Founded in 1926, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has been a must-see attraction since its inception. The founders’ goal of the garden was to “unite the aesthetic, educational, and scientific.” This blend has created a truly unique landmark that offers cultural richness to a city that is filled with incredible history.
Serving as a living museum for patrons of all ages, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden offers a variety of floral wonders to gaze at. As the SBBG states, it “differentiates itself from being just another beautiful place with open space and pretty flowers. The [SBBG] is a living museum where collections-based research preserves California native plants and displays them in a beautiful setting.”
That’s what makes this place so special, its ability to tell a story about the history of California through a collection of floral wildlife. What started out as an undertaking of collecting all types of plants around the earth, narrowed down to the California Floristic Province. While the original would have been incredible, this specific scope makes the botanic garden even more distinct.
The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has plenty to offer visitors. This includes guided tours, educational programs for kids, art exhibitions, and much more. Their collections are expansive, giving you enough to explore for an entire day.
They have 78 acres of land that houses over 1,000 taxa of California grown plants. With easy to read signs or docent tours to help better inform you, there are plenty of ways to learn about the rich diversity of California plant life. Along with that, the garden holds the Blaksley Library collections, which are approximately 15,000 rare books, artwork, journals, photographs and more.
With beautiful views of the Santa Ynez Mountains in the backdrop and events happening weekly, head over to the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens for an inside look at California’s natural history. Only a short 15-minute drive from Marina Beach Motel, this historic landmark is the perfect way to spend your afternoon!
