Сарасотаның ботаникалық бағы «Мари Селби»

Botanical garden in Sarasota, Florida

The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden located at 900 South Palm Avenue in Sarasota, Florida. The Gardens are located on the grounds of the former home of Marie and William Selby. The Gardens acquired the Historic Spanish Point campus on May 1, 2020. The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is a Smithsonian affiliate, and is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.

The Gardens feature preserved collections of epiphytes, feature more than 20,000 living plants including 5,500 orchids, 3,500 bromeliads and 1,600 other plants. The living collection is accompanied by an herbarium, with dried and preserved specimens of tropical flora; the world's second largest spirit collection consisting of vials of mostly orchid flowers in preservative fluids; and a library. More than 150 expeditions to the tropics and subtropics have contributed to these collections. Selby Gardens' botanists have discovered or described more than 2,000 plant species previously unknown to science. The Gardens maintain banyans, bamboo, live oaks, palms, mangroves, succulents, wildflowers, cycads, bromeliads, a butterfly garden, a fragrance garden, an edible garden, and a koi pond, on a site bordering Sarasota Bay. The interactive Ann Goldstein Children's Rainforest Garden is designed to help children develop a lifelong appreciation for rainforest plants.

The Selby Gardens Research Library began with a request made from William Cole's estate in 1973. Building the research library was part of the requirement when planning and building the Selby Botanical Gardens and began acquiring the book collection even before the Botanical Gardens opened to the public. It is considered to be one of the finest, most respected botanical libraries in the United States, with many scientists from all over the world coming to visit the numerous collections. Since the library opened in 1975, many people have contributed to the growing collection of botanical research, including collections from L. O. Williams, Dr. Helen Miller, and Dr. Bruce McAlpin. The library is primarily a research tool and reference for scientists and horticulturalists, along with amateur plant enthusiasts. A searchable catalogue of the collection is available online for viewing.

The Sanctuary is Selby’s member newsletter, which is published quarterly and evolved from the previous member newsletter, The Tropical Dispatch (selections from previous newsletters can be seen online). This newsletter typically includes a small section about what is currently in bloom at the botanical gardens, staffing updates, a primary article on the current display, upcoming events, and occasionally other articles of interest such as what is being researched or other projects that may be ongoing.

In 2018 the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation in Sarasota, Florida, announced that it had awarded a $2 million grant to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, in support of its greening focused master plan and sustainability going forward.