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Missouri Botanical Garden

Author: Alecia Warren

Since first opening in 1859, the Missouri Botanical Garden has acquired contributions from artists, architects, and scientists. Now, secluded oases and photo-ops abound within its 79 acres of natural and architectural splendor. Whether visitors come to brush up on their gardening techniques or simply indulge in personal reflection, the Botanical Garden – also known as Shaw's Garden, after its founder – offers a refreshing natural refuge in the midst of the city.

Missouri Botanical Garden Attractions

In addition to the many different types of gardens and beautiful natural surroundings, interactive events and art exhibits offer learning experiences for all. Couples can claim a garden or reflector pool for romantic strolls, and visitors on their own can absorb gardening lessons or simply reconnect to nature at their own pace.

Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m., seven days a week.

Admission:
Adults, $8; St. Louis City and County residents, $4 and $2 seniors (65+). Garden members and children 12 and under, free. (Extra ticket charge for some special exhibitions).

The Children's Garden

Children 3-12 years: $3 in addition to general Garden admission
Children under 2 and Adults over 13: free
April-October, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily.
Closed November-March

This interactive playground encourages children to learn and get a little exercise in a safe environment. The Children's Garden invites families to explore four routes modeled to suit individual children's interests: the Botanist, the Discoverer, the Explorer, or the Adventurist path. Each offers different natural wonders to explore. For instance, children can investigate evidence of previous plant, animal, and human visitors in the Ozark cave, cross a rope bridge, look at stalactites and stalagmites, and trace a tree's history by its rings.

Tram Tour

Cost: $3
April-October, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily; tours run more frequently on weekends.

Half an hour may not seem like enough time to explain more than 100 years of history, but this guided tour attempts to divulge the Garden's full history, as well as secrets to maintaining its vast grounds. Visitors are encouraged to stop at different locations to explore, then pick up another tram later. Highlights of the tour include the Victorian Area, where architectural remnants from the Botanical Garden's founding era are preserved. A short promenade down the path is Tower Grove House, the country estate of the Botanical Garden's founder, Henry Shaw. A St. Louis merchant and philanthropist, he made the somber manor his home after opening the Garden in 1859. Tours are also available of the renovated home.

Climatron

Built in 1960, this 70-ft high, 175-ft. wide glistening glass bubble was the world's first geodesic dome greenhouse. This achievement was one-upped in 1976, when the dome was named one of the 100 most significant architectural achievements in U.S. history.

The rich scent of dirt fills unsuspecting nostrils walking in, and a rush of humidity prepares the senses for the tropical world to come. The rainforest conservatory may seem dauntingly high, but once inside, visitors can see why such proportions are essential. Towering palm trees stretch to scrape the tops of the dome, and surrounding these giants are 1,200 other species of exotic trees and plants. The heavy burble of waterfalls blends with chitters and chirps from endangered species that depend on the Climatron for survival.

Japanese Garden

A blend of Japanese architecture and flora, the garden is a scene of tranquility, complimented by details like replicas of natural waterfalls, beaches and islands, sometimes with minimal plantings, as in the raked dry gravel gardens.

Rose Garden

Perhaps it's the fat white fence harboring the sprawl of rose bushes, or the spacious design of plotted circles expanding from a central fountain, but something sets this arena of petals apart from its surroundings. The widening corkscrew of pinks, reds, and whites seems more fitting for Alice in Wonderland, the otherworldly ambiance prodded by laughing children weaving in and out of the blooming pattern. The true treasure is the flowers, however. The scene is most appealing for gardeners - professionals and beginners alike - who coo and huddle over individual buds, murmuring their impressions of size and color.

English Woodland Garden

Beneath the leafy canopy of towering Japanese maples and sinuous dogwoods, a small dirt path digresses from the cement sidewalk, beckoning a momentary respite from the bustling crowds. Visitors can lose themselves in the maze of exotic trees and indulge in the medley of cricket chirps and woodpecker percussion. These brief adventures are reminders that even when secluded from sight-seeing groups, travelers are never alone when they're in nature.

Kemper Center for Home Gardening

The Garden has answers to every agricultural query, whether visitors are frustrated by rabbits in the vegetable garden or withering flowers. The Home Demonstration area is sectioned off into different specialty gardens with directions on how to reproduce these thriving models at home. Just a few include:
Family Vegetable Garden

This garden features common fruits and vegetables that are easy to maintain, like corn, tomatoes, and beans. Dotted with signs explaining the requirements for sustainable living, each plot is scaled to a size necessary for feeding a family of four.

Fragrance Garden

Inhaling within two steps of this garden will render a slow sigh and an easy smile. The garden offers comfortable seats to sink into while visitors stop and smell the- well, you know the rest. Signs are posted with directions on how certain ferns and flowers can be placed and nurtured to produce a delightful aroma.

Fruit Garden

Everyone should have the experience of picking home-grown blueberries and strawberries on a hot summer day. Although visitors can't pick the berries grown in the Botanical Garden, they can study them when they're in season and learn how to cultivate the most delicious fruit for their own gardens.

Dining at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Touring the grounds of the Missouri Botanical Garden can take its toll on the feet and stomach. The Garden offers a few cozy cafes where visitors can relax and refuel, and nearby restaurants are abundant.

Sassafras

Open 9-5 daily

Located in the Ridgway Center at the entrance to the Botanical Garden, the restaurant offers a full and affordable menu that changes seasonally. The main options include basic soups, salads, and sandwiches with creative twists that will please even the most demanding dyspeptic. A few examples include apple sweet potato pumpkin bisque, grilled portabella sandwich, and Thai chicken salad with spicy peanut dressing. Indoor and outdoor seating is available, although the outdoor view of the Garden exhibits may be more appealing than the indoor area's overlook of the gift shop.

Fountain Grill

Open on weekends, April-October

Sometimes hungry families just need a little something to tide them over without spoiling their appetites for dinner. Located on the Spoehrer Plaza, the grill offers a simple and affordable menu of sandwiches to snack on while absorbing a few more gardens.

The Terrace Café

Open on weekends, April-October

Located inside the Kemper Center for Home Gardening, the café is ideal for a quick snack on the go or just a reward for good behavior. Menu options include burgers and PBJ sandwiches for less than $4, and sides like chips or ice cream for less than $2.
Dining near the Missouri Botanical Garden

Dining options around the Botanical Garden may, at first, seem sparse. The Tower Grove side of the Garden offers a park ideal for picnics, but little more than a crowded residential area beyond. While traveling down Shaw Boulevard, a first glance offers little more than ramshackle donut dives and auto repair shops. Do not be deceived, however, hungry travelers. Follow Shaw Boulevard to signs directing traffic to The Hill, an area bursting with authentic Italian restaurants. Just a few examples include:

Cunetto's House of Pasta

Every St. Louisian has contributed to the rumors: the best Italian food outside of Sicily. Heaping portions to satisfy the hungriest American. Intimate surroundings and service that is more accommodating than your favorite easy chair back home. Well, these rumors are true – but so are the tales of two-hour waits in the spacious bar nearly equal in size to the restaurant seating. Frustrating though this may be, if travelers are in town to experience the best St. Louis has to offer, the wait is worthwhile. (314-781-1135; 5453 Magnolia Avenue ).

Guido's Pizzeria and Tapas

In the mood to make your dining experience an adventure? Try a taste of authentic Spanish tapas, like homemade empanadas or Jamon Serrano. Italian staples like pizza are offered as well, and Guido's is well-known for its delicious Sangria. (314-771-4900; 5046 Shaw Avenue ).

LoRusso's Cucina

The owner insists the menu traces back to cooking lessons with his Grandma in Sicily. Tradition eventually fashioned itself with modernity, however - now veal dishes share the menu with Adkin's low-carb pastas. Each dish is welcoming against the backdrop of the cozy, quiet interior, accentuated by live jazz performances every Friday and Saturday evening from 6:30 to 10:30. (314-647-6222; 3121 Watson Road ).

Mama Campisi's Restaurante

There are a number of menu options at this restaurant, ranging from American to Italian to steakhouse dining. The full menu beckons travelers to join the tradition of fine dining that began when the restaurant first opened in 1982. Mama Campisi started the restaurant, and her sons, John and Frank, carry on the tradition with taste and style. The star dish remains the Toasted Ravioli, accidentally invented when a cook dropped an order of ravioli into hot oil instead of hot water. After adding some spice and dressing, a popular favorite was created. (314-776-3100; 2132 Edwards Street).

Modesto Tapas Bar and Restaurant

Large proportions, large seating area, and large menu, perfect for…That's right, large groups! The atmosphere is colorful and comfortable, transporting visitors to Spain both through the food and the warm ambience. The menu is a rare opportunity to attempt a different ethnic taste, and offers a choices like hot and cold tapas, grilled lamb kabobs, chicken with saffron rice, and Serrano bacon and vegetables. (314-772-8272; 5257 Shaw Avenue ).

Zia's On the Hill

A tradition is carried on through the restaurant's name and its food. Named after the founding brothers' aunts, who were brilliant cooks, Zia's has maintained and added to its menu of bold and zesty creations since its opening in 1984. Previously the location of an Italian grocer, the street corner café has a quaint, old-world charm with intimate seating. Hearty sandwiches are favorite menu choices, including meatball, steak, and fish sandwiches. (314-776-0020; 5256 Wilson Avenue ).

Special Events at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Many special events at the Garden are beloved annual traditions. See www.mobot.org for a complete list of events and exhibitions.

Chihuly Nights at the Missouri Botanical Garden
Holiday Wreath Exhibition
Victorian Christmas at Tower Grove House
“Gardenland Express: Gateway to the West” Holiday Flower and Train Show
Annual Japanese Festival

Chihuly Nights at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Monday and Thursday: 6 – 10 p.m.
Admission: $15
Through December, 2006

At the heart of the Missouri Botanical Garden are three reflector pools decorated with myth-inspired bronze statues and colossal Victorian lily pads resembling floating dinner plates. Bobbing lazily in the empty spaces between them are gleaming, tear-shaped objects that range from brilliant reds to maddening yellows. People lean in close to snap photos or confirm that these bobbing spheres aren't some rare genus of exotic flower.

There's more evidence of these sparkling imposters. Glinting orange spirals crown the arches at opposite ends of the rose garden, reaching skyward like greedy sunflower petals. Their nightclub-neon exteriors are shocking contrasts against the soft buds hiding in leafy bushes below.

More than mere garden ornaments, these are manifestations from the imagination of artist Dale Chihuly, whose glass-blown pieces are featured throughout the Missouri Botanical Garden. Each creation, like the floating tear-drops modeled after Walla Walla onions, is inspired by natural wonders the Slovakian artist has witnessed in his worldly travels.

When the sun disappears behind the towering dogwoods and pin oaks that span the grounds, the garden's leafy stars fade into shadows while these art pieces step into their own limelight, glowing like bursting stars frozen in time.

They're blown instead of grown, but no one seems to mind the suddenly ubiquitous presence of glass in the gardens. The pieces are a reminder of the garden's use as a medium to blend nature into a modern world that has little time to appreciate it.

Indeed, crowds will stroll through the Botanical Garden on “Chihuly Nights” to bask less in nature's company than the glow of Chihuly's exhibitions, which are planted throughout the park. Art and nature lovers can mix over cocktails and snacks, listen to live music and take in glass-blowing demonstrations. Each exhibition is custom-designed and site-specific. The artist encourages photography of the artwork.

Holiday Wreath Exhibition

November 18 - January 7
Admission: Included in General Admission
Daily, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

The area's finest floral designers will display their latest creations in the Ridgway Center. Some lucky visitors will be able to buy their favorite wreaths at a silent auction, with proceeds benefiting the Missouri Botanical Garden.

Victorian Christmas at Tower Grove House

November 21 - December 31
Admission: $3 for adults, in addition to general Garden admission; free for children 12 and under.
Tuesday – Friday: 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sunday: 1 – 4 p.m.

Garden founder Henry Shaw's country home will ring in the holidays by donning locally made decorations like wreaths, pine roping, and greens. Visitors can admire the estate in all its splendor and listen to stories of Shaw's Christmas season celebrations.
“Gardenland Express: Gateway to the West” Holiday
Flower and Train Show

November 22 - January 1, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Admission: $3 adults and children, in addition to general Garden admission.

G-scale trains putter through the Floral Display Hall, crossing a miniature landscape of plants and American landmarks, including the Gateway Arch and Hollywood Hills.

Annual Japanese Festival

Labor Day Weekend
Admission: Adults - $10, Senior -$7, Members -$3, Children - $3

Bonsai plants will be on display, but this festival offers more insight into Japanese culture than through the nation's plants alone. Visitors will enjoy cooking demonstrations, ice sculpting, martial arts, a Karaoke contest, tea ceremonies, raku pottery demonstrations, kimono fashion show, and a marketplace.

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Check out places of interest near Missouri Botanical Garden:

Cunetto House of Pasta
5453 Magnolia Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110

Taste the richness of family recipes at this restaurant on the Hill.

Cunetto's House of Pasta
5453 Magnolia Avenue , St. Louis, MO 63139

Cunetto House of Pasta has been bringing rich Italian food to the St. Louis area since 1972, and doesn't show any sign of stopping. Still family run and moderately priced, any Italian foodie would be amiss not stopping in for a bite.

Fountain Grill
4256 Magnolia, St. Louis, MO 63166

Fountain Grill is an eatery located within the lush grounds of the Missouri Botanical Gardens.

Guido's Pizzeria and Tapas
5046 Shaw Avenue , St. Louis, MO 63110

In the mood to make your dining experience an adventure? Try a taste of authentic Spanish tapas, like homemade empanadas or Jamon Serrano. Italian staples like pizza are offered as well, and Guido's is well-known for its delicious Sangria.

LoRusso's Cucina
3121 Watson Road, St. Louis, MO 63139

The owner insists the menu traces back to cooking lessons with his Grandma in Sicily. Tradition eventually fashioned itself with modernity, however - now veal dishes share the menu with Adkin's low-carb pastas. Each dish is welcoming against the backdrop of the cozy, quiet interior, accentuated by live jazz performances every Friday and Saturday evening from 6:30 to 10:30.

Mama Campisi's
2132 Edwards (at Bischoff), St. Louis, MO 63110

Mama Campisi’s is a historic restaurant and a landmark on The Hill, St. Louis’s famous Italian neighborhood. House specialties like Parmigiana di Melanzane and Vitello Saltimbocca will make your mouth water. The menu boasts a large selection of pastas and sandwiches, as well as steak and seafood selections.

Mama Campisi's Restaurante
2132 Edwards Street, St. Louis, MO 63110

There are a number of menu options at this restaurant, ranging from American to Italian to steakhouse dining. The full menu beckons travelers to join the tradition of fine dining that began when the restaurant first opened in 1982. Mama Campisi started the restaurant, and her sons, John and Frank, carry on the tradition with taste and style. The star dish remains the Toasted Ravioli, accidentally invented when a cook dropped an order of ravioli into hot oil instead of hot water. After adding some spice and dressing, a popular favorite was created.

Sassafras
2020 Cherokee St, St. Louis, MO

Open 9-5 daily

Located in the Ridgway Center at the entrance to the Botanical Garden, the restaurant offers a full and affordable menu that changes seasonally. The main options include basic soups, salads, and sandwiches with creative twists that will please even the most demanding dyspeptic. A few examples include apple sweet potato pumpkin bisque, grilled portabella sandwich, and Thai chicken salad with spicy peanut dressing. Indoor and outdoor seating is available, although the outdoor view of the Garden exhibits may be more appealing than the indoor area's overlook of the gift shop.

The Terrace Café
811 North 9th Street, St. Louis, MO 63101

Open on weekends, April-October

Located inside the Kemper Center for Home Gardening, the café is ideal for a quick snack on the go or just a reward for good behavior. Menu options include burgers and PBJ sandwiches for less than $4, and sides like chips or ice cream for less than $2.

Zia's
5256 Wilson Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110

Established in 1985- Zias has been offering wonderful Italian cusine at reasonable prices for over twenty years.

Zia's On the Hill
5256 Wilson Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63130

A tradition is carried on through the restaurant's name and its food. Named after the founding brothers' aunts, who were brilliant cooks, Zia's has maintained and added to its menu of bold and zesty creations since its opening in 1984. Previously the location of an Italian grocer, the street corner café has a quaint, old-world charm with intimate seating. Hearty sandwiches are favorite menu choices, including meatball, steak, and fish sandwiches.

Augusta Winery
5601 High Street, Augusta , MO 63332

Visitors come to see the sprawling vineyards and taste the wine. The winery features a wide selection of wines with a wide price range.

Climatron
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Built in 1960, this 70-ft high, 175-ft. wide glistening glass bubble was the world's first geodesic dome greenhouse. This achievement was one-upped in 1976, when the dome was named one of the 100 most significant architectural achievements in U.S. history.

The rich scent of dirt fills unsuspecting nostrils walking in, and a rush of humidity prepares the senses for the tropical world to come. The rainforest conservatory may seem dauntingly high, but once inside, visitors can see why such proportions are essential. Towering palm trees stretch to scrape the tops of the dome, and surrounding these giants are 1,200 other species of exotic trees and plants. The heavy burble of waterfalls blends with chitters and chirps from endangered species that depend on the Climatron for survival.

English Woodland Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Beneath the leafy canopy of towering Japanese maples and sinuous dogwoods, a small dirt path digresses from the cement sidewalk, beckoning a momentary respite from the bustling crowds. Visitors can lose themselves in the maze of exotic trees and indulge in the medley of cricket chirps and woodpecker percussion. These brief adventures are reminders that even when secluded from sight-seeing groups, travelers are never alone when they're in nature.

Family Vegetable Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

This garden features common fruits and vegetables that are easy to maintain, like corn, tomatoes, and beans. Dotted with signs explaining the requirements for sustainable living, each plot is scaled to a size necessary for feeding a family of four.

Fragrance Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Inhaling within two steps of this garden will render a slow sigh and an easy smile. The garden offers comfortable seats to sink into while visitors stop and smell the- well, you know the rest. Signs are posted with directions on how certain ferns and flowers can be placed and nurtured to produce a delightful aroma.

Fruit Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Everyone should have the experience of picking home-grown blueberries and strawberries on a hot summer day. Although visitors can't pick the berries grown in the Botanical Garden, they can study them when they're in season and learn how to cultivate the most delicious fruit for their own gardens.

Japanese Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

A blend of Japanese architecture and flora, the garden is a scene of tranquility, complimented by details like replicas of natural waterfalls, beaches and islands, sometimes with minimal plantings, as in the raked dry gravel gardens.

Missouri Botanical Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63110

Rose Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Perhaps it's the fat white fence harboring the sprawl of rose bushes, or the spacious design of plotted circles expanding from a central fountain, but something sets this arena of petals apart from its surroundings. The widening corkscrew of pinks, reds, and whites seems more fitting for Alice in Wonderland, the otherworldly ambiance prodded by laughing children weaving in and out of the blooming pattern. The true treasure is the flowers, however. The scene is most appealing for gardeners - professionals and beginners alike - who coo and huddle over individual buds, murmuring their impressions of size and color.

The Children's Garden
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Children 3-12 years: $3 in addition to general Garden admission
Children under 2 and Adults over 13: free
April-October, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily.
Closed November-March

This interactive playground encourages children to learn and get a little exercise in a safe environment. The Children's Garden invites families to explore four routes modeled to suit individual children's interests: the Botanist, the Discoverer, the Explorer, or the Adventurist path. Each offers different natural wonders to explore. For instance, children can investigate evidence of previous plant, animal, and human visitors in the Ozark cave, cross a rope bridge, look at stalactites and stalagmites, and trace a tree's history by its rings.

Tram Tour
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

Cost: $3
April-October, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily; tours run more frequently on weekends.

Half an hour may not seem like enough time to explain more than 100 years of history, but this guided tour attempts to divulge the Garden's full history, as well as secrets to maintaining its vast grounds. Visitors are encouraged to stop at different locations to explore, then pick up another tram later. Highlights of the tour include the Victorian Area, where architectural remnants from the Botanical Garden's founding era are preserved. A short promenade down the path is Tower Grove House, the country estate of the Botanical Garden's founder, Henry Shaw. A St. Louis merchant and philanthropist, he made the somber manor his home after opening the Garden in 1859. Tours are also available of the renovated home.

Tram Tour
4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO

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