Stop & Smell the Flowers...and Gardens Too

This gorgeous spot is the oldest municipally operated rose garden in the country. The garden is 2½-acres with approximately 800 varieties of roses that amount to 15,000 plants. Elizabeth Park is open from dawn to dusk every day of the year with free admission. There are also frequent events and specialty tours including Spring Greenhouse Show, garden tours, garden lectures, Rose Weekend in June, and outdoor summer concerts.

This historic and restored Victorian ornamental garden was originally laid out in 1865 by pioneer landscape architect Jacob Weidenmann. In the spring, the garden blooms with gorgeous blossoms, and visitors can tour the house and garden May through December.

The center's gardens include Connecticut's largest Merrill magnolia and the Stowe Dogwood™, a pink dogwood believed to be from the author's time. In season, you can book a tour of the Stowe House and garden.

Created by Theodate Pope, the fourth registered female architect in the United States, the Hill-Stead’s Sunken Garden octagonal garden holds over 90 varieties of perennials and annuals in 36 beds. The color palette of cool hues—primarily pink, blue, purple, and white accented with silvery-grey greenery— mimics that of the Impressionist paintings found within the historic mansion. The garden occupies nearly an acre and boasts a summer house, brick walkways, and a stone sundial. The annual May Market and other events take place throughout the season.

This 36-acre farm boasts lovely gardens and scenic views. The country store offers the farm's own homemade salsas, jellies, and more. Catch fall hayrides and visit the sugar shack. 

Established in 1922, Pardee Rose Gardens offers 2 acres with an array of flowers from early spring until mid-fall and features one of Connecticut’s finest display of roses. 

Thankful Arnold House garden features over 50 varieties of herbs from the early 1800s, including those used in cooking, dyeing, fragrance and medicine. A member of Connecticut’s Historic Gardens, the grounds are open to the public year-round with free admission. There's a suggested donation for a tour of the museum.

With more than 850 roses ranging in variety, color and fragrance, these gardens grow next to a World War I monument in beloved Walnut Hill Park, a historic landmark designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. 

The beautiful Colonial Revival Garden was designed by Amy Cogswell, one of the first female garden architects in the country and is open to the public throughout the year. The garden is located behind the Webb House, a historic house made famous, in part, due to a visit by George Washington in 1781.

There are 250 acres of gardens, open fields, woodlands, ponds, picnic areas, sports facilities and other attractions that extend into Manchester and East Hartford. Its most unique feature is its many acres of ornamental gardens. There are six different themed gardens, ranging from one-half to eight acres.

Enjoy blooming rose gardens in late June and early July at this pretty Norwich park which also features outdoor activities and a lakeside pavilion.

A hidden gem in the Litchfield Hills, Hollister House Garden is situated on a gently sloping hillside behind a rambling 18^th century farmhouse, featuring intimate outdoor spaces, bordered by dramatic hedges and refined landscaping, lavishly planted with both familiar and exotic species and open onto stunning vistas.