The San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas offers a 37-acre natural escape with North America’s largest bamboo collection and infamous corpse flowers.
ENCINITAS, Calif. — The San Diego Botanic Garden in Encinitas provides visitors with a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in nature while learning about plant life. This 37-acre garden, home to North America’s largest bamboo collection, attracts approximately 300,000 visitors annually.
“Plants make up 80% of all living matter on Earth, right? So plants are almost everything,” said Ari Novy, president and CEO of the San Diego Botanic Garden.
The garden boasts several notable attractions, including infamous corpse flowers, known for their pungent odor. Another highlight is the extensive bamboo collection, featuring over 100 species.
“We have over 100 species of bamboo. They are very beautiful and amazing, and we do work to propagate them to make sure we will always have each of these species and varieties of bamboo in the collection,” said Novy.
The garden also contributes to conservation efforts, providing bamboo to the San Diego Zoo for nutritional studies.
“At one point, [the Zoo] had a very finicky panda that only wanted a certain kind of bamboo, and we had it, so we grew it,” Novy explained.
For families, the Hamilton Children’s Garden offers a concrete replica of a strangler fig and various interactive elements.
The San Diego Botanic Garden also hosts several events throughout the year, including the popular Lightscape event during the holiday season and a Summer Nights series featuring live music, food and drinks.
“We have concerts and drinks and food for the family, all kinds of different music, and that’s just wonderful,” said Novy.
With its diverse plant life, educational opportunities and family-friendly attractions, the San Diego Botanic Garden continues to serve as a resource for plant enthusiasts and nature lovers alike.