History of the New Orleans Botanical Garden
The New Orleans Botanical Garden has its roots in the Great Depression as a project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Originally known as the City Park Rose Garden, the garden opened in 1936 as New Orleans' first public classical garden. It is one of the few remaining examples of public garden design from the WPA and Art Deco Period, remaining today as a showcase of three notable talents: New Orleans Architect Richard Koch, Landscape architect William Wiedorn, and Artist Enrique Alferez.
Reborn as the New Orleans Botanical Garden in the early 1980s, the garden's collections contain over 2,000 varieties of plants from all over the world set among the nation's largest stand of mature live oaks. The site contains the Conservatory of the Two Sisters, theme gardens containing aquatics, ornamental trees and shrubs, perennials, and the New Orleans Historic Train Garden. The garden also encompasses the Pavilion of the Two Sisters, the Garden Study Center, and the rebuilt Lath House.
On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina dealt a serious setback to the Botanical Garden, City Park, and the New Orleans region. As a result of the category 3+ winds, there was serious tree damage which was followed by flooding in the garden by as much as three feet which covered our plant collection for ten days to two weeks. As a result, the vast majority of our collection was lost. The loss of electrical power during our evacuation led to the death of containerized plants that were above the floodwaters. Such plants included our collection of orchids, staghorn ferns, bromeliads, and other plants lost through heat buildup in our greenhouses and the disabling of automatic watering systems.
Since its rebirth in the early 1980s, the New Orleans Botanical Garden has strived to be the center of horticultural excellence for the Gulf South. The Garden was in the initial stages of the final component of its 1980s master plan- the expansion of the Conservatory. Fortunately, our structures survived the storm with relatively minor damage, but nearly our entire plant collection was lost. Our initial focus was on restoration of our collections, repair to our buildings, and preparation for Celebration in the Oaks, our annual holiday lighting event.
Click play below to learn more about the WPA Garden:
Click play below to learn more about the art in the Botanical Garden:
A new beginning
The Botanical Garden reopened to the public and made our facilities available for functions beginning on March 4th, 2006- just over six months after Katrina- thanks in large part to volunteers and donors from throughout the United States and worldwide.
Photo Gallery
The following photographs were taken in the 1930s during the WPA period. All photographs are courtesy of Louisiana Division, New Orleans Public Library.
Cold Frames
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
