ABOUT THE BOTANICAL GARDENS

The Highlands Botanical Gardens of the Highlands Biological Station is both a refuge and a showcase for a wide array of the rich botanical diversity of the Blue Ridge Escarpment and environs. The historic Highlands Botanical Gardens sits at 3,800′, making it the highest public native plant botanical garden in the Eastern US.

Established in 1962 by Ralph M. Sargent, Henry Wright, Henry R. Totten and others, this research, conservation, and teaching garden has since grown to over a dozen acres with hundreds of labeled vascular and non-vascular plants and lichens in natural woodland, riparian, and wetland habitats. A number of satellite demonstration gardens are also found throughout the campus, including the Appalachian Ethnobotanical Garden, Moss Garden, Homeowner’s Demonstration Garden, and Rock Outcrop Garden.