The air had a tinge of plane exhaust and smoke from the fires burning in the Great Dismal Swamp. Oddly enough, the Garden’s next-door neighbor is Norfolk Airport. A grassy hillside keeps the airport out of sight, but the din of planes taking off and landing nearby occasionally disturbs the tranquility of the Garden.

Touring the Garden, one gets the impression that it has evolved gradually over many years rather than being planned all at once. In the late 1930s, horticulturalist Frederick Heutte and Norfolk City Manager Thomas P. Thompson first conceived the idea that Norfolk could be home to azalea gardens that would rival those in Charleston, S.C.—a major tourist attraction despite the Great Depression. Funding came from the Works Progress Administration in 1938 and Charles Gillette, the landscape architect behind many of Virginia’s most beautiful gardens, served as a consultant. By 1941, the Garden displayed nearly 5,000 azaleas, 75 landscaped acres and five miles of walking trails.

Many additions have been made over the decades, and the now 155-acre Norfolk Botanical Garden and its 12 miles of paved trails can be explored on foot, by tram or by boat. In addition to having canals, the Garden itself sits on a peninsula in Lake Whitehurst. There are more than 30 gardens; some focus on impressive collections of specific plants, such as roses, rhododendrons, camellias or hydrangeas. Other gardens evoke a specific place, such the Japanese Garden; an era, such as the Hunter Savage Colonial Garden; or climate, such as the Tropical Garden. Highlights include an expansive Butterfly Garden and World of Wonders, a garden designed for children to play and learn.

Despite the airport noise and recent natural disasters, the Garden is well worth visiting year-round. With a gift shop, library and café at the Garden, one could spend a few hours or most of the day, especially since the Garden remains open until 7:00 p.m. daily through mid-October. Norfolk Botanical Garden is a member of the American Horticultural Society, so membership at other participating botanical gardens may be valid for free admission. Although the Garden closed for a few days after the hurricane, volunteers and staff are actively restoring its beauty, sans a few leafy giants.