Where do I begin when talking about St. Petersburg’s Sunken Gardens?
Well first – lets start off with a little history. The gardens began their life as a shallow lake – some call filled sinkhole – where in 1903, an avid gardener George Turner Sr. purchased the site and began to form his private ‘sunken’ garden. Bromeliads, citrus, papayas, exotics, and Florida native plants were all established and flourished in Mr. Turner’s private garden. In 1935, Mr. Turner opened his botanical garden to the public – charging an admission rate of a said 25 cents. Mr. Turner’s vision for his love of his garden was carried on for three generations of his family. #whatgreatroots
In 1999, the City of St. Petersburg purchased the gardens for $2.26 million with funds from a voter-approved tax and has been maintaining the gardens since. The Gardens have since been designated as a local historic landmark and have gone several years of new restoration. The gardens collectively now hold over 500 species of tropical and subtropical plants, as well as cascading waterfalls, flamingos, and koi reflecting ponds. Many of the plants and trees have grown quite large, compared to typical specimens, owing to their long history of protection and cultivation (and that murky, beneficial shallow lake soil!). Some of the plants are now more than 100 years old in 2019!
Flamingos have always been a thing in Florida! Our Sunken Gardens has been having a Chilean flamingo flock since 1956! And in 2016, the Sunken Gardens added a flock of 20 young flamingos from the San Antonio Zoo…joining the two remaining elderly flamingo residents, George and Lucy, from the original 17 bird flock from 1956. The new flamingos were purchased with funds raised by a nonprofit group composed of volunteers called Flamingos Forever. Furthermore, St. Petersburg also purchased a $30,000 nighttime enclosure for the new flock. Soon after, Flamingos Forever changed their name to Sunken Gardens Forever and St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman proposed and founded May to be “Sunken Gardens Forever Appreciation Month” in St. Petersburg in honor of their fundraising efforts.
In my life and travels, I’ve been brought to live and reside in St. Petersburg, FL. I am a proud steward of my community and feel one of the best ways to help our community is to just pay it forward. I’ve visited the Sunken Gardens with my boyfriend and his mother – we’re all three big plant people! – and was so impressed with the beauty, the tranquility, and the simple feeling of happiness you get from being outside. I knew then, after my very first visit, that I needed to volunteer here and offer to be a steward for my appreciation. I am a proud proud volunteer now – posting and encouraging my local community to come out to our “Veggie Gardening in Florida!” event, or come out to our Flamingo Festival and celebrate our birds birthday’s!
As a young, unmarried woman, something I also feel helps me forward stewardship, but as well as gives me some insight knowledge and tips – are the Sunken Gardens wedding venues! They have SO MANY different options on location set up, reception stays, staff coordination, and of course, we won’t even get into the AWESOME photo opportunities you get! I love volunteering and helping at all of our weddings we host – all guests all compliment the gardens and the beauty of the couple’s wedding, and you see the couple, and they’re all smiles. This is the kind of thing that the garden can bring to you – that simple feeling of happiness you get from being outside and in love.
I love most about sharing on our Google Local Guides is for the feeling and love of this community - where users come together to write their honest impressions, thoughts, and reviews on something. It was a Google Review that led me to my first visit to the Sunken Gardens…and now, Google Reviews have led to community volunteerism and promoting beneficial local activities. Nothing you could ask for more from a Google Review!
http://www.stpete.org/attractions/sunken_gardens/index.php
http://www.tbo.com/pinellas-county/new-flock-arrives-at-sunken-gardens-20160421/
https://greenbenchmonthly.com/st-petersburg-history/sunken-gardens-now-and-then/