Smith-Gilbert Gardens is opening Tuesday, May 19!
Please note: We will continue to monitor visitation and may change our operational guidelines to continue to support safety and social distancing.
The main house, which includes the Gift Shop, will be closed. Staff will be on site, but may not be available during your visit. We are not selling tickets on site.
We cannot accommodate group tours, daycare facilities or summer camp tours.
Masks are not required, but we encourage you to wear a face covering, especially when using the public restroom.
Welcome to Smith-Gilbert Gardens!
Smith-Gilbert Gardens is the City of Kennesaw’s botanical garden. Voted one of the top five places to take children in the Atlanta metro area, the 17-acre property is rich with botanical, artistic and historic treasures.
Fifteen themed garden spaces, anchored by the reconstruction era Hiram Butler House, contain more than 4,000 curated plant species. The award-winning “Garden with Wings” butterfly house and pollinator garden promote conservation of beneficial Georgia native plants and insects. The crevice garden displays a gardening style and plant collection rarely seen in the southeastern United States. Robust collections of hydrangeas, camellias, conifers and roses along with woodland and perennial gardens inspire visitors to explore variety for their own landscapes. Blending horticulture and art, the bonsai collection includes more than 70 specimens, diligently trained during monthly work sessions that are open to garden visitors. Thirty remarkable garden sculptures by nationally and internationally known artists add drama to the landscape. Koi ponds, a waterfall, and child-friendly play structures throughout the property round out the experience.
Smith-Gilbert Gardens’ conservation mission is evident throughout the gardens. A minimal-toxicity ethic means that we curtail the use of chemical treatments in garden maintenance. Through best practices in collection management and collaborations with Georgia Power, State Botanical Garden of Georgia and Atlanta Botanical Garden, we work to preserve global plant biodiversity and improve local habitat. Our educational programs share knowledge of and passion for nature, while inspiring participants to be conservation minded.
We hope that you will enjoy your visit to our website, but most importantly, we invite you to experience firsthand the beauty and fascination of Smith-Gilbert Gardens.
NEWS
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Happy National Gardening Day, Kennesaw! Join Lisa Bartlett from Smith-Gilbert Gardens as she teaches us how to keep your planters looking fresh all year long! A huge thanks to Cobb Travel & Tourism for featuring Smith-Gilbert Gardens in their new Friday VIBEs Series! To learn more about things happening all over Cobb, tune into their IGTV channel every Friday afternoon for more videos like this!
2 months ago
Very clever and beautiful!
Thanks
That was great! I was hoping you’d do something like this.
Enjoyed watching. Great tips. Recently did something similar myself.
How many Smith-Gilbert Gardens related words can you find? Leave your answer in the comments below! Think you found them all? Check back tomorrow for the answer key!
2 months ago
Here's the key!
When life imitates art...Carl Andre Davidt 'Man in the Moon' 1981
2 months ago
That’s a huge native azalea!
One of my favorites. I see a teacher reading a book the their student.
Beautiful native azalea! (And my dogwood "snowed" on my deck last night!)
There are few places prettier than Georgia this time of year...while we are all safe in our homes, we’ve shared our spring let’s see yours! Use the #shareyourspring
2 months ago
woodland phlox and Snowball viburnum
Outside the back door...
#shareyourspring
#shareyourspring
Lady Banks' rose bush #shareyourspring
Fire Witch Dianthus in bloom
Bridal wreath spirea #shareyourspring
#shareyourspring
#shareyourspring
David Fairley #shareyourspring
#shareyourspring
Begonias too. Nothing prettier than springtime in Georgia. I love Smith Gilbert Gardens.
Spring mix of tulips, this one was really pretty!
And roses starting to bloom.
A sample from my garden! #shareyourspring
Don Juan Climbing Rose #shareyourspring
...behind planter Emerald Gold Arborvitae, Chocolate Chip Ajuga and White Star Creeper.
There’s a lot to show but I’ll start here! 💕🌸
My mailbox Clematis
EVENTS
Led by Bonsai Curator Rodney Clemons 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Open to visitors; included with garden admission Rodney Clemons visits Smith-Gilbert Gardens on the 2nd Saturday of each month (some exceptions as noted on the events calendar) to oversee, evaluate, care for, and prune the Gardens’ bonsai collection. Along with a small group of well-trained and very experienced volunteers, Rodney provides expert care in all aspects of maintaining the collection. Visitors are welcome to ask questions and talk with Rodney and the volunteers to learn more about this ancient art. If you’re interested in learning more about bonsai, please plan a visit on the 2nd Saturday. (Please note: We request you do not bring your personal bonsai trees to the Gardens.)
Guided Bird Walks
3rd Saturday of every month, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
A haven for wild birds
Smith-Gilbert Gardens lies along a major migratory flyway, and is a convenient destination to see a great diversity of wild birds. The gardens are an oasis for the scores of migratory bird species that fly through each spring and fall. Dozens of year-round resident bird species call the property home as well. A diverse habitat attracts and sustains them: seventeen acres of forest edges, grassy areas, perennial borders, as well as ponds and streams. The garden staff curtail the use of chemical treatments and so the property offers a healthy buffet of fruits, seeds and bugs for the birds and other wildlife to gobble up.
Watch with us!
Come enjoy watching birds with us! Our expert birding guides have spent years learning to identify birds by sight and sound, and have a passion for wild bird conservation. You’ll learn keys to bird identification, where you can look for wild birds in your neighborhood, how to make your own backyard a habitat for wild birds, and more. This monthly meetup is included with garden admission.
Led by Bonsai Curator Rodney Clemons
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Open to visitors; included with garden admission
Rodney Clemons visits Smith-Gilbert Gardens on the 2nd Saturday of each month (some exceptions as noted on the events calendar) to oversee, evaluate, care for, and prune the Gardens’ bonsai collection. Along with a small group of well-trained and very experienced volunteers, Rodney provides expert care in all aspects of maintaining the collection.
Visitors are welcome to ask questions and talk with Rodney and the volunteers to learn more about this ancient art.
If you’re interested in learning more about bonsai, please plan a visit on the 2nd Saturday.
(Please note: We request you do not bring your personal bonsai trees to the Gardens.)
Guided Bird Walks
3rd Saturday of every month, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
A haven for wild birds
Smith-Gilbert Gardens lies along a major migratory flyway, and is a convenient destination to see a great diversity of wild birds. The gardens are an oasis for the scores of migratory bird species that fly through each spring and fall. Dozens of year-round resident bird species call the property home as well. A diverse habitat attracts and sustains them: seventeen acres of forest edges, grassy areas, perennial borders, as well as ponds and streams. The garden staff curtail the use of chemical treatments and so the property offers a healthy buffet of fruits, seeds and bugs for the birds and other wildlife to gobble up.
Watch with us!
Come enjoy watching birds with us! Our expert birding guides have spent years learning to identify birds by sight and sound, and have a passion for wild bird conservation. You’ll learn keys to bird identification, where you can look for wild birds in your neighborhood, how to make your own backyard a habitat for wild birds, and more. This monthly meetup is included with garden admission.
Led by Bonsai Curator Rodney Clemons
9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Open to visitors; included with garden admission
Rodney Clemons visits Smith-Gilbert Gardens on the 2nd Saturday of each month (some exceptions as noted on the events calendar) to oversee, evaluate, care for, and prune the Gardens’ bonsai collection. Along with a small group of well-trained and very experienced volunteers, Rodney provides expert care in all aspects of maintaining the collection.
Visitors are welcome to ask questions and talk with Rodney and the volunteers to learn more about this ancient art.
If you’re interested in learning more about bonsai, please plan a visit on the 2nd Saturday.
(Please note: We request you do not bring your personal bonsai trees to the Gardens.)
