A commercial nursery with 4 acres of display gardens exhibiting over 1000 varieties.

This formal 5-acre Japanese Garden, featuring 4 waterfalls (one 50 feet), spring-fed ponds, paths and quiet areas for contemplation, is enhanced by lanterns, bridges, a granite pagoda, water basins, gates and a formal tea house, a gazebo, and a magnificent 50-foot waterfall.

Overlooking Lake Decatur, this recently re-opened garden provides secluded paths, rocky terraces, evergreens and, seasonally, annuals.

A city park is home to a Shakespeare Festival and a bust of Frank Lloyd Wright, who designed some of the nearby houses.

The oldest Baha'i House of Worship still standing has nine gardens radiating outward from the ornate domed building's nine sides.

This commercial nursery features display gardens for pleasure and inspiration.

More than 400 species inhabit 216 acres divided into 20 naturalistic exhibits from the savannahs of Habitat Africa to the simulated rain forest of Tropic World to the Living Coast. within the zoo's 216 acres.

Extensive gardens, designed in 1910, still grace this historic home on the Mississippi River.

The 500-acre estate of a former editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune includes, among other attractions, 10 acres of magnificent formal gardens, built in 1967. Featured areas include the North Scalloped Garden, the Fountain Garden, the Rock Garden, the Green Garden, the Douglas Fir Garden, Linden and Euonymus Collections, the Bur Oak Garden (annuals and perennials), the Golden and Silver Ponds, the Rose Garden, the Idea Garden (including the Vegetable Garden, the Container Garden, the Children's Garden, and the Herb Garden), the Dryland Garden, the Flowering and Silver Shrubs Collection, the Alder-Birch Collection, the Columnar Tree Collection, and the Ash-Dogwood Collection.

This wonderful garden offers 385 acres with 100 acres of woods, 75 acres of lagoons and 23 spectacular gardens. In alphabetical order, the gardens are the Aquatic Garden, Bulb Garden, Children's Garden, Circle Garden, Dwarf Conifer Garden, Educational Greenhouses, Enabling Garden, Endangered Species Garden, English Walled Garden, English Oak Meadow, Fruit and Vegetable Garden, Heritage Garden, Home Landscape Demonstration Garden, Japanese Garden, Mc Donald Woods, Naturalistic Garden, Plant Evaluation Gardens, Prarie, Bruce Krasberg Rose Garden (an All-America Rose Selections Garden), Sensory Garden, Skokie River, and Waterfall Garden.

This splendid mansion is surrounded by 75 serene acres featuring lakes, fountains, formal gardens, antique classical statuary, a private 9-hole golf course and a conservatory housing exotic plants.

The historic home formerly belonging to descendants of John Deere offers extensive gardens with elements typical of the Victorian era and a wide variety of trees and plants.

The College is home to a regional arboretum on 140 acres surrounded by natural prairie, woodland and athletic fields.

An opulent Victorian mansion built by the barbed wire baron Isaac Ellwood, is located in a lovely park in the heart of DeKalb. The House and gardens give a glimpse into life in the late 19th century.

This 245 acre wooded tract on both banks of the Fox River with Villa, formerly the estate of Col. and Mrs. George Fabyan, features their 68-foot windmill and restored Japanese gardens with a pool and bridge.

Named after a "lover and planter of trees" who planted 13,000 trees in the town of Normal, the Arboretum is a curated collection of trees, shrubs, and plants integrated with art and architecture on the Illinois State campus. Fell's motto: "He who plants a tree and cares for it does something for posterity."

A large commercial herb nursery located in a historic barn and greenhouses.

Jens Jensen, the West Side Park Commission's landscape architect, conceived the Conservatory as a series of naturalistic landscapes under glass The Conservatory building, covering 4.5 acres and housing 4,800 different types of plants, was patterned after the haystacks of the midwest. The separate rooms are named the Palm House, Fern Room, Economic House, Desert House, Aroid House, Sensory Garden, Warm House, Show House and Horticultural. The greenhouses serve as the source of the multitude of plants displayed in Garfield, Lincoln, and Grant Parks. The photograph on the Conservatory Alliance web page says it all -- sheer beauty.

This gracious park features a Wildlife Garden, a Woodland Garden, an Herb Garden, a Viburnum Collection, a new Children's Garden, an All America Rose Selections Garden and a 2500 square foot conservatory Yearly events include a Chrysanthemum Show and a Poinsettia Show.

The Waukegan Historical Society is restoring this 1870s home occupied by a former Chicago Mayor and now the Society's headquarters. Outside is the Bowen formal garden.

A mansion originally owned by descendants of the founders of the Weyerhauser and Denkmann lumber empire houses the Rock Island Park Offices and displays gardens featuring shade-tolerant plants, rhododendrons, and wildflowers.

This nursery offers sun, shade and water display gardens featuring hostas, daylilies, iris and grasses.

This elegant park, designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, offers acres of parkland, reflecting pools, a perennial garden, and the Osaka Japanese Garden featuring a replica of the Phoenix Temple near Kyoto, Japan.

The Arboretum, on the 155 acre site of a former nursery, displays native and exotic species as well as an extensive evergreen collection. The Botanic Gardens features gardens devoted to Hosta, Everlastings, Iris, Gourds, Herbs, Vegetables and Annuals, Peonies, Grasses as well the Fountain Garden, the Square Food Garden, a Butterfly Garden, a Children's Garden (with evergreen maze, sundial, story tree, and a native american garden), and a Prehistoric Garden.

A 23 acre strip-like park along the edge of the North Shore Canal, the Arboretum's trees and shrubs are arranged by plant family (Birch, Legume, Maple, Oak and Pine). Lovely gardens include the Meadow Garden, Prairie Restoration Area, Cherry Tree Walk, Nut Tree, Rotary International Friendship Garden (with All-America Selections roses), Women's Terrace, Gazebo and Bird Sanctuary. Visitors will also find an Ecology Center, with a passive solar greenhouse, and a windmill demonstrating alternative energy sources.

Lilacia Park, an 8-1/2 acre spring wonderland of 200 varieties of lilacs and 50 varieties of tulips, hosts many of Lombard's annual (since the 1920s) "Lilac Time" activities.

Featuring wooden benches inscribed with quotes from Abraham Lincoln, this 77 acre woodland park designed by Jens Jenson offers five miles of trails on the shores of Lake Springfield and trees and flowers native to Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. Trails include High Meadow, Walgreen Bridge, Witch Hazel Trail, Hawthorne Trail, Shady Lane, Shadbush Lane, Hickory Lane, Maple Lane, Buckeye Trail, Linden Lane, Silver Bell Trail, Walnut & Oak Grove, Lake Trail, Red Bud Lane, Beech Trace, Arrow Wood Trail, Sheep Barry Lane, Lincoln Council Ring, Oak Trail, Wild Flower Trail, Bird Cherry Trail, Cypress Grove, Fringe Tree Trail, Crab Apple Lane, Prairie Path, and Dogwood Lane. Don't miss the turtle collection.

The Conservatory offers four glass houses and two outdoor gardens. The Greenhouses include the 50-foot high Palm House, the Fernery and the Show House, home to the Chrysanthemum Show, Winter Show, Azalea Show, Spring Show, and Summer Tropical Show. Outside are found the Standing Lincoln Monument (formal gardens), the Grandmother's Garden (perennials and shrubs with a statue of Shakespeare), the Annual Garden (by the Zoo), the Peace Garden (a sunken garden by the Waveland Gold Course) and the Contemplation Point Garden (with prairie plants at the north end of the park). The Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool, newly restored, is a quiet sanctuary for people as well as migratory birds (See this link for photos and information on Alfred Caldwell.)

This forty-acre park offers, in addition to a multitude of facilities, extensive gardens, a conservatory, and a greenhouse.

This 1.7 acre village park surrounding the historic Cook Mansion features an All-America Rose Selections accredited garden.

This lovely garden with a diverse floral display includes an All America Selections Display Garden and an Enabling Garden that is under construction.

This 322 acre park designed by Frederick Law Olmstead's sons, features a two acre rose garden.

One of the largest and oldest retail herb nurseries in the midwest, this farm on the bluffs overlooking the Sangamon River displays six acres of herbs.

This gem of a city park features over 100 varieties of roses during the summer, as well as the historic Centennial Fountain. The well-tended garden is a recipient of the All-America Rose Selections Award for Outstanding Maintenance.

Established by (Mr.) Joy Morton of Morton Salt fame as a retirement project, this fascinating 1,700 acre Arboretum can be seen from 11 miles of paved roads, 12 miles of foot trails, or from a tram. The collection displays more than 30,000 plants, representing 3,600 different types of native and exotic plants. Gardens include a Hedge Garden, Dwarf Woody Plants, a Ground Cover Garden, a Four Seasons Garden, a Fragrance Garden, Joy Path Gardens, a Wild Garden, and the May T. Watts Reading Garden. Geographical collections include woody plants of China, Northern Illinois, Central and West Asia, Eastern United States Wetlands, the Appalachians, Japan, the Ozarks, the Southwest U.S., Central and Western North America, Northeast Asia, Europe, Korea and the Balkans. Taxonomic collections include elms, roses, pines, ginseng, beeches, birches, cashews, cypress, dogwood, honeysuckle, lindens, magnolias, maples, mulberry, olives, peas, rues, saxifrage, walnuts, willows and yews.

This stunning 1 acre rose garden, a doctor's memorial to his wife, contains more than 1,800 bushes and is an All America Rose Selections accredited garden. There is also an Oriental Garden at the Park.

200-acre expanse of unique architecture, imaginative landscaping, and devotional areas. Owned by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Special areas include the Main Shrine, the Lourdes Grotto (a replica) the Annunciation Garden, the Mothers Prayer Walk, the Fathers Memorial Wall, the Agony Garden, the Way of the Cross, and the Resurrection Garden.

The Conservatory has three rooms: The Desert House (cacti and succulents), The Tropical House (including palms, bamboo, orchids, economic plant, a fishpond and waterfall) and the Fern House (a variety of plants including ferns, hibiscus, orchids, begonias, and carnivorous plants). Outside is a native prairie patch.

A five-acre teaching garden includes trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants in landscape settings. The garden, displaying an extensive Hosta collection, is also a display garden for the All-America selections.

This brand new garden features a 6,400 square foot tropical conservatory that is being filled with over 100 different tropical trees, shrubs and flowers, a planted wet wall and a 14 foot waterfall. Outside visitors will find a conifer garden, a reflection pool and a fountain.

Riverside is a multi-facility public park with a Conservatory and gardens.

Formerly the estate of Robert Allerton, the 1,500 acre park's formal gardens contains objects collected by him on his travels, including a collection of Fu Dogs and statuary. Gardens include the Brick Garden, the Annual Garden, the Lost Garden The park also offers over twenty miles of trails meandering through the upland forest (400 acres) and lowland and southern forests (100 acres) along the Sangamon River

15 acres of rock and floral gardens showcase specialty shops and family attractions.

This 62 acre former estate overlooking Lake Decatur features, in addition to other city park attractions, a Japanese Garden whose entrance is guarded by a Chinese fu dog. The garden achieves it elegance through the use of greenery, rocks, sand and water, ornamented by Oriental sculpture, a unique sod bridge and a gazebo surrounded by a flower garden.

Designed by Jens Jensen and planted in 1916 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Shakespeare's death, the garden features flowers, shrubs, trees and herbs mentioned in Shakespeare's plays as well as a bas-relief of the Bard.

The first Rockford Park, purchased hurriedly to save it from speculators, showcases a tropical greenhouse with changing floral displays, waterfalls, fish and birds.

This 25 acre arboretum exhibits 600 accessioned native and exotic varieties including 150 different oaks in its research on the adaptability of woody plants to midwestern climate and soil conditions.

The 190-acre University of Chicago campus showcases palatial Gothic towers, quiet reflecting pools and lush lawns and gardens.

The 1,500 square foot Conservatory houses over 200 tropical and subtropical species selected for their botanical interest or economic importance. Separate greenhouses contain ferns, bromeliads, orchids, carnivorous plants, herb and spice plants, cacti and euphorbia and other succulents. Outside, sheltered by the greenhouses, is a butterfly garden.

Under development, the completed Arboretum's gardens, collections, and habitats will transform 160 acres of the university's south campus farmlands into three major areas. The Core will be a formally organized group of display gardens, of which the Hartley Selections Garden (dedicated in the fall 1994) is the focal point. The Collections Area will feature woody plants in an naturalistic park-like setting with trails. The Habitats Area will feature plants thriving in woodland, savannah and wet prairie environments.

Historic Vance Park features a lushly landscaped sunken garden with a serpentine wall from a design by Thomas Jefferson located in Charlottesville, North Carolina, and a Lion's Head fountain duplicating one found in Paris, France.

A National Historic Site designed by O. C. Simonds, the impressive gardens showcase over 1,200 species of native and exotic plants. The domed Conservatory features tropical flora including orchids, palms and bromeliads. The exterior gardens include a Rose Garden with over 3,500 plants, a Shade Garden, a Monocot Garden (iris), a Daylily Garden and a Rock Garden.

The park's sheer size may put you on sensory overload: a vista of fields and streams, with ample space to breathe and adore the simple beauty of the outdoors. Designer Frederick Law Olmsted modeled the gorgeous lagoons and footbridges after those at Jackson Park; same goes for the boardwalk that stretches along the park's western edge. This promenade, lined with Victorian-era iron lampposts, provides a glimpse into the park's glory days. It's easy to imagine hoop-skirted women with parasols strolling arm in arm with their gentlemen. Not safe after dark.

A greenhouse, a gift to a wife grieving over her son's death, was the beginning of the gardens, enlarged by each successive (and, by happy coincidence, horticulturally inclined) mistress of the house. The Elmhurst Park District added three greenhouses more after the property came under its care in the 1920s.

The world's largest library, complete with gargoyle owls, is home to the ninth floor's Winter Garden with olive trees and climbing ivy and a sky dome. Books and a garden are an inspired combination.