Tiptoe, amble, or meander through the 400,000 tulips that populate this favorite Dallas garden.

Imagine a painting so bright and emblazoned with flowers that you want to transplant yourself right into the middle of the colorful picture. You can do just that during March and April at the Dallas Arboretum. Vivid patches of tulips, cheery azaleas, and 66 acres of springtime beauty welcome you during the Dallas Blooms celebration, held this year March 10-April 15. Made up of 12 separate gardens, the arboretum puts on the largest outdoor spring flower festival in the Southwest. You may wonder which swath of color to follow first. Begin your journey on the Paseo des Flores, which is a quartermile-long walkway through the arboretum. Linking the main entrance to the Lay Ornamental Garden, this winding pathway takes you alongside trees, sculpted shrubs, and stunning tulips.

The 2.2-acre Lay Ornamental Garden, filled with Texas-style perennials and a new collection of 30 kinds of palms and tropical plants hardy to Dallas, makes another great stop. You’ll also find sculptures here that represent native Texas animals.

Other areas to explore include the Martha Brooks Camellia Garden, with 200 camellias. You’ll also love The Jonsson Color Garden, the Pecan Grove, Toad Corners, and The Trial Gardens, filled with 700 different kinds of plants tested year-round.

Fun Stuff To Do
Advertisement

This year’s festival theme is “Flower Power,” and you can depend on lots of entertainment revolving around that sock-it-to-me subject. Flower topiaries with a 1960s twist and concerts featuring the music from that era promise a lively atmosphere.

For the visitors who enjoy architecture, the DeGolyer Estate and the Camp House are the two homes whose grounds make up the arboretum. The 21,000-square-foot DeGolyer Estate was built in 1940. Don’t miss the inner courtyard, seven chimneys, large foyer, and original furnishings. The smaller Camp House, which was built in 1938 and houses the administrative offices, offers a terrific view of White Rock Lake.

No matter if you spend an hour or a day in this pretty-as-a-picture spot in Dallas, you’ll leave a little piece of yourself transplanted in this rich Texas soil.

-WANDA MCKINNEY

right: A staff of 25 gardeners keeps the pathways and plants of the Dallas Arboretum in tip-top shape for visitors.

below: Among the brilliant red tulips, don’t miss the lovely pink ones, their delicate edges ruffled and frayed as if by an expert seamstress.

above, right: The newest addition to the arboretum-A Woman’s Garden-features 4.3 acres filled with fountains, water features, and pathways bordered by beautiful flowers.

Dallas Arboretum: 8525 Garland Road, Dallas, TX 75218; www.dallas arboretum.org or (214) 515-6500.