The Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden (known as the Des Moines Botanical Center until 2013) is a

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

located near

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, on the east bank of the

Des Moines River The Des Moines River () is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the upper Midwestern United States that is approximately long from its farther headwaters.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe Na ...

and north of .

History

Interest in a Des Moines botanical center began in 1929. A city

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...

was acquired on the west side of the river in 1939, which served the city as a production and display greenhouse until the Botanical Center was completed in 1979. From 2004 to December 31, 2012, the facility was operated on behalf of the city by

Des Moines Water Works The Des Moines Water Works (DMWW) is a publicly owned, municipal water utility with its headquarters in Water Works Park. It was founded 1871 southwest of downtown Des Moines, Iowa, along the Raccoon River and provides water to half a million ...

. On January 2, 2013, the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden opened for the first time as a nonprofit organization under the leadership of president and CEO Stephanie Jutila and the governance of the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden Board of Directors. The institution is undergoing a dynamic renewal funded by a successful capital campaign to raise $12.6 million for the Phase I expansion of the outdoor gardens and improvements to the existing conservatory and building. The conservatory has over a 1,200 different taxa from around the world in artistic settings designed to explore, explain and celebrate the majesty of the plant world. Future outdoor gardens, designed by the Chicago-based landscape architect Doug Hoerr, will include a new rose garden, entrance garden, nearly 0.5-acre water garden, maple allée, belvedere overlooking the Des Moines River, celebration lawn and walled perennial border, conifer and gravel garden, a hillside garden, and an annual and bulb parterre. These gardens reflect the institution's commitment to developing gardens as forms of public art. The gardens will feature rich annual color designs conceived around artistic concepts inspired from music, history, art and pop culture, utilizing plants as the ingredients for exhibitions. From the 1986 until the mid 2000s, the Botanical Center was a used as a Do It Yourself venue for the Des Moines Underground, Punk and Hardcore Music scene. Countless national touring acts such as Henry Rollins, Scream, Saint Vitus, Regional and Local bands played shows for all ages in the rental halls there. Often these bands and their fans had no other venue open to them in the area and for that reason the Botanical Center provided a much needed space for the music scene. According to a contest on the WHO Radio ''Van & Bonnie'' morning show on June 21, 2011, the dome is constructed of 665 plexiglass panels. In September 2020, CEO Stephanie Jutila resigned and was succeeded by Kim Perez in March 2021.

Dining and events

The Trellis Café open for lunch is located inside the Botanical Center with its entrance accessible under the dome through the gardens. Various events occur at the Botanical Center including a summer concert series which starts in June.

March 2021 planned improvements

In March 2021, the Botanical Center revealed its plans for the development of an additional which will include improved connections to both I-235 and the riverfront, an additional exterior entrance to the Trellis Café, a willow garden near the river with water and sand areas for children and families to enjoy, a River Cafe with edible fruit and vegetables planted nearby, restrooms, an amphitheater located in natural topography with a dry garden overlooking the amphitheater, and an elevated pathway through a canopy of trees in the rolling hills of the heavily wooded space.

Nearby recreational trails

Located between the Botanical Center and the Des Moines River in the greater Des Moines trails system, the Neil Smith Trail and the John Pat Dorian Trail connect just north of the Botanical Center along the eastside of the Des Moines River. Portions of these trails may be underwater when the Des Moines River is above flood stage between the Saylorville Dam and

downtown Des Moines Downtown Des Moines is the central business district of Des Moines, Iowa and the Greater Des Moines Metropolitan Area. Downtown Des Moines is defined by the City of Des Moines as located between the Des Moines River to the east, the Raccoon Rive ...

.Neal Smith Trail
BikeIowa website. Retrieved May 25, 2021.

History

Dining and events

March 2021 planned improvements

Nearby recreational trails

See also