Exploring the McKee Botanical Garden in Vero Beach, Florida

Along the Space Coast in Vero Beach, Florida is where you can find the tropical landscape of the McKee Botanical Garden. The park is full of ponds, plants and trails that you can take to immerse yourself in nature and learn about the history of the land and how it became the botanical garden it is today.

About the McKee Botanical Garden

History

In 1922, Arthur McKee and Waldo Sexton purchased the 80-acre tropical hammock. Back then, they wanted to capitalize on the natural beauty of the area and started building trails, ponds and streams throughout. During the 40s, the garden was considered one of Florida’s most popular natural attractions and saw nearly 100,000 visitors a year.

As more of Florida was developed, interest in the gardens declined and the land was eventually sold to developers. Only 18 acres were left undeveloped which are now known as the McKee Botanical Garden. However, that land was left alone for 20 years.

In 1994, community members bought the land before it could be developed into a shopping center. They then worked at clearing the paths and rediscovering the garden that once was. The garden’s formal dedication was in 2001.

Today

The garden today has over 10,000 native and tropical plants throughout the 18-acres and the garden has tried to maintain much of McKee and Sexton’s original vision. It also has one of Florida’s largest collections of water lilies. There are now yearly exhibits, a children’s garden and much more that you can discover on your visit.

Things to Do

The garden has a number of trails and it’s easy to explore and get lost (in a good way). There are main points of interest dotted along the property but some of the main ones are:

Royal Palm Grove

The Royal Palm Grove is where you can find what’s kind of like a palm tree garden. There’s tall palm trees scattered throughout this area and trails that lead you between them. It’s a popular spot for photos

Giant Mushroom

Once you’re through the Royal Palm Grove, you stumble upon a giant mushroom sculpture. While it isn’t real, it’s very whimsical looking and a fun photo op as well. It reaches about 10-feet tall and is a replica of a similar sculpture that was popular in the original gardens in the 1950s.

Bamboo Garden + Pavilion

If you take the bamboo trail and will lead you through sprouts of bamboo clusters and eventually a beautiful bamboo pavilion with a thatched roof. The structure was built with about 350 stems of bamboo and over 9,000 pond fronds for the roof.

Water Maze

The water maze section is a series of bridges across the waterways and ponds. You’ll see water lilies all over the park, but this is a great place to see them as well. In the middle of one of the ponds is the Fräbel Tower, a glass sculpture that sits in the water.

Waterfalls

There are two waterfalls along the trails to see as well. Though they are rather small, they’re pretty to see and find along the way.

Children’s Garden

The Children’s Garden is a newer addition to the McKee Botanical Gardens that opened at the beginning of 2020. It covers a 1-acre area and has a discovery tree with a pirate ship, a splash garden, water lily fountain, monkey bridge and other fun things for kids to do here. It’s quite a cute area.

Stone Bridge

The stone bridge near the entrance is a scenic spot and a great place for photos. It overlooks a larger pond with lots of water lilies on either side.

Hall of Giants

The Hall of Giants is a two-story hall made of cypress and heartwood pine. It’s where you can find the world’s largest one-piece mahogany table. It’s 35-feet long, 5-feet wide and 4-inches thick.

Giant Cypress Stump

Before you even enter the gardens, you’ll notice a giant stump in the parking lot just outside the entrance. It’s the trunk of a large cypress tree which was said to be about 2,000 years old when it was cut. It was also transported to the area to be a part of the original gardens in the 1930s.

Other Buildings + Facilities:

• Spanish Kitchen – Outdoor kitchen with colorful tiles, large grill
• Library – On the left side of the entrance
• Gift Shop – Same building as admissions
• Garden Cafe – Open 11:00am-3:00 Tuesday-Saturday, Noon-3:00pm Sunday
• Education Building – For events and activities

Exhibits

The thing about botanical gardens is that the exhibits change all the time. And photos can become synonymous with a specific garden, even though the garden may not be hosting that exhibit anymore. For instance, the Alice in Wonderland exhibit at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens was a huge success. BUT it’s a traveling exhibit. And I’m sure there have been disappointed visitors when they realize it’s no longer there.

There are lots of photos online of the McKee Botanical Gardens that show some pretty whimsical looking stick structures. They formed archways between the palm trees and were a really cool looking thing. BUT, that was an exhibition too. And we found that out when we were there.

So no, the cool stick structure that you see all over the internet is not there. One of the workers said it was very popular and they have considered bringing it back in the future, but it was only temporary.

Playing with Gravity Exhibition

The exhibition that they did have at the time we went was called Playing with Gravity. They brought in Adam Conard, a Master Balancer (there aren’t many) to showcase the ancient art of balancing stones. (This is different and more difficult than stacking stones.) Some of the balancing stones can be seen in the waterways in the garden.

Things to Know

1. During the summer, they do pirate and fairy celebrations for kids on select Saturdays
2. There’s an annual waterlily celebration around June.
3. As I mentioned above, the exhibits at McKee Botanical Garden DO change and what you see in pictures, may not be what they have at that time. All the photos above are permanent garden features except for the balancing rocks.

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