Gardeners are trying out different species of plants to see which ones grow best in South Carolina. The gardens though are not a home to many species of animals. A few birds nest there and humming birds are seen occasionally. Bushes are planted that attract butterflies. The birds like the berries.
Insects are common especially mosquitoes.
Riverbanks uses no pesticides except when they have spent a lot of money on some plants and something threatens to wipe them out. A new color scheme is put in every season in the changeable part of the gardens. Once Riverbanks copied a print from modern art using flowers. Every few years the part of the garden around the fountains is ripped out and replanted with different plants. The fountains are fed with water from the Saluda River, which is next to the gardens.