Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden is truly a unique place. Here you can walk garden paths surrounded by the wonders and beauty of nature, talk to experts in horticulture, conservation and science, view impressive art, see butterflies and birds at every turn and take classes on everything from photography to grafting.

Fairchild is dedicated to exploring, explaining and conserving the world of tropical plants. They are one of the premier conservation and education-based gardens in the world and a recognized international leader in both Florida and international conservation. Currently Fairchild has field programs in over 20 countries including support to protected areas in Madagascar and Africa and botanic garden development and renovation projects in South and Central America, the Caribbean and the Middle East.

Festivals such as the International Mango Festival and the International Chocolate Festival are more than just spectacular events; they also have an education component with local and global experts giving lectures, talks and classes. Fairchild is also a cultural leader in the community. The garden showcases tremendous art exhibitions and concerts each year.

HISTORY

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden gets its name from one of the most famous plant explorers in history, David Fairchild (1869-1954). Fairchild was known for traveling the world in search of useful plants, but he was also an educator and a renowned scientist. At the age of 22, he created the Section of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction of the United States Department of Agriculture, and for the next 37 years, he traveled the world in search of plants of potential use to the American people.

Fairchild visited every continent in the world (except Antarctica) and brought back hundreds of important plants, including mangos, alfalfa, nectarines, dates, cotton, bamboos and the flowering cherry trees that grace Washington D.C. Dr. Fairchild retired to Miami in 1935 and joined a group of passionate plant collectors and growers, including retired banker Col. Robert H. Montgomery, environmentalist Marjory Stoneman Douglas, County Commissioner Charles Crandon and landscape architect William Lyman Phillips. This core group worked tirelessly to bring the idea of a one of a kind botanic garden to life, and in 1938, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden opened its 83 acres to the public for the first time.

Limited Miami-Dade Transit bus service is available to Fairchild in the morning and from Fairchild in late afternoon. Detailed information available at Miami-Dade Transit, Bus #65.