Various Garden Features

The rainwater harvesting demonstration area was completed in early 2005 and featured in the Green Garden Festival. Read more about the rainwater harvesting demonstration area, including design and maintenance information.

Plantings of the Tropical and Subtropical Garden can be found amid the parking islands, with additional bromeliads often placed in front of the Garden Center. Some plants are moved into greenhouses for the winter, but most are left out to determine winter hardiness in our area. Many of these plants have been donated from the private collection of Joe Montgomery.

Dedicated May 1, 1966, the Willie Birge Memorial Pond was donated by the family of Miss Willie Birge, one-time Director of Biology at Denton College. Due to the efforts of the Austin Pond Society, the water is remarkably clear even though the pond is unfiltered and non-circulating.

The Freda Bodine Caladium Garden was endowed in June 1992 by Dr. Willis Bodine in recognition of her untiring efforts to promote the use of caladiums in Austin landscaping. During the cool season this area is planted with annuals.

The Posey Perennial Garden and J. Curtis Harper Fountain was a Bicentennial gift to the city in 1975. The pool reflects the perennial plants surrounding it.

The small Animal Garden near the parking area is full of plants with animal names. It has been a carefully tended gift from the gardening staff and Western Trails Garden Club to the children of Austin.

The Daylily Beds are designed, installed and maintained by the Austin Hemerocallis Society. Since spring 2000, this garden celebrates the beauty of daylilies, the hybridizers who created them, and the gardeners who love to grow them. New varieties will be introduced each year.

Since 1992, the Iris Society of Austin has been caring for the Iris Beds, a collection of tall bearded iris, spuria iris and Louisiana iris.

The Endemic Bed tucked away in the shade of an oak contains examples of some of the uncommon native plants that make this area of Texas so special.

A Composting Demonstration, sponsored by the City of Austin, shows different methods of recycling yard clippings and vegetable scraps into rich, organic material. Several types of composting bins are displayed.

The ADA Trail of Passages meanders back and forth through beds of both native and introduced plantings, leading to the Rose garden. Future plans call for a series of arbors (passages) to span this walkway at seven points.

Near the Information Kiosk, Meander's End was created in 1996 in memory of Colonel Oren Poage, whose Austin area home was referred to by the same name. Oren was a dedicated gardener, active in many clubs, and a devoted volunteer. This stone plaza complete with benches is a shady place to sit and view the gardens.