I have to admit that I have a tendency to forget about Fort Wayne, though having had a recent…read morevolunteer for my Tenderness Tour has put the city back on my mind. The Foellinger-Freimann Botanical Conservatory was a place I didn't get to spend a lot of time while in the downtown area, but I did enjoy the time I got to spend there. The conservatory has three indoor gardens and 1,000 varieties of plans (and 2,000+ plants). You can see cacti, palms, a chocolate tree and more. The conservatory was started by News-Sentinel publisher Helene Foellinger and Bill Sowers, a Fort Wayne attorney. The two often visited gardens and wanted Fort Wayne to have a similar experience. The conservatory opened in 1983 and houses 24,500 square feet of indoor gardens, four outdoor gardens, and is owned/operated by the Fort Wayne Parks and Rec department with charitable support. Fun fact 1: A beefsteak begonia was the first plant installed. Fun fact 2: In February 2024, the Conservatory had its three millionth visitor. Admission is $7 for adults, $5 for youth (3-17), and free for ages 2 and under. There's a $1 Thursdays deal from 5-8pm and there's no admission fee for the cafe, conservatory shop, or sales garden. There's venue rental available and quite a few classes to take. I generally found things accessible - maybe a bit iffy in a couple spots, but I could generally function just fine. I will say I didn't quite explore everything as I was on a schedule, but for what I experienced I really enjoyed it and could get where I wanted to get.

Entry fee is $1 on Thursday and Friday in December 2022 so we went thru the holiday display. It is…read morebased on a children's book written by a Fort Wayne resident! It was super court and very well done. There are even lights in the gardens outside. We've been there many times before during the day so it was different to see it at night. We sat up in the top level of the tropical area enjoying the sounds of the waterfall and lights. It was beautiful. Downtown in December is magical. $1 night is a cost effective way for the whole family to enjoy the gardens. Thank you parks and rec!

What a great little spot. I would totally love for this to be my backyard. I will say there are…read moreBiblical references in the choices of plants if you know them. If not, there's truly not much Biblical about it. It is a great spot to slip away and connect with nature, pray, read or journal. The walking track is super short. More a quiet respite than a place for exercise. Maybe a good spot for some stretching, tai chi, meditation, or prayer.

I love to go to this garden when I need some peace and quiet. Or to pray. Or even just to eat lunch…read morealone, in silence. It's located right on the lake, so you can can hear children playing in the background and city noise but there is something tranquil about it. And the fountain nose drowns it out. Plants and flowers are marked to indicate what they are for anyone interested in walking around and checking out the garden. It's a smaller place but really pretty. They have weddings here and events, the space can be rented. It's free to visit.

Beautiful Charley Creek Gardens is a lovely place to take a stroll, and it is handicap accessible…read morewith paved paths. There is a steeper hill that adds an incline to access the gardens, so just be prepared for this before you enter the waterfall/wildflower/labyrinth area. In the summer the waterfall is running and the flowers have bloomed and it's the best time to see the gardens. It feels a bit like wandering around a secret garden and is usually very peaceful. Right now it's not as peaceful as there is a lot of construction going on around the gardens that is loud during the day. It's a great place to take photos. There is a map of everything at the entrance of the gardens/the trailhead. It's a short trail and loops back around to the entrance. A small creek runs through the trail. Parking is available at the trailhead/entrance of the gardens. There is a hedge maze, art sculpture, bridge, labyrinth, and wildflower area along the paved trail.

We walk from our downtown apartment up Miami and enter this fantastic oasis multiple times weekly…read more It is scenic and well cared for. A great retreat and good exercise location.

As a lifelong Hoosier, I've long said that I believe Indiana to be an underrated state in terms of…read morebeauty, nature, and opportunities for tourism. I'm a longtime fan of Elkhart County, a weaving together of nature, culture, simplicity, and quietly diverse populations. DeFries Gardens is a 13-acre site located within the River Preserve County Park. It's meant as a reminder of our human connection to the environment and was once a private homestead. In addition to perennial gardens and woodlands, DeFries Gardens hosts an 1880s Victorian-style home. This garden features several gardens year-round along with a four-season calendar garden. It has a cool, unique design that features the solstices and equinoxes. DeFries can be rented for weddings. DeFries is under the Elkhart County Parks umbrella and hours do vary more than are implied on the Yelp page. Hours are more seasonal. I've updated the website (the old link was dead) and I'd consult prior to visiting if you're coming from very far. There are definitely sections of DeFries that are not wheelchair friendly, though the park can overall be enjoyed by wheelchair users. The circle path, for example, is quite wheelchair friendly. Elkhart County has multiple gardens. You can find them in Middlebury and Shipshewana as well. I know there are others. Elkhart County is definitely worthy of a weekend getaway and a stop at DeFries Gardens is definitely worth your time. While it won't take your entire day, it'll be a restful, beautiful stop in a restful, beautiful county.

Beautiful and well cared for. The couple times I have been here I had the place to myself. Its one…read moreof the nicer access points on the River Preserve.

An amazing garden + forest + gift shop and bathrooms combined!!…read more Admission is $10/a person and you can return during the day if you leave and want to come back. There is plenty of parking, lots of lakes, cool plants, beautiful flowers, and so much nature!! The Sky Bridge was great and the gift shop has better bathrooms than outside. The Bonzai trees and Biomes were so cool!!

What a hidden gem... no pun intended. A MSU property in Tipton. 10 bucks per person to get in. Lots…read moreof trail walking. Nice conservatory with 3 zones of plant life. Multiple collections of plants an trees throughout the grounds. Did not make it into the visitor center. For us the best thing was the Skywalk suspension bridge. Very cool. Just enough up and down motion to intimidate some walkers. A wonderful experience. All the employees/volunteers we met were very friendly and had loads of information. We can't wait to go back next spring when the foliage is back. This is definitely a go to place in my book.

First time went here. A lot of very nice flowers. The staff and services are great. Will…read moredefinitely come back here again to see more nice flowers

Love this place. The plants were beautiful and it's a great place for portrait photography or…read moreweddings! It can also be a great place for families to learn about different plants or to take a stroll when it's cold outside. Great in the winter and the summer months.

A beautiful place for a stroll in nature! They have a great mix of curated gardens, prairie trails,…read moreand forest trails that wind around ponds, streams, and the St. Joseph river. It was a perfect way to spend a couple hours and it's only 10 minutes outside of Niles. They also have a small art gallery, gift shop, and cafe inside the main building. I grabbed a small pie to go! It was clear everyone who worked there really loved their job and they were excited to share it with visitors.

Definitely a hidden gem. My wife and I stayed in New Buffalo, MI. On a whim, we drove to Fernwood…read moreon a Sunday morning. It's not in a spot you'd ever expect considering a lot of farmland surrounding the area. The front desk was very helpful. Despite it being mid-October, the gardens were still very interesting; peaceful. It's very well kept. Take your time and enjoy the place. The small cafe had some tasty lunch sandwiches and soups. Sweets too!!

Tucked in off a street in Bristol, IN, is a place for serenity and a short walk through beautiful…read moregardens. The stone path leads to one of the 26 area heritage trail quilt gardens. Along the pathway, you will be shaded. These gardens include a huge ornamental lifelike mushroom with short sidekicks. Another photo worthy decoration is a wood carved cardinal next to a blue life sized Dutch windmill. The little park contains flowing water, a koi pond, scented roses, and multiple flora, as it winds up and down stairs on a stone pathway. Many artistic metal structures adorn the pathway. Definitely a place to visit!!!! I wish I lived closer.

For those who are fairly new in my world, you likely don't know about my long history as an…read moreactivist in the area of violence prevention with a strong emphasis on child abuse and sexual violence prevention. Since 1989, I've traveled over 6,000 miles in my wheelchair and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for a wide variety of organizations. I spend a lot of my wheeling time in Indiana - my home state and lifelong home. Among my favorite places to go in Indiana is Elkhart County, a Northeastern Indiana jewel filled with magnificent trails, a strong Amish community, a number of historic peace churches, and a vibe that just really clicks with me. My favorite trail in Indiana is the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail that winds its way through four Elkhart County communities and runs a bit over a marathon in terms of length. You get to visit a variety of cool small towns and will likely see some Amish folks on their bicycles. Quite honestly, it's awesome. If you stop in Middlebury, and I always do as I have multiple friends there, you can take a break along the trail here at the Krider World's Fair Gardens. For once, this is not small town braggadocio. Krider World's Fair Garden started out its life as a 1934 World's Fair exhibit and has been meticulously maintained ever since. I won't say it's "the" pride of Middlebury, but it's certainly one of the things of which the community is most proud. This is a botanical garden that weaves together gentle walking paths, a quilt garden exhibit, iconic structures, and facilities that include waterfalls, picnic tables, viewing benches, a gazebo, and a swing arbor. The park itself is really only about 2.4 acres. It's not a huge place, but it's a beautiful place. It can be rented for special events, weddings, and photography needs. If you're on the Pumpkinvine, then you'll run into this area as a perfect place to stop and rest and enjoy a beautiful part of Middlebury. The biggest city in Elkhart County is, in fact, Elkhart itself. But, a visit to Elkhart County isn't complete without visiting places like Goshen, Middlebury, and Shipshewana. Yes, I'll admit that it can get a bit touristy but it's a friendly community and a place I absolutely love to visit. This part of the state has about 2 dozen quilt gardens. A "quilt garden" means that they lay the quilts out in a pattern that changes each season. You can also see "Garden With a Cause" here, a garden devoted to charities and local organizations improving the lives of the people of Middlebury. They have a replica of the "Sunrise Bench," a bench that was included in the World's Fair Exhibit and there's a Statue of Hebe and a Water Wheel House among other attractions. If you're in Elkhart County, a stop at Krider World's Fair Garden just really needs to happen. I have some photos, but I'm still trying to find them from past tours. When I do, I'll post my own photos but you can definitely capture the garden's vibe in the available photos here.

We came here the other night to check out the Christmas lights before they closed down for the…read moreseason and it was absolutely wonderful! Our whole family went and we had so much fun walking around checking out the lights and getting pics together. I'd love to see them keep adding on every year, and also love that profits go towards charity as well. We will for sure be coming back in the summer to see the gardens.

This was a great morning stroll thru the gardens. You can…read morewalk a large walkway loop. Shade and sun, ponds and streams and flowers we've never seen. Wild geese walking around and flying overhead. Many memorials of supporters in ground tiles, benches and rock markers with bronze plaques. This is a former water well property with 2 each 2 milllion gallon tanks still on the property. In the kids area as a tribute to the water history are three sample valves set in place. A Butterfly Valve with a handwheel Actuator, a quarter turn ball valve and a Non Rising Stem Gate valve. All donated and installed on copper pipe by Nibco Valve. A superior learning display. Butterfly's, bees and a Cardinal. Quite Nice...