Nonna hit the road last weekend with the wife and kiddos. We loaded up our minivan and headed west on I-40 to Jackson to see the UT Gardens.
It’s two hours from Nashville to Jackson, so it makes a manageable day trip even with small kids. The UT Gardens are on the campus of the UT Institute of Agriculture West Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center. Most of the acreage is dedicated to row crops that are prevalent in West Tennessee, but the grounds closer to the building are dedicated to horticulture.
We hit the road relatively early and rolled into the Hub City about 10:30. For early August, the weather was decent (overcast, humid, not sweltering), and we hopped out of the van and immediately went exploring. It was Sunday, so the offices were closed, and we had the place to ourselves.
The lush vegetation is obviously the draw, but the centerpiece of the gardens in my mind is the bottle wall. This was the element I had seen in pictures and was most interested in seeing up close. Here’s what it looks like at the start of the growing season.
Cool right? Well this is what it looks like nearing the end of summer!
On its own, the bottle wall is a really cool installation, but with the full flush of summer, it becomes a stage for the players to take their turn in the spotlight.
Most of what you find in the garden beds are annuals that are being trialed in the West Tennessee sun and soil for various seed companies (Proven Winners, Suntory, etc.). Here is a bed dedicated to All-America Selections.
The profusion of annual flowers means there is an abundance of butterflies. I also saw a pack of 3 or 4 hummingbirds flying around. I had never seen the state butterfly of Tennessee, the Zebra Swallowtail, until I visited the UT Gardens in Jackson!
What else stands out about the UT Gardens in Jackson? There’s a great variety of plants, and there is a great selection of unique hardscape/art elements in each planting. You probably noticed the mattress springs in a previous picture. I also saw salvaged agriculture parts and painted trees.
We packed a picnic lunch and picked a picturesque gazebo to eat under. I never had the pleasure of meeting the extension agent in whose memory the gazebo is placed, but I bet she is looking down and super pleased with the shady, moss-covered installation.
I think the best part of all of this -- there is no admission cost. It’s completely free and open every day from sun up to sun down. The UT Institute of Agriculture has additional gardens in Crossville and Knoxville, and I can’t wait to visit them. Give the UT Gardens a follow on Facebook. They post a lot of pretty pictures and great info. They also have a lot of great events throughout the year (#ThanksCOVID), so check out the West TN AgResearch and Education Center’s website for more. I’ll close out this post with a few more of my favorite photos from our visit.
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