San Antonio Botanical Garden

A late nineteenth century house with a 1960s botanical garden. The Formal Gardens is comprised of four large rectangular display areas which are changed seasonally to display a variety of colors and textures. There is also a Japanese garden, rose garden, old fashioned garden and a sensory garden for the blind. Surrounding a sunken courtyard and a tropical lagoon filled with aquatic plants, the conservatory was designed by Emilio Ambaszis and opened to the public in 1988. There are collections ranging from desert to rainforest plants in individual glasshouses that have pyramidal glazed roofs and are partly earth-sheltered. The Texas Native Trail features plants from South Texas, East Texas Piney Woods and Hill Country and several reconstructed early Texas houses.