Botanical Gardens at Asheville
The Botanical Gardens at Asheville (BGA), also known as the Asheville Botanical Gardens, is an independent non-profit botanical garden located on 10 acres at 151 W. T. Weaver Boulevard in Asheville, North Carolina. Dedicated to the study and promotion of the native plants and habitats of the Southern Appalachians, the garden is open daily with free admission for all. Support for maintenance of the Gardens comes primarily from memberships, donations, and the work of volunteers. The BGA was established in 1961 on eroded, abandoned timberland. Cleanup and trail-building took place from 1962-1963, and  planting started in 1964 following an overall design by Doan Ogden, a nationally known landscape architect. At that time more than 5,000 plants were transplanted into the garden from private lands and national forests. Although the Gardens is located on land belonging to the adjacent University of North Carolina at Asheville, the Gardens operates independently and is overseen by a Board of Directors elected from and by the general membership of the Botanical Gardens. Today the BGA includes more than 650 species of plants native to the southern Appalachian Mountains.