Leu Gardens is a beautiful Botanical Gardens in Orlando, Florida.
Harry P. Leu Gardens is named after the man that donated the land to the City of Orlando. This fifty acres of land has been cultivated into a beautiful masterpiece of flowers, vegetables, herbs, roses, catus and so much more.
1920 North Forest Avenue
Orlando, Florida 32803
If you are in Orlando, Florida during the right time of year (usually around April) there's a Leu Gardens plant sale. You can pick up your own beautiful plants and take them with you.
This's one of the Orlando, Florida attractions I’ve always known about and wanted to visit. I’m not sure if I never had the time or I just thought it was too expensive.
Once I checked out the website and saw it was only $7.00(adults are $7.00 and children are $2.00 plus tax) I knew I had to check it out!
I’ve known a few people that got married at Leu Gardens and now I know why. It’s so beautiful. If you love botanical gardens you’re going to Love this place!
Things you’re going to need to make your Leu Gardens trip a fun experience:
1.) A good pair of walking shoes.
Leu Gardens has over 50 acres of land and plenty to see. I decided to do my journey in flip flops and I can tell you this isn’t the way to go. If I would have brought my walking shoes I could have turned my trip to the gardens into a fun workout.
All of the trails are nicely paved. You could even push a stroller or wheelchair around with little effort.
2.) Water, and lots of it!
Orlando, Florida is known for many things. Disney World, lakes, oranges and HEAT!!! It gets very hot here in Orlando so bare this in mind.
The gardens are open to all the elements (and I assume you’ll want to go on a nice day) so make sure you’re prepared with water.
There are water fountains around the gardens but the water was warm and sort of tasted like metal. So I suggest you bring your own.
3.) Sun screen
If you love nature and really want to take all of the gardens in you’re going to be there for a while. So just like any other day in Orlando, Florida you’re going to want to put on some Sun screen. I failed to do this and now my shoulder are red!
Most areas of the gardens are nice and shady but you can also get lost in some of the full sun areas and open yourself up to the day time sun.
4.) A Camera
There’s so many beautiful things to see at Leu Gardens. You’re going want to make sure you get it all down on film.
Some plants and flowers I had never seen before so I made sure to get a shot of them. Some of which I will share with you, my loyal readers.
5.) Time
Even if you were to breeze through Leu Gardens you’re looking at spending atleast an hour there. I spent almost three. I would have stayed longer if I had taken my own advice and prepared for the trip. There’s just so much to see.
Plus, if you wanted to you could even have a little picnic in the beautiful fields. Which brings me to my last tip.
6.) Snacks
If you’re planning on staying in the gardens for awhile you may want to bring a snack to hold yourself over. A granola bar or some trail mix will do well. If you’re bringing children to the gardens this may be the most important tip for you.
There’s a lot of walking involved at this attraction in Orlando Florida so you may get a little grumble in your belly while you’re there.
If you’re toting children around they may want to take a few breaks and it’ll be nice to have something to offer them to keep them happy (and you).
*Important Money Saving Tip*
Leu Gardens offers Free admission on the first Monday of every month. So if you're lucky enough to be visiting Orlando, Florida during this time that can save you a few bucks!
My favorite part of Leu Gardens was the butterfly garden. This was probably the most colorful part. They plant a variety of different plants and flowers to attracts all different species of butterflies.
Walking into the area you go under an archway and it almost feels kind of enchanting. You’ll see all different colored butterflies fluttering around.
I stood right in the middle of the gardens just watching in awe. I’ve never been surrounded by so many butterflies before. Not to mention watching them pollinate flowers so closely to me.
It was really cool to watch them zoom around each other and then they’d zoom around me. I swear they knew I was there and were messing with me!
There was a nice little bench in the gardens under a tree and next to a plant that seemed to be a favorite of my colorful new friends.
So I just sat there and watched them and snapped a few shots. Before I realized I was siting there in complete tranquility. Listening to the birds singing and nature doing it's thing.
I was able to sit there for a while without being interrupted. There were people at Leu Gardens but it’s so large you could walk the pathways without seeing anyone.
I did notice a lot of workers tending to the gardens. Watering and weeding. Keeping it beautiful. I even talked to one about the vegetable garden.
My husband Chris and I are growing a garden at home with some similar vegetables. Ours are in a younger stage than the ones at Leu Gardens so it was cool to see what the end result would look like.
They grow all sorts of vegetables and then they donate to local food banks when they mature. They were growing tomatoes, squash, peppers, pumpkins, radishes and peanuts.
Next to these two gardens was a rose garden. According to one of the staff it’s the largest rose garden in all of Florida. It offered a beautiful array of colors. Some big, some small. All full of fragrance.
It’s the beginning of summer now so not all of the plants were in full bloom. I might have to go back in a month or two just to see the garden in all its glory.
Those three gardens were my favorites. But I also enjoy walking around the rest of the property.
There was a large(working)clock that was made out of flowers that was kinda cool.
You get to it by going through the rose garden. It's massive and definitely draws you in.
Another interesting garden was the Arid Garden. Here there was a variety of warm weather plants. Being from Florida I can appreciate desert like plants and I’ve come to enjoy them.
There were really neat plants that caught my eye. In this garden they only use rainfall to water the plants. Don't forget to check it out.
On my way out I came across a house in the middle of the property that’s now the Leu House museum.
The staff offers tours of this historic home every half hour on the hour (it’s closed in the month of July). It lasts about 30 minutes.
The house has some pictures and belongings of the last owners Harry and Mary Jane Leu. Plus the guide tells you the history of the house beginning with the first owners that settled the land.
I was really excited to hear that Harry Leu was a native of Florida, just like me!
If you have time I would recommend going on a tour thorough the house just to get the inside scoop on the history of the gardens.
Plus it’s a nice way to cool down because it can get HOT outside (and thankfully the house is air conditioned). You can sign the guest book and leave a donation if you’d like.
According to the little map I got when I first entered Leu Gardens they host over 300 weddings a year. I can see why.
When you walk around you’ll see the different places that they offer their wedding couples. I could see my self getting married (again) there. It’s a beautiful setting for a beautiful experience.
So there you have it. If you want to add a little culture to your visit to Orlando, Florida you’ll want to add Leu Gardens to your list!
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