Maclay Gardens are in Bloom inTallahassee, Florida

Maclay Gardens in Tallahassee

The most beautiful corner of Florida's capital city is now in bloom, thanks to warm weather and an early spring!
Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park spreads across hundreds of acres of hills, forests and water off Thomasville Road in Tallahassee. It is a stunning place year-round, but spring is the season when all eyes turn to the beautiful gardens that give the park its name.

Park officials report that the azaleas and dogwoods both began to bloom in late February and, as they are all across North Florida, the trees and shrubs are alive with flowers and color right now.

Path at Maclay Gardens

Maclay Gardens originated in 1923 when the land was bought by Alfred B. Maclay, a key figure in the New York financial markets. He and his wife, Louise Fleishman Maclay, named their Florida place Killearn Plantation and Gardens and set about creating a wonderland of blooming trees and plants, flowers, water features, open greens and winding paths. Over the next 21 years, the Maclays developed the gardens and even hosted the Duke and Duchess of Windsor there.

Stunning Beauty at Maclay Gardens

Mr. Maclay died in 1944, but Mrs. Maclay continued to work on the development of the gardens until 1953 when she donated the entire property to the State of Florida. Originally called Killearn Gardens State Park, the stunning site was renamed Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park during the 1970s and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

The entire park now covers 873 acres, with the ornamental gardens and related historic structures comprising 28 full acres.

The Maclay House itself will be open to the public through April 30th. The park entrance fee is $6 per vehicle ($4 if the driver is the only occupant) or $2 for pedestrians, bicyclists, etc. There is a separate $6 per adult fee to see the gardens ($3 for children ages 2-12).

To learn more about Maclay Gardens and to see additional pictures, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/maclaygardens1.html.

Historic Southern Gardens Approach Blooming Season!

Some of the most beautiful and historic gardens in the South will be moving into full bloom over the next 4-5 weeks. Depending on the location, azaleas, dogwoods and a wide variety of other blooming plants provide explosions of color beginning in mid-March and continuing until nearly the end of April.

Here are links to some of my favorites:

Muskogee Azalea Festival - Muskogee, Oklahoma

One of the premier spring events in the South, the annual Muskogee Azalea Festival attracts thousands of visitors each year. Although they have been hampered by winter ice storms that have damaged trees and shrubs for two years in a row now, the hardworking folks in Muskogee will be ready for the crowds beginning on April 1st. The main day of festivities is scheduled for April 18th this year and will feature a parade and numerous other events. The Festival takes place at historic Honor Heights Park in Muskogee and features thousands of blooms covering 40 acres of grounds.

Maclay Gardens State Park - Tallahassee, Florida

Listed on the National Register of Historic Sites, Maclay Gardens began as a private winter home and has evolved into one of the most beautiful places in the South. Planted by Alfred B. and Louise Maclay beginning in 1923, the gardens have been called a "masterpiece of floral architecture." Absolutely breathtaking by the last week of March each year, the gardens feature winding pathways, beautiful water features and stunning cascades of azaleas, dogwoods and a wide variety of other flowering plants, even including mountain laurel. I have visited many locations over the years, but this very well may be the prettiest in the South at full bloom.

Blue Spring Heritage Center - Eureka Springs, Arkansas
This magnificent historic site and preserve is located just six miles northwest of downtown Eureka Springs, one of the finest destinations in the South. Once called Eureka Gardens, the beautifully landscaped gardens and natural settings surround Blue Spring, one of the deepest springs in Arkansas. Once a campsite on the Cherokee Trail of Tears and the location of the oldest known human habitation site in Arkansas, the heritage center is absolutely stunning in the spring. The blooms usually reach their peak during the first two weeks of April. With its beautiful blue water, natural rock formations and beautiful array of planted gardens, Blue Spring is one of the prettiest places in the nation.

Eden Gardens State Park - Point Washington, Florida

An easy drive from the sparkling white sand beaches of Panama City, Destin and Fort Walton Beach in Northwest Florida, Eden Gardens State Park is the location of magnificent gardens that move into full bloom even as Spring Break books along the Emerald Coast. Surrounding the historic Wesley or Eden Mansion, the gardens were created by Lois Genevieve Maxon during the 1960s and donated by her to the people of Florida in memory of her parents. Beautiful year-round, Eden Gardens turns into a dramatic display of azaleas and other blooming plants during the last two weeks of March each year.

There are many other locations around the South that are stunning this time of year and I will be taking a look at some of the others over coming weeks, but these are some of my favorites to get you started.

Maclay Gardens State Park - Tallahassee, Florida

It will only be a few weeks now before the spectacular flowering plants at Tallahassee's Maclay Gardens State Park begin to bloom.

The photographs in this post were taken on March 24th last year and provide a good idea of how the gardens will appear in about three weeks. Maclay is always quite stunning during the last week of March and first week of April.

The gardens were conceived and planted by Alfred B. and Louise Maclay, who purchased the property on the north side of Tallahassee to serve as a winter home. They began working on the gardens in 1923, naming them "Killearn" after a village in Scotland. For the next two decades, the planting and cultivation of the gardens was a labor of love for Mr. and Mrs. Maclay. Over that time they planted a stunning variety of flowering plants and trees.

Mr. Maclay passed away in 1944, but by then the gardens had achieved worldwide recognition as one of the most beautiful places in the United States. They now are the focal point of Maclay Gardens State Park, located just off Thomasville Road (U.S. 319) in Tallahassee.

Maclay Gardens are listed on the National Register of Historic Sites. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/maclaygardens1.

Maclay Gardens - Tallahassee, Florida

Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park in Tallahassee, Florida is one of the most spectacular locations in the South, especially during the spring.

Once called Killearn, the gardens are considered "masterpiece of floral architecture." They were conceived and planted by Alfred B. Maclay beginning in the 1920s. Maclay and his wife, Louise, purchased the Killearn estate as a winter home and planted their first camellia in 1924. They conceived turning the grounds into a spectacular array of color timed to bloom from February to April of each year (the months of their annual visits).

By the time Mr. Maclay died in 1944, the gardens had become one of the true landmarks of the South. Mrs. Maclay and her children donated the 307 acres to the people of Florida in 1953. Today they form the centerpiece of Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park.

If you would like to learn more about this stunningly beautiful state park located in Tallahassee, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/maclaygardens1.