Parks & Recreation Annual Report FY 17/18 | Page 22

Port St. Lucie
Botanical Gardens
Managed and operated by the Friends of Botanical Gardens, Inc.
The Botanical Gardens is a
beautiful facility located on
the west side of Westmoreland
Boulevard and is situated on 20
acres of land. This site includes a
lake with a fountain, convenient
paved paths, beautiful gardens,
a pavilion, a gift shop, an array
of spaces both inside and out for
weddings, meetings, receptions,
and a host of other events. The
Gardens’ wetlands and mangroves
sit on the banks of the beautiful
North Fork of the St. Lucie River,
an aquatic preserve.
19
The Westmoreland Tract, on
which the Botanical Gardens
occupies about one-third of the
property, is comprised of six
natural communities that are
in excellent condition: Tidal
(Mangrove) Swamp, Scrub,
Scrubby Flatwoods, Bay-Gall and
wet flatwoods, and Floodplain
Marsh. The 12.87 acres south
of the Gardens access road will
be maintained as undisturbed
Florida wetlands, subject only to
the removal of exotics.
A big thanks to the Friends of
Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens,
Inc., for continuing to provide
excellent management of this
facility. The Friends is a non-profit
organization that was founded to
help support the daily operations
of the Botanical Gardens. Due
to the Friends and their many
volunteers, the Botanical Gardens
continues to thrive and grow
within our community.