Advertise with us
Visit Vermont

Vermont Gardens

Vermont historic sites and farms display lovely gardens for the public to visit

Gardens sprout in the most wonderful Vermont places, like at quaint villages, lavish resorts – (plan to stay overnight at a luxury resort) -- historic homes, farms, along bike trails, and wherever there is a good piece of earth. Gardens add color, magic and beauty to scenic grounds and surrounding areas throughout the mountains and by cool waters. They’re dressed with gazebos, trellises, fountains and reflecting pools, and filled with flowers, trees, shrubs, fruits and vegetables of every kind, perennials and annuals, heirloom and exotics. Enjoy trails though meadows, fields, and woodlands full of wildflowers. There’s even a path that tells the story of the great circle of life.
Follow these links for : Historic Homes & Sites - Hiking Trails - State & Local Parks

5 places to visit

  • Shelburne, VT

    Shelburne Museum

    Shelburne Museums is well-known for its historic paddlewheel steam boat and art exhibits, but the lavish grounds also contain magnificent gardens. Twenty gardens add splashes of color and natural beauty to the museum grounds throughout the season, from hundreds of lilacs and peonies in the spring to thousands of daylilies in the summer. Perennial and annual gardens, even an heirloom vegetable garden, are favorite attractions. A few of the gardens are the Danby Fountain Garden, where colorful annuals flow from decorative garden ornamentation; the Circus Building Daylily Garden; the Diamond Barn Garden, where bright blossoms shine against a backdrop of warm wood; Owl Cottage Garden, a playful pathway of zinnias; and the Hat and Fragrance Garden, with plants and herbs traditionally used for fragrances and dyes.
    U.S. Route 7 - P.O. Box 10 802-985-3346
    Visit website

  • Windsor, VT

    Path of Life Sculpture Garden

    The Path of Life is a public sculpture garden that tells the story of the great circle of life. Eighteen works of art symbolize the human journey from birth to death. The garden is located on 14 acres of trails, wildflower fields, and open spaces on the bank of the Connecticut River. The garden is the creation of Terry McDonnell, whose model for the garden was The Life of Man, a Japanese garden in Kildare, Ireland. Among the objects that McDonnell has assembled for the garden are hemlock trees that compose the maze of Adventure, a large granite Buddha for Contemplation, and a five-piece, 25-foot-tall, band representing Creativity, made from driftwood from California’s Russian River. Fun for adults and kids. Path of Life Garden is on property adjacent to Great River Outfitters and managed by GRO.
    36 Park Road 802-674-9933
    Visit website

  • Manchester, VT

    Hildene Gardens

    This Georgian Revival mansion was built in 1908 by Robert Lincoln, son of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln who served as chairman of the Pullman Company. The formal garden was designed by Jessie Lincoln, grad-daughter of President Abraham Lincoln, in 1908. The pattern of the garden is meant to resemble a stained glass window. Among the ornamental plants in the formal garden, you will find flowers especially attractive to bees and butterflies.
    1005 Hildene Road 802-362-1788
    Visit website

  • Strafford, VT

    Justin Smith Morrill Homestead

    A native of Stafford, Justin Morrill entered politics in 1854 and served in the United States House of Representatives and Senate for nearly 44 years. His homestead is a prime example of Gothic Revival architecture. Visitors may take self-guided tours of the gardens during daylight hours at no cost, with the help of outdoor interpretive signs, including images and maps.
    Morrill’s own designs for the gardens follow the principles of the romantic landscape movement in America. Walkers will find serpentine walkways, arabesque beds planted with colorful annuals, and historic trees like the Magnolia kobus and Norway spruce. The kitchen garden has perennials, herbs, roses, dwarf fruit trees, and vegetables. Many of the original plantings made by Morrill survive.
    214 Justin Morrill Memorial Highway 802-765-4484
    Visit website