Missouri Botanical Garden - St. Louis, Missouri - Botanical Gardens on Waymarking.com

The Missouri Botanical Garden was founded by Henry Shaw, a successful St. Louis businessman as his own garden around his country house, Tower Grove House, built in 1849. His interest on establishing the gardens was based on a visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew near London. From the beginning he wanted his garden to be a botanical garden as opposed to solely a pleasure garden and with this interest, he sought the advise of Sir William Jackson Hooker, then the Director of The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and Harvard University's Asa Gray, then America's leading naturalist.

The Gardens were opened to the public in 1859.

From the Explore St. Louis fact sheet:
 

SIGNIFICANCE:

• The Missouri Botanical Garden is considered among the top three public gardens in the world.
• The Missouri Botanical Garden is the first botanical garden of its kind established in the United States.
• The Garden is on the National List of Historic Places and in 1976 it was designated a National History Landmark by the National Park Service because it possesses national significance in commemorating the history of the United States.
• The Garden operates the largest tropical botany research program in the world with Garden scientists permanently stationed in many tropical countries to collect and identify plants before the tropics are destroyed.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• The Climatron, the first geodesic dome to be used as a conservatory. It incorporates the principles of R. Buckminster Fuller, inventor of the geodesic system. In 1976 it was named one of the 100 most significant architectural achievements in United States history. The Climatron replicates a tropical rain forest complete with lush plantings, pools and waterfalls.
• The 14-acre Japanese Garden (called Seiwa-en), the largest traditional Japanese strolling garden in North America.
• The Grigg Nanjing Friendship Garden, a showplace of authentic Chinese garden design. It is the most authentic Chinese garden of its size in the U.S. Nanjing is St. Louis’ Chinese Sister City.
• An English woodland garden, a shady oasis of quiet paths, wildflowers and dogwoods.
• The Blanke Boxwood Garden, an elegant, formal parterre with the “Leaping Waters” fountains.
• The award-winning Lehmann and Gladney Rose Gardens.
• The Strassenfest German Garden which serves as a tribute to St. Louis’ German heritage.
• Shoenberg Temperate House with plants from the warm, dry regions of the world.
• The Linnean House, the oldest continually operating display greenhouse in the United States. Built in 1882, it is also one of the last buildings constructed by Garden founder Henry Shaw. Camellias have been grown here for more than a century.
• The William T. Kemper Center for Home Gardening, the largest non-profit gardening information center of its kind in the nation.
• Demonstration Vegetable Gardens where visitors can see sequential displays of the best vegetable varieties for the St. Louis region growing.
• More than a score of fountains and statues which grace the Garden and add to the serenity of the landscape.
• The elaborate mausoleum where Henry Shaw is interred.
• “Victory,” a duplicate of Cosani’s “Victory of Science Over Ignorance” sculpture in the Pitti Gallery in Florence.
• An elegant Victorian garden including a walk-thru maze with observatory, an herb garden and Tower Grove House, Mr. Shaw’s country estate home.

For more information about the gardens see the Missouri Botanical Gardens website