Dedication of Lane Park Celebrated
The Birmingham City Council dedicates Lane Park in memory of late Mayor A.O. Lane. The 200-acre park will become the future home of the Birmingham Zoo and Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
A cherished place of respite and inspiration since 1962, Birmingham Botanical Gardens promotes a passion for plants, gardens, and the natural world. Located in the heart of Birmingham, Alabama—in one of the most biodiverse areas in the United States—this urban oasis encompasses 67 acres featuring more than two dozen garden spaces that reflect the region’s rich and varied terrain and showcase the many plants that thrive in Southern gardens. Each year, the Gardens welcomes more than 330,000 visitors from across the region and around the world, providing both a meaningful connection to nature and a vibrant source of plant, gardening, wellness, and environmental education.
A facility of the Birmingham Park & Recreation Board, Birmingham Botanical Gardens is the result of a public/private partnership between the City of Birmingham and the nonprofit Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens, a mission-driven membership organization that seeks to protect, nurture, and share the wonders of the Gardens. Together, the City and Friends work side by side to fulfill the Gardens’ mission.
Because funding from the City of Birmingham covers only part of the Gardens’ core, day-to-day operating expenses, the nonprofit Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens plays a critical role in raising funds to supplement the Gardens’ operational needs. Annual memberships and donor support also enable the Friends to provide impactful educational programs and outreach, to tell the Gardens’ story, and to ensure the ongoing stewardship and enhancement of this beloved community treasure.
Guided by its mission—to protect, nurture, and share the Gardens’ countless wonders—the Friends is dedicated to serving the Gardens; serving the community; serving visitors; and inspiring a passion for plants, gardens, and the environment.
The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens’ Communications and Marketing Department is happy to help with stories, interviews, access to experts, and photos.
Félix Ortiz
Communications & Marketing Associate
205.414.3950, ext. 113
communications@bbgardens.org
(8:30am–5pm, Monday–Friday)
Media may request photographs to be used in publications and electronic communications.
Please credit all photographs “Courtesy of Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens.” Photos may not be used for commercial purposes. Photographs found on this website are not suitable for printing purposes.
Contact 205.414.3950, ext. 112 communications@bbgardens.org for more information.
All on-site filming requires advance approval by the Birmingham Park and Recreation Department.
Virgil Mathews
Gardens Director with Birmingham Park & Recreation
205.414.3904
virgil.mathews@birminghamal.gov
Free Admission
Open 365 days per year
330,000+ guests annually
67.5 acres
24+ garden spaces
16,000+ volunteer hours logged annually
Adult, classes, lectures, and workshops
Family-friendly programs
Free Discovery Field Trips
Children’s Summer Camps
Free Preschool Storytime
Biennial native plant conference
Library with 14,000+ items
Archives & Rare Book Room
Seed Exchange
Thyme to Read Book Club
Gardens and Garden Center spaces are available for event rental
Enjoy The Garden Dirt, the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens’ award-winning quarterly publication for friends of the Gardens. In 2021, The Garden Dirt received a prestigious Platinum Award in the 2021 Hermes Creative Awards and a Gold Medal of Achievement in the 2021 GardenComm Media Awards. We are grateful for these international honors and all who contribute. Click here to view past issues. Thank you for your readership, and for being a part of the Gardens’ story.
Join our team! Positions listed here are openings with the nonprofit Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens. For information regarding openings with the City of Birmingham team at the Gardens, click here. Thank you for your interest!
The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens is an equal opportunity employer and accepts employment applications and resumes for currently open positions only. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, is a federal law that protects applicants and employees from discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training,
classification, referral, and other aspects of employment, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), or national origin.
Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, protects qualified individuals from discrimination on the basis of disability in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral, and other aspects of employment.
The Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens is excited to offer internship opportunities to college and high school students to expose young people to the possibilities of rewarding careers in public gardens.
The Friends’ Native Plant Internship is awarded annually to a rising junior or senior attending a four-year college or university full-time or to a recent graduate of a two- or four-year college.
Preference is given to students who are majoring in horticulture, landscape design, landscape architecture, biology, botany, ecology, plant science, environmental science, or a closely related discipline. Please note that we are unable to accept applications from international students at this time.
The Rotary Club of Shades Valley Summer Internship is awarded annually to a rising junior or senior attending a four-year college or university in Alabama full-time or to a recent graduate (within 12 months) of a two- or four-year college in Alabama. It is also open to Alabama residents attending colleges outside the state.
The Rotary Club of Shades Valley has a long history of supporting Birmingham Botanical Gardens. We are grateful for the club’s ongoing commitment to our summer internship program.
Our high school summer internship is open to a rising junior or senior or to a recent (within 12 months) high school graduate. The internship is unpaid but is offered to provide experience and direction to a young person interested in a profession in or related to plant sciences.
This and other internships for college and high school students may be arranged by special request. Contact the Friends’ Director of Education & Visitor Experience Dr. Tyler Mason to learn more.
Volunteering has been a part of the culture of this community treasure since it opened six decades ago, and it remains integral to what we achieve—in our programming, our fundraising, and our stewardship of this special place.
No experience is required. As a volunteer, you’ll learn as you grow while also sustaining this community treasure and all that it makes possible.
These local nurseries, garden centers, and flower shops support the Gardens and all that it makes possible by extending 10% discounts to members of the Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
With missions aligned to our own, these organizations bring their expertise to our programming and volunteer efforts. By joining with us, they add depth and breadth to the Gardens’ reach and impact.