Our Gardens

Visiting the USU Botanical Center demonstration gardens, ponds and arboretum is free. They are open 7 days a week from sunrise to sunset.

Produce from our gardens is donated to various organizations in Davis County to help feed those who are food insecure and in need of assistance. Please do not harvest food to take home

Edible Demonstration Garden

The goal of this garden is to provide educational opportunities for the public through hands-on demonstrations, exhibits and gardening experiences. The focus of the garden is to showcase edible crops best suited for Northern Utah.

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Garden View Pavilion

The pavilion serves as a community gathering place. It provides access to the ponds, trails and natural areas. It also serves as a staging area for educational activities and events.

Kaysville Education Center Gardens

Our gardens located around the Kaysville Education Center feature perennials, grasses and trees suitable for the Intermountain West. Many water-wise landscape plants and Utah natives are featured.

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Kaysville Ponds and Nature Trails

The USU Botanical Center features a much-loved urban fishery and wetland area that supports birds and other wildlife. The ponds are surrounded by nature trails and boardwalks, making it a great place to relax, exercise and recreate.

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Parkstrip Redesign Demo Garden

This garden was installed in May 2020. It showcases and compares water usage between eight different perennial planting designs.

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Rasmussen Teaching Garden

The H. Paul and Mary Jane Rasmussen Teaching Garden is an inviting example of combining color, texture, and water conservation in the garden. You will find this garden along 50 West, directly north of the Stokes Iris Garden. Visitors are always welcome to walk the paths, seek out a new water-wise perennial for their own landscape, and enjoy the shade of a pergola.

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Stokes Ornamental Grass & Iris Garden

The Stokes Ornamental Grass & Iris Garden was established in 2011 through a generous gift from Deloris Stokes and his children to honor the memory of Eleda Vee Smith Stokes. It features a large collection of irises, crabapples, and ornamental grasses.

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Urban Farm Demonstration Garden

The Urban Farm Demonstration garden features a cut flower garden, edibles, and a compost area. It is designed to inspire and demonstrate how much yield can come from a small urban plot.

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Utah House Gardens

A water-wise landscape surrounds the Utah House with the intent to demonstrate to homeowners how to create a colorful landscape while significantly reducing water use.

The Utah House is now the premier Davis County 4-H Event Center and is no longer open to the public for tours or events.

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William A. Varga Arboretum

The Varga Arboretum showcases 400+ different species of trees and shrubs that are well-suited to Utah’s arid, mountain valleys.

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Pollinator Garden

The pollinator garden was installed in 2021. This garden has been designed using pollinator-friendly flowering perennials and is protected from pesticides to provide valuable habitat for bees and other pollinators. It features planters made from upcycled bee boxes as well as a large metal butterfly sculpture.

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Wetland Discovery Point

The Wetland Discovery Point is a certified LEED Platinum building utilized for youth programs, summer camps, and field trips. We have suspended all private event rentals. Please check our website in the future for reservation updates.

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