Hello fellow lovers of all things green,
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s artistic treasures began with a magnificent mosaic at the entrance.
I’ve just returned from a family reunion. My sister Dot and husband Jim, now in Washington State, were returning from a cruise that landed in South Florida, so we met at our brother Rick and Paulina’s place. To my delight, everyone wished to visit Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden near Miami. I didn’t research the garden before our visit, as part of the fun is the element of surprise. And what a surprise Fairchild was!
Discovering Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
A drizzly day made the tropical foliage and brilliant flowers even more enchanting.
It was a drizzly day—a fitting time to wander through a tropical garden. The 83-acre garden opened in 1938 and honors legendary plant explorer Dr. David Fairchild, who traveled the world in search of useful plants. He helped introduce hundreds of plants to the United States, including mangos, alfalfa, nectarines, dates, cotton, soybeans, and the flowering cherry trees that grace Washington, D.C.
As we meandered through the tropical delight, seeing super-sized plants we have as houseplants here—how fun to see them living outdoors!—I said aloud, “I wonder where the baobab tree is?”
As if on cue, one stood before me.
A magnificent Tree of Life greeted us during our family visit to Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.
The Remarkable Baobab Tree of Life
I’ve always adored baobabs (Adansonia), nicknamed Trees of Life, as they can survive harsh environments and provide food and other resources. Also known as boab or boaboa, some can store 32,000 gallons of water to survive severe droughts and grow to 98 feet tall, with trunks up to 36 feet wide—too huge to hug!
Although I meant to.
When leafless, their branches look like spindly roots, hence another common name: Upside-down Tree. Seeing them in person was breathtaking.
Fairchild has two historic baobabs dating to 1938. Dr. Fairchild planted one on March 23, the day the garden opened, using material collected during his 1927 expedition to West Africa. It is the sole survivor of eleven commemorative trees planted that day. The garden’s largest baobab, near the historic Gatehouse, was also planted in 1938 from material supplied by Dade County Nursery.
Recent genetic research adds to the remarkable baobab story. Of the eight living species, six grow only in Madagascar, one grows across continental Africa, and another in northwestern Australia. A 2024 study suggests Madagascar is the likely center of origin, with ancestors somehow making extraordinary journeys across oceans. Imagine seeds floating across seas to root magnificent Trees of Life in distant countries!
I’m known to hug more than a few trees, especially those far older than we are. Their long-standing stability, rootedness, and reliance on our dear earth draw me in. Yet, caught up in the flurry of family photos, I realized afterward I’d forgotten to hug the baobab!
Rainbow Eucalyptus and Other Tropical Treasures
A tree hug I couldn’t resist! Look at the magnificent size of this pacara earpod tree!
Thankfully, another grand tree received my embrace: a pacara earpod tree (Enterolobium contortisiliquum), native to South America.
And there were countless other treasures—a rainbow eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta) with a trunk so colorfully streaked I could imagine enlarging my photo onto canvas; curious exposed roots that looked like sculptures; lush tropical foliage; and bromeliads blazing orange and red against the rainy landscape.
The colorful bark of rainbow eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta)—a living work of art.
The garden paths caught my attention, too. Leaves were pressed into concrete to create patterns—a simple idea that turns an ordinary path into something beautiful. We could do the same in our own gardens.
There is something magical about seeing plants we carefully nurture indoors growing with such exuberance in a tropical landscape.
A Butterfly Not Quite Ready to Fly
We also visited Wings of the Tropics, Fairchild’s butterfly conservatory. A volunteer greeted us and explained how carefully visitors move through a series of doors so none of the exotic butterflies escape.
Because the butterflies are non-native, USDA containment regulations prevent them from reproducing there, so the garden excludes host plants for their caterpillars. Instead, nectar and pollen plants feed the adults. They receive new chrysalises (pupae) weekly to maintain the population. It was fascinating to see where the developing butterflies were kept and observe the stages as they prepared to emerge.
A reluctant butterfly found a gentle resting place on Dot’s hand, with Rick looking on.
One little fellow wasn’t ready for his adventure.
A butterfly remained inside the soft-sided box used for their release. The volunteer placed the reluctant flyer on my sister’s finger.
There he sat.
Sometimes even butterflies need a little more time before they’re ready to fly.
Seeds Planted Long Ago Keep Growing
At the end of our visit, we stopped at the gift shop in Mom’s honor. She never left a garden gift shop without a trinket. We left thinking how much she would have loved Fairchild.
As many of you know, Mom gave me my garden start. Working at a garden center with me as her apprentice gave me the bug that eventually became my life’s work. It’s fascinating how seeds planted long ago keep growing, isn’t it?
A Tree of Life mosaic beneath our feet.
Baobabs also bring to mind the classic children’s story The Little Prince, in which they are portrayed as dangerous trees whose seedlings must be pulled before their enormous roots overtake the little prince’s tiny planet.
Of course, on our much larger planet, we revere baobabs rather than fear them.
A beautiful reminder beneath our feet to live, laugh, and love.
Perhaps that’s the Garden of Life lesson tucked within the tale.
Small things become big things when we allow them to grow—seeds of kindness and love grow exponentially. But resentments and divisions do too.
How fortunate we are to choose which seedlings we wish to nurture.
May more choose kindness and love to help heal and grow our Tree of Life in this Garden of Life.
Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone@gmail.com or tune in to Garden Dilemmas, Delights & Discoveries on your favorite podcast app.
Prefer to listen? 🎧 There’s more to the story in the Garden Dilemmas Delights & Discoveries Podcast:
Related Posts & Links:
Baobab Tree of Life (2018) — A previous post inspired by a Woody Plant Conference.
When Autumn Arrives Early — Letting Go and Beginning Again — A companion story you’ll enjoy
Burle Marx – NY Botanical Garden (2019)
