Botanic Garden

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Opened in 1996, the Botanic Garden has grown to 32 acres of exhibits, and showcases plants from the American Southwest and around the world.

The Botanic Garden’s BUGarium is one of the most elaborate exhibits dedicated to bugs and arthropods in the country.

The Travel Channel cites ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden as one of the top 12 in the country!

Seasonal Update:

Learn more about featured seasonal plants!

Three-leaf sumac, featured 10/28/26: Fall foliage is hitting its stride throughout the Botanic Garden and across the path from its cousin the lanceleaf sumac, featured last month, the three-leaf sumac is now a mounded thicket in a gradient of reds and oranges. Both the common name and scientific name of Rhus trilobata reference the trio of leaflets on each stem. As part of the natural landscape of the western half of Canada, the Western United States, and parts of northern Mexico, this plant has a long history of use by many cultures such as harvesting the flexible bark for baskets, using the bark and berries medicinally, or simply enjoying the tart berries in different dishes and beverages. The related Rhus coriaria is used in Lebanese and other cuisine in Europe and Asia, and another edible North American species, Rhus typhina or staghorn sumac, is grown at the Heritage Farm and can be a closer-to-home substitute for similar Mediterranean recipes. Birds, small mammals, and pollinators also rely on three-leaf sumac for food and shelter, and it serves as a host plant for Luna moth larvae!
 
These shrubs grow fairly quickly and will be about 3 feet tall and spread up to 8 feet wide, naturally found in habitats like slopes, canyons, and stream banks. Once established, the deep roots make them moderately drought tolerant and help them survive fires, sprouting back up easily even after the above-ground parts are destroyed. Set them up in a well-drained spot in full sun with room to spread out a little, and you’ll develop a water-wise natural hedge or border with many benefits to the landscape around it. After bright green leaves and small light flowers in spring, the lingering red fruit clusters feed wildlife late in the year as well as providing cover or nesting sites, and deep roots aid in erosion control. Whether it’s serving a specific function in your garden or simply ornamental, the three-leaf sumac will be beautiful in every season!

Origami in the Garden and fall arrangements, featured 10/7/26: All throughout the garden, something special has emerged! Sprouted from the traditional Japanese art of origami, the amazing sculptures of the traveling Origami in the Garden are in place and ready for the official opening of the exhibit on Thursday, October 8. We can’t wait to share more about it with you tomorrow and with a long “blooming season” lasting through March 28, guests will have plenty of time to find them all!

Right now they’re accompanied by the beautiful tones of fall, carefully arranged in containers throughout the grounds by the BioPark’s expert horticulture team. In three combinations, they’ve paired complementary the dark pinks and purples of celosias and millets with the warm reds, oranges, and yellows of cultivars of marigold, sunbeckia, and a bold two-toned dahlia. Swiss chard, red or white kale, ornamental peppers, and more add additional accents, as well as a plethora of pumpkins in a variety of colors and sizes. As the temperatures continue to cool and the leaves begin to change, it’s the perfect time for a stroll through the Botanic Garden!

Chihuahuan scurfpea, featured 9/30/26: This week’s feature is a little different! You won’t likely be growing this one in your home garden and they’re not currently flowering, though they do have small purple flowers once or twice a year. Instead, we’re celebrating the seeding season of a very special native plant. Pediomelum pentaphyllum is a critically imperiled perennial legume, only found in the wild in two locations – one in New Mexico and one in Arizona. There are around 20 species in the genus Pediomelum altogether, all of which are native to North America. In the summer of 2024, the ABQ BioPark’s expert horticulturists were part of a group who had the opportunity to salvage Chihuahuan scurfpea plants from an area in development and bring them into care at the Botanic Garden as part of our plant conservation program. Before that recovery there were only around 300 plants known to still exist in the wild.

That’s why the seeding season is so exciting! As one of the only populations of Chihuahuan scurfpeas in human care, everything that the BioPark and their conservation partners at the IUCN have learned while caring for the plants here is writing the manual for their preservation as well as increasing scientists’ understanding of what they need in the wild so we can better protect their habitat. We can’t wait to share the full story with you and continue highlighting this and other important work that happens behind-the-scenes at the Botanic Garden, a Participating Institution with the Center for Plant Conservation.

Rose of Sharon, featured 9/16/26: With over 400 species in the genus Hibiscus, there is a wide variety of colors and flower shapes, including the double-flowering cultivar of the rose of Sharon named ‘Lucy’ that’s currently putting on a show behind the Cider Barn at the Heritage Farm! This deciduous shrub resembles a small tree, capable of reaching around 13 feet tall. Despite the scientific species name implying they come from Syria, Hibiscus syriacus is also known as Korean rose and was originally only endemic to Korea and is the national flower of South Korea. It was brought to Japan in the 8th century and introduced in many other places since then, including North America. This species can thrive in urban conditions and poorer soils and though individual flowers are short lived, they produce new blooms continuously to provide a pop of color and food for pollinators into fall when other flowers have waned.

Not only is this plant tolerant of heat and humidity, full sun produces stronger stems and heavier blooming. Provide consistent, but not pooling, moisture during its first year, but afterwards they are low maintenance and drought resistant. Healthy plants can be self-seeding, so monitor for spreading and prune in spring to encourage new growth and bigger flowers. Cultivars and hybrids can be found in hues of yellows, golds, pinks, purples, blue, or white, as well as in combination and may be single flowers with 5 petals or double-flowering. Whether you plant it as a natural screen or a backdrop along the border of the rest of your garden, your favorite shade of rose of Sharon will be a feast for the eyes and for wildlife preparing for the winter to come!