a flower that grows wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. Yet "wildflower" meadows of a few mixed species are sold in seed packets. The term "wildflower" has been made vague by commercial seedsmen who are interested in selling more flowers or seeds more...
s, and plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s grown from bulb
Bulb
A bulb is a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf bases. The leaves often function as food storage organs during dormancy.A bulb's leaf bases, known as scales, generally do not support leaves, but contain food reserves to enable the plant to survive adverse conditions. At the center of the bulb is...
s. The grass in the meadow
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
garden is mowed only once or twice a year. The small Wildflower Garden contains wildflowers, fern
Fern
A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...
s, berries
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
, and native tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s and shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s. An Herb Garden is a collection of smaller gardens of herb
Herb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...
s separated by use; they include medicinal
Herbalism
Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology, herblore, and phytotherapy...
, dye
Dye
A dye is a colored substance that has an affinity to the substrate to which it is being applied. The dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution, and requires a mordant to improve the fastness of the dye on the fiber....
, and kitchen (spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
) herbs, as well as 'touch' and 'smell' gardens. A perennial garden displays perennials and three ponds, with a waterfall. Aquatic plant
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
s are displayed in the ponds.
The Rose Garden is an ongoing project featuring more than 700 varieties and 125 rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
cultivar
Cultivar
A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...
s, including hybrid teas, floribunda
Floribunda
Floribunda may refer to:*A popular rose cultivar group, see Floribunda *A former cactus genus now placed in Cipocereus* Cassia floribunda, a synonym for Senna septemtrionalis, a plant species...
s, grandifloras, and hardy shrub roses.
The Starkweather Creek and Atrium Shade Gardens features a semicircular atrium
Atrium (architecture)
In modern architecture, an atrium is a large open space, often several stories high and having a glazed roof and/or large windows, often situated within a larger multistory building and often located immediately beyond the main entrance doors...
and plants such as astilbe
Astilbe
Astilbe is a genus of 18 species of perennial, herbaceous flowering plants, within the family Saxifragaceae. Some species are commonly known as False Goat's Beard, and False Spirea...
s, hosta
Hosta
Hosta is a genus of about 23–45 species of lily-like plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae, native to northeast Asia. They have been placed in their own family, Hostaceae ; like many 'lilioid monocots', they were once classified in the Liliaceae...
s, lungwort
Lungwort
The lungworts are the genus Pulmonaria of flowering plants in the family Boraginaceae, native to Europe and western Asia, with one species east to central Asia...
, bishops' caps, and ferns. The Eunice Fisher Hosta Garden features hostas hybridized by Wisconsin-native, Eunice Fisher.
Bolz Conservatory
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
housing over 750 plants representing over 70 families and over 550 different species and cultivars. The plants are native to tropical and sub-tropical regions. The structure itself is a glass pyramid
Pyramid
A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...
measuring 100 by 100 ft (30 by 30 m) and rising to 50 ft (12 m) at the apex. The temperature is maintained between 65 and 80 degrees fahrenheit
Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit is the temperature scale proposed in 1724 by, and named after, the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit . Within this scale, the freezing of water into ice is defined at 32 degrees, while the boiling point of water is defined to be 212 degrees...
(between 18 and 26 °C), although the sun may warm it to 95 °F (35 °C) in the summer. The relative humidity
Relative humidity
Relative humidity is a term used to describe the amount of water vapor in a mixture of air and water vapor. It is defined as the partial pressure of water vapor in the air-water mixture, given as a percentage of the saturated vapor pressure under those conditions...
is maintained at 60% or above.
In addition to the tropical plants, the conservatory is home to species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s including canaries
Domestic Canary
The Domestic Canary, often simply known as the canary, is a domesticated form of the wild Canary, a small songbird in the finch family originating from the Macaronesian Islands ....
, waxbills, and coturnix
Coturnix
Coturnix is a genus of Old World quail in Phasianidae.- Species list :*Blue Quail, Coturnix adansonii*King Quail, Coturnix chinensis*Rain Quail, Coturnix coromandelica*Harlequin Quail, Coturnix delegorguei*Common Quail, Coturnix coturnix...
. There is also a koi pond
Water garden
Water gardens, also known as aquatic gardens, are a type of man-made water feature. A water garden is defined as any interior or exterior landscape or architectural element whose primarily purpose is to house, display, or propagate a particular species or variety of aquatic plant...
, featuring koi
Koi
or more specifically , are ornamental varieties of domesticated common carp that are kept for decorative purposes in outdoor koi ponds or water gardens....
and goldfish
Goldfish
The goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish....
. Frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
s, toad
Toad
A toad is any of a number of species of amphibians in the order Anura characterized by dry, leathery skin , short legs, and snoat-like parotoid glands...
s, and gecko
Gecko
Geckos are lizards belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from 1.6 cm to 60 cm....
s are also present.
While admission to Olbrich Botanical Gardens is free, a small fee is charged for entry into the conservatory.