That's So Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh Botanic Garden

After church on Sunday, My Awesome Parents (MAP), Dear Husband (DH), and I (FrDrDr) drove a little ways southwest of the city to the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden. I had chanced upon a Groupon for reduced entry and happily snatched it up. On the way, we were treated to a hawk standing at the side of the road, just hanging out in the sun.

The decent-sized parking lot was relatively full, which suggests that the PBG is more popular than I had thought, not having heard of it the first year we lived in the city. There are many picnic tables set up under a big white awning next to a few kiddy games and a port-a-pot, but no trash cans: PBG asks that visitors haul out their garbage with them.

We enjoyed a delectable picnic at a table under an awning and then crossed the road to the gardens. Opened in 2011, the PBG is a work in progress on reclaimed land from a coal mine in Settler's Cabin Park. They have a formal garden for weddings and parties; a dogwood meadow with gazebo and birdhouses; a lotus and lily pond; and a couple of wooded trails. A "senses" garden is under construction. The trees provided welcome relief from the hot afternoon sun, and we were tickled to find the activity spaces set up for the young and young at heart: a hermit hut, a bookworm glen, and an enormous bird nest. There are also newspaper mailboxes in front of certain trees that let you guess the year the tree was planted and then tell you what was happening in the world that year.

I don't imagine that we will visit as often at the Phipps Conservatory, but we will definitely be back to discover what else they have done, built, and planted.



That's So Pittsburgh (TSPGH) has also visited Kennywood Amusement Park and The Strip District.