Gorgeous Montana Gardens That Will Make You Swoon

You might think that Montana doesn't have much need for gardens dedicated to public viewing because we're home to so much green space. But there's something to be said for having dedicated spaces to learning about and appreciating flower and plant species, not to mention the value of dedicated spaces for native plants or pollinator plants.

While Montana doesn't necessarily have a botanic garden the way Denver does, for example, it does have many micro gardens dedicated to specific flowers or plant types that are certainly worth a visit.

Big Sky Lavender Farms

Located in Florence, Montana, this lavender farm grows and processes lavender for use in common personal care products like sleep spray, body cream, and pure essential oil. You can take yoga classes in the garden, too. They don't have any classes available right now but keep an eye on their schedule for future offerings.

Reinhardt Peony Garden

In this video tour they say that there are 231 plants and 190 that will bloom in 2023. If you don't have the chance to visit in person, this is video provides a wonderful tour of the garden.

Memorial Rose Garden

Like botanic gardens in other large cities, the Memorial Rose Garden is right in the middle of Missoula on Brooks Street. As the name implies it's a remembrance garden originally dedicated to those who died in World War II. Additional memorials were added over time.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, located in the northeast corner of the park, was dedicated in 1989. The Korean War Monument, in the northwest corner, was dedicated in 1997. The Policemen’s Memorial was dedicated in 2000 and is located to the southwest. Veterans of America's conflicts in Grenada, the Persian Gulf, Panama and Korea, as well as urban firefighters, are also honored with memorials in the park. - City of Missoula  

State of Montana Arboretum

You may not even know you’re visiting this garden, or rather, this “living museum.” That’s because it’s integrated into the campus at the University of Montana. Across campus you’ll find yourself walking through eight different forest regions, each with unique features.  

Montana Native Botanic Garden

And while you’re on campus, take a walk past the Natural Sciences Buidling where the Native Plant Garden has been maintained since 1967.  

International Larix Arboretum

If you like your gardens tall, consider visiting an experimental forest like the one in Hungry Horse. The Coram Experimental Forest has dedicated acreage for an arboretum that is used to study Larch, a deciduous conifer.  

Native Plant Garden at Fort Missoula

What’s nice about this garden is that it’s also a learning space and is welcoming for groups or students. It's also open for three seasons.  

Tina and Daughters Iris Garden

What started with 300 iris varieties has grown to over 2,000 varieties and a wonderful small business in Billings business for Tina and her daughters. Their gardens are also free.

DanWalt Gardens

A beautiful venue for weddings and events, the garden is beautifully landscaped and a little bit under the radar. They consider themselves, "Billings' Best Kep Secret."