Garden Entrance
The Highline Botanical Garden was opened to the public in 2003. The Foundation changed the Garden's name to honor the relationship with the City of SeaTac to the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden in 2005. That relationship has grown from the original agreement over the years. The Director of Parks Maintenance is a Board member of the Foundation and the City has provided funding for many significant capital projects in the Garden, including the move of the Seike Japanese Garden from the Des Moines Nursery to the Botanical Garden.Funding for the Highline Botanical Garden Foundation comes from a variety of sources. These include local foundations, corporations, Friends of the Garden, 4 Culture, the West Seattle Garden Tour and the City of SeaTac.
Elda Behm's Paradise Garden
Over 200 local volunteers, the Port of Seattle, and the City of SeaTac worked together at the end of 1999 and into the spring of 2000. They moved plants including trees and shrubs from Elda’s home to a holding area. The ground and soil were prepared to receive the plants. The Port used cranes and trucks, at its own cost, to relocate large conifer trees and other trees. It also moved the cedar root beside the pond.Once a magnificent private garden (Learn more), Elda’s garden plays on shade, sunlight and water. The peaceful sound of the waterfalls and the birds they attract makes you forget how close this garden is to the airport. Elda’s garden features a winding, ADA accessible path through a one-acre garden, past flowing streams, a still pond, and a rustic pergola. As you wander beneath the dappled light of the alder and madrona that predate the garden, you will find a wonderful variety of shade plants. This includes Elda’s signature, the striking black trillium. From spring ephemerals through autumn, enjoy a seemingly endless kaleidoscope of beautiful blooming perennials; check out our Instagram account to see what’s flowering right now. The water feature is centered around a huge cedar root and a massive glacial erratic found during the pond’s excavation. Some folks think the cedar root looks like a dragon, others a horse. What do you see? The Paradise Garden also contains a remarkable collection of specimen trees and evergreen shrubs that provide structure and beauty even in the gloomy months of winter before the early hellebores bloom. A visit, on any day of the year, will inspire and delight.
Iris Garden
The Iris garden is supported by the King County Iris Society which is an activegroup of gardeners growing many types of irises. The collection here highlights the various types of iris that grow in our area, including newer and older varieties. They bloom from late April through June.
Daylily Garden
The Puget Sound Daylily Club, a member of the American Daylily Society Region 8, provides the public with a collection of daylilies that demonstrate their beauty, versatility, longevity and easy maintenance.The display bed invites garden guests to enjoy, delight in and explore the daylily's diversity in form, height, and color. These beauties are not just your grandmother's yellow daylily. The garden is in bloom from mid-June to July.For more information about the club https://daylilies.org or contact Kathryn Sheldon kayst4me@hotmail.com or Caroline Zebroski caroline.zebroski@yahoo.com
Rose Garden
The Seattle Rose Society is a non-profit organization founded in Seattle, Washington in 1913. We promote rose interest through membership meetings, a monthly newsletter, The Rose Petals, our annual rose show, educational programs, and other community activities. We began our stewardship of the rose garden at the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden in 2004. The garden will bloom from May into November.Information on rose growing and society activities can be found at www.seattlerosesociety.com
Event Lawn
This beautiful event lawn is located next to the rose garden. This lawn is a perfect spot for weddings, parties, and other celebrations.The event lawn is a sprawling green space that is meticulously maintained and surrounded by rose covered columns. It's a tranquil oasis in the midst of the bustling city, with a serene atmosphere that will make your special day even more memorable.To learn more about reserving this space for your celebration, you can contact our events coordinator at events@highlinegarden.org. They will be happy to provide you with all the information you need and help you plan your dream event. So don't hesitate to reach out and book your special occasion at the beautiful event lawn at Highline Garden!
Seiki Japanese Garden
The Seike family learned in 2004 that the Port of Seattle wanted to purchase the nursery. Eventually, the nursery structures, the home, and Japanese Garden on the property would be demolished. Toll, the middle Seike son who died in World War II in France, was memorialized with the miniature waterfall and mountain garden for the 1962 World's Fair. During World War II, the Seikes themselves were interned. When they returned to their nursery home, everything flourished as it had when they had left it. The garden was saved by SeaTac City Manager Craig Ward in 2005. The City Council and other local officials, including State Rep. Bob Hasegawa of Renton, worked together to gain Capital Grant funding. The Seike Garden was moved from the Nursery to the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden. It was dedicated in 2006.Seike garden, tucked away in the east corner of the property, is worth discovering and visiting throughout the year. The gravel path winds down the hill, past viewing spots and benches, to the base of this pond-and-mountain garden. By respecting fenced areas, you can help control soil erosion. The stream and waterfall towering above the 1500-square-foot pond are crossed by many bridges, creating a sense of space and travel with scenic points tucked into every level. Explore the lower pond to find the stones that form a giant turtle. Shinichi Seike collected many of the plants, including a 100-year-old laceleaf Japanese maple. Saplings of red and black pine have been hand-pruned to magnificent trees.Des Moines Way Nursery in SeaTac used to house this beautiful garden. In danger of being sold due to SeaTac Airport expansion, the project to save the garden is believed to be the largest relocation of a Japanese garden in the US. Injustice, displacement, and courage were the stories of the Seike family. King County Library System offers a DVD telling the story of Seike Japanese Garden (DVD-2008, DVD 712.509797).The garden offers peace and contemplation. As a historical feature, it faithfully recreates designer Shintaro Okada's vision.
Community Garden
City of SeaTac's community garden is located in North SeaTac Park adjacent to the botanical and Japanese gardens. The community garden has small garden plots available to SeaTac residents for rent (March 1-November 30). Plants grown on the rented plots are for personal use, donations or to share with others.EligibilityPlot holder must be at least 18 years of age.City of SeaTac residents have priority in receiving a plot. Non-residents may apply and be assigned a plot if available. Residency will be confirmed by a valid State of Washington driver's license or utility bill.A maximum of 2 plots can be assigned to a household if all other eligible gardeners have received a plot.Contact the SeaTac Community Center at 206.973.4680 for more information.
Fushia Garden
Here you will find the Fuchsia Garden, which is contributed by the WesternSpecies and Puget Sound Fuchsia Societies. Most people will recognize this plant from those beautiful hanging summer baskets. While they are popular in hanging baskets, they also make great groundcover and can even grow to be an 8 foot tall shrub. This garden is to educate visitors on which species grow best in the PNW as well as to display their various colors and shapes. This plant is best viewed in late spring through fall, with their full bloom during the summer.
Woodland Pergola
Pergola and Water Feature: This garden plays on the concepts of shade, sunlight, andwater. You’ll often forget how close we are to the airport until a plane flies overhead. FromSpring through Autumn you can enjoy the blooming perennials and Elda’s signature plant, theblack trillium. The water feature is centered around a huge cedar root and massive glacialerratic that was found during the pond’s creation. Anytime of the year this garden is lush with itstrees and shrubs which make it a great place to visit even in the gloomiest months.
Woodland Shade Garden
Next to the Paradise Garden, exists the Woodland Shade Garden which encompasses over10,000 square feet of property. With the assistance of a group of Highline High School Seniorsthe garden was added in the early 2000s. To the East of this area are future plans of a pondrestoration project and amphitheater.
Garden Exit
Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden is a growing and changing garden. With 6 acres of undeveloped property in our footprint, we have plans for some exciting upcoming gardens, and space to build them. With your help, we can continue to create gardens that tell our community's stories. In 2018, the City of SeaTac in partnership with the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden Foundation contracted with Site Workshop, best known for its development of the Amazon Spheres in Seattle, to complete a master plan. They worked in a collaborative process including community engagement, site design, concept development, presentation drawings and conversations. This has resulted in an imaginative master plan for future expansions. Your experience today is contributing to the park and we thank you very much for coming and hope you leave here with a better understanding of thearea and its history.
