The Gardens are Wild

When people think of Inniswood Metro Gardens, flowers immediately come to mind. And flowers should.  Afterall, Innsiwood is a Metro Garden not a Metro Park,  Out of the total of 121 acres, about 40 of that is cultivated garden and mowed lawn.  And the gardens are spectacular.  A visit to Inniswood will not disappoint.  Actually, multiple visits to Innsiwood will not disappoint, as the gardens change a minimum of three times a year.  Tulips and daffodils in the Spring, seasonal displays in the Summer and mums in the Fall.  But you don't have to wait for the seasons to change, the gardens change constantly, new plants blooming as others begin to fade away, about every two weeks.

I spent 6.5 years working at Inniswood, and one thing that always amazes me is the amount of wildlife that can be seen at Inniswood, and how close you can get to it.  There were breeding pair of Cooper's hawks, red shoulder hawks, pileated woodpeckers, barred owls, and humming birds, tree swallows and bluebirds, all within decent camera range.  We have seen foxes, coyotes, muskrat, and mink.  Snapping turtles and painted turtles, spring peepers, american toads and tree frogs.  Don't forget the snakes; northern water snakes and  black rat snakes are common.  Do you like butterflies and insects?  They like Inniswood too.  We Rangers are pretty lucky to see such cool things while we are at work.

Northern Water Snake in the Sisters'
Garden Wetland

Visitors looking at a barred owl
in the Rock Garden

 

Brown legged grass carrying wasp
in the Cutting Garden

                               

Mink carrying a cotton tail rabbit near
the Circle Garden