Singing Tower
The Bok Tower is the centerpiece of the garden, and it holds a 60 bell Carillion that sings every half hour. The tower is beautifully sculptured with pink and gray marble tiles with Victorian(neo-Gothic) arched windows, allowing music to escape throughout the garden. The building divides into two levels; the top-level houses the bell, and the bottom level is the playing room houses the keyboard. The keys of the keyboard and bell clappers connect by steel cables that allow the bell to strike once the keys of the keyboard hit.
The Versatility of the Gardens
Bok Tower Gardens isn’t just a garden circulating the Bok Tower; the eight-acre garden sections off into nine sections. Each section plays a part in tying history, creatures, and flora in the garden as a whole.
- A Moat around the Tower(House Japanese Koi fish)
- Window by the Pond
- Pinewood Estate
- The Exedra(Overlook)
- Reflection Pool
- Pine Ridge Preserve(Trail)
- Japanese Lantern
- Endangered Plant Garden
- Visitor Center Orientation Theater & Historical Museum
Catch a Glimpse of Exotic Plant Collections
It’s improbable to stumble across rare plants or even native plants in someone’s backyard. Visiting the Botanical Gardens is like having a catalog of specimens that makes you feel cultured or right at home. It allows you to observe and identify global plant species from across the world, such as azaleas and camellias. It also conserves native plants and trees such as live oak, sabal palm tree, magnolias, and more scattered throughout the gardens. The Endangered Plant Garden of Bok Towers displays nationally listed endangered native plant species or globally threatened species.
Inexpensive
Bok Tower Gardens opens from 8 am-6 pm 365 days a year, even on the holidays(10 am on Christmas and Thanksgiving). Admission tickets can be purchased on arrival at the entrance gate or online. It cost $15 for adult admission, $5 for children, and dog admission. Children under the age of 5 are free to enter.
Nature Trails
If you are in a hiking mood, feel free to go on a hiking trail and explore the Preserve Trail of the Box Towers. This trail is 1.5 miles long and guides you through one of Florida’s most endangered ecosystems. It also homes endangered animals such as the gopher tortoise, gopher frogs, Florida mouse, and the eastern indigo snake.
Hammock Hollow
The Bok Tower Gardens caters to children as well to experience the beauty of the gardens. Hammock Hollow Children Garden integrates art, history, and ecology in an amusing way. It has a river walk with exciting water features, a word garden with inspirational words, a fox den that highlights animal/human interaction, and a sabal stage with artistic performances.
Romantic Ambience
Gardens are romantic in several ways, displaying full bloom flowers, delicate fragrances, and beautiful landscapes. We are hopeless romantics, so we appreciate the details of strategically color-coordinated plant beds, winding pathways, and streams of music that heighten a series of emotions. Bok Tower Gardens are perfect for dates with a significant other or yourself. You can stroll through the gardens, have intimate conversations, have a picnic in the grass at the Exedra overlook, or dine at the Blue Palmetto Cafe.
Events
Bok Tower Gardens hosts several events throughout the year. They range from Jazz or Carillon concerts, physical activities such as yoga or walking tours, cooking classes, or volunteering opportunities. They also offer Bok after dark events or Holiday events. Check their calendar for more info at https://boktowergardens.org/calendar-of-events/.
Pinewood Estate “El Retiro”
The design of the Bok Tower Gardens certainly sets the first impression of a home literally. I say this because inside the garden sits a beautiful well-detailed 12,900 square feet Meditteranean-style mansion. This twenty-room mansion with three huge porches overlooking the tower, an English-style garden, wooden carved door; was collaboratively designed by three architects Philips, Buck, and Wait. The estate was formerly known as El Retiro but later renamed Pinewood Estate.
Support Garden Conservation
Due to environmental factors such as climate change, pollution, reduced photosynthesis, etc., plant species are close to extinction. By paying a visit to the botanical garden, you contribute to preserving these precious plant species that have aided in medicinal research and more.
