Gardens & Spaces - Tulsa Botanic Garden (2024)

A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Floral Terraces

Over 3 acres in size the A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Floral Terraces displays over 8,000 permanent plants including trees, shrubs, ornamental grasses, roses and perennials set in terraced beds on a hillside which offers a glimpse of downtown Tulsa from its peak.

A prominent feature of the Tandy Floral Terraces is the Garden Cascade, a six-foot wide central water runnel emanating from the top of the hillside and flowing down into the lake. Seasonal color display beds surround the water channel from top to bottom and provide vivid swaths of color from spring bulbs to summer tropical plants. Over 50,000 bulbs are planted each fall for Tulsa Botanic Blooms, one of the largest spring bulb displays in the region.

Visitors can explore the garden’s four terraces – Lawn, Rose, Perennial and Mediterranean - on a serpentine, ADA accessible walk winding to the Holmes Family Square at the Garden’s peak or through a central stairway along the Garden Cascade.

Art Deco details throughout the garden reflect Tulsa’s rich architectural history.

The A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Floral Terraces is named in recognition of the A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Foundation, which provided the lead gift for its construction. It was designed by nationally prominent landscape architects: StudioOutside (Dallas, TX), 3.fromme DESIGN (Sanford, FL), and Howell & Vancuren (Tulsa, OK).

Look for: concrete rabbits tucked in among plants as an homage to Marylouise Tandy, who was recognized nationally for her success and knowledge in breeding and raising rabbits.

Summer:

The choreography of our plantings changes almost weekly throughout the summer, showing off our spectacular collection of thousands of plants including lilies, roses, cannas, hummingbird mint, and hundreds more. The bottom of the Tandy Floral Terraces is surrounded by an impressive cottage garden display of traditional purple, pink, and white flowering perennials and bulbs, as well as some pale yellow lilies. The top of the garden has a great view of our summer annual display, and is surrounded by hundreds of lilies, butterfly bushes, and blue spruce trees. Early-mid June is typically when most of the lilies are in full bloom.

Children’s Discovery Garden

The Children's Discovery Garden encompasses almost two acres in a fantastical “wonderland” garden environment offering experience-based learning opportunities for children and families. Look for the two ornamental blue metal banners which mark its entrance/exit.

The focal point of the garden is the Spring Giant, a 20’ rugged stone face entered through a hidden grotto. Inspired by garden follies popular in 18th century European gardens, the Spring Giant is a one-of-a-kind art piece, built and hand-sculpted by artist Dan Jennison and Weber Group. Water which drips from the Spring Giant’s mouth is the source for the Stream Valley. The Stream Valley includes fountains of spitting animals and the nearby Art Wall, a favorite for kids of ALL ages!

Be sure to look for the Bog Bowls near the pond where Venus fly traps and other carnivorous plants catch their next meal.

The Meadow offers exploration of trails through grasses and flowering perennials as well as larger-than-life insect whirligigs hovering above. It's a great place to look for caterpillars, butterflies, hummingbirds, or the occasional lizard sunning on a rock.

A grove of post oaks, at the highest point of the Children’s Garden, is home to the Tree Fort, offering vantage points through windowed portals set among the tree limbs. Local artist Clayton Coss created one-of-a-kind 'Oak Thrones' – oversized, ornate wooden thrones for the Tree Fort. Butterfly and bird wings are available for imaginary play. The Amphitheatre nearby offers shaded seating under umbrellas.

A Sensory Walk invites all to experience plants through touch, smell, sound and sight. Look for, touch and sniff the lamb's ear, wax myrtle, sweetshrub, thyme, rosemary and more growing here. Take the steps up the hill for a short walk in the trees and listen for birds or other small animals.

Check our calendar of events for information on Story Times and other programs that may be scheduled.

Oklahoma – A Botanical Crossroads

by Ronald J. Tyrl and Jay B. Walker

Biologically, Oklahoma is quite a remarkable state! It lies at the intersections of some of the most significant ecosystems of North America. The tallgrass prairie of the continent’s center gives way to the shortgrass prairie of the west, the mesquite grassland of the southwest, and the deciduous forest of the east.

Within the state’s borders, one can encounter ponderosa pine and other Rocky Mountain species at the end of the Panhandle; species characteristic of New England forests in the northeastern corner; stately bald cypress trees and other Gulf Coast species in the swamps of the extreme southeastern corner; and cacti and other species characteristic of the continent’s southwestern deserts in the southwestern corner.

Within Oklahoma are found about 175 families, 850 genera, and 2,500 species of vascular plants. This diversity of plants and vegetation types is related to the state’s tremendous ecogeographic diversity — variation in precipitation, temperature, geology, topography, and soils. From grasses to trees to cacti, Oklahoma has them all!

The Cross Timbers

Nowhere is this intersection between these different ecosystems more evident than in the Cross Timbers, a distinctive vegetation type that extends from southeastern Kansas across Oklahoma to north-central Texas. Tulsa Botanic Garden is situated in the midst of this remarkable ecosystem.

In the Cross Timbers, the tall trees of the continent’s eastern deciduous forests do battle with the grasses of the central prairies, and thus form a mosaic of upland forests, tallgrass prairies, savannahs, and glades. Although the Cross Timbers forests contain many of the same species as found in the forests farther east, here the trees are reduced in stature, often stunted, and gnarled.

In places these Cross Timbers forests are so dense that many early travelers considered them impenetrable. In 1832 Washington Irving described traveling through them as "struggling through forests of cast iron," and it is reported that early wagon trains traveled to the north or south to avoid crossing them.

Fortunately, these distinctive features of the Cross Timbers that so vexed early travelers have left Oklahoma with one of its greatest botanical treasures. The Cross Timbers is one of the least disturbed forest types in the eastern United States because its trees were too stunted to be worth logging, its terrain too steep to be farmed, and its soil to thin and rocky to grow crops. Large tracts are essentially intact, and thus appear much the same and contain many of the same animals and plants as they did prior to the arrival of Europeans.

As you walk the nature trail of the Botanic Garden and pass among the trees of the post oak—blackjack oak forest and the grasses and forbs of the tallgrass prairie, think of the many travelers before you who likewise passed through this remarkable ecosystem.

Download our "Walk in the Woods" booklets:


to help ID plants along the trail and learn more about them.

Special thanks to Union High School (UHS) student Eli Hayes for redesigning these booklets to be more user friendly. Thanks also to UHS educators Shelley Bowersock, instructor of Graphic Design and Desktop Publishing class, and Dr. Jay Walker.

Watch Dr. Jay Walker share about the Cross Timbers.

Bumgarner Family Foundation Lotus Pool

The Bumgarner Family Foundation Lotus Pool opened July 21, 2023.

TheBumgarner Family Foundation Lotus Pool provides an exceptional experience in the Garden overlooking the northeastern circular portion of the lake closest to the visitor center. A new Deco bridge provides visitors a short walk around the water’s edge with multiple vistas to enjoy the blossoms of aquatic lilies and lotus. Hibiscus, Louisiana iris, lobelia and other water-loving plants offer resting sites for darting dragonflies and color throughout the season. Overlooks on the east side offer the splashing sounds from water fountains, and stops to see water lilies, lotus and other aquatic plants. Sunset views across this peaceful retreat add to the magical qualities of this garden.

The Bumgarner Family Charitable Foundation made the lead gift for the garden. The Bumgarner Family Foundation Lotus Pool was designed by 3.Fromme Design (Florida) and Szafranski Landscape Architecture (Tulsa).

Stanford Family Liberty Garden

The Stanford Family Liberty Garden opened July 21, 2023.

The Stanford Family Liberty Garden is a ceremonial civic space embedded within an elegant garden setting in the center of Tulsa Botanic Garden. It is a place to celebrate and share the qualities and concepts unifying individuals into the diverse citizenry of the United States through interpreting patriotism as a forward thinking and living concept.

Visitors experience four outdoor rooms – Entry Grove, Civic Lawn, East and West Pavilions and Flagpole Terrace and Skyline Stairs

The Entry Grove features ornate metalwork gates framed by stone columns and will offer shaded seating. Once inside the view expands to the Taylor Alan Gravender Lawn surrounded by walkways on each side. Outlining the walkways on west and east sides are flower borders, benches, and layers of evergreens, shrubs and trees.

An ornate plinth and flagpole flying an American flag are the focal point on the south side of the lawn. The plinth features metal panels with Art Deco-inspired design which offer a stunning view when light at night.

Opposite the flagpole on the east and west edges of the garden are 20’ by 20’ pavilions with artisan metalwork railings framing views of the lake and creating an arbor for flowering vines. Past the Flagpole Terrace, a progression of wide “seating stairs” drop to the water’s edge and present a panoramic view of the lake and Oklahoma sky.

The Stanford Family Liberty Garden was designed by 3.Fromme Design (Florida) and Wallace Design Collective | Howell & Vancuren (Tulsa).