Wild Gardens of Acadia
Sieur de Monts Spring of
Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor
BHGC members cultivate and maintain the Wild Gardens of Acadia alongside Friends of Acadia National Park volunteers.
BHGC Liaison: Roberta Sprague
Conservation and Education
The Wild Gardens of Acadia at Sieur de Monts Spring was a project initiated in the 1960s by Betty Thorndike, Janet TenBroeck and Betty Owens, all members of the Bar Harbor Garden Club, at the suggestion of the Superintendent of Acadia National Park.
The site of the gardens had been burned in the 1947 fire, and the park wanted to remove the damaged trees. It was a good location to plant a garden where native flora could be preserved and propagated. Thus the Wild Gardens of Acadia came into existence as a place where visitors could identify native flora.
The Wild Gardens of Acadia are open seasonally from spring through late October and have become a popular destination and valuable resource for both local residents and visitors from across the globe. The Gardens highlight 13 distinct plant communities that are found within Acadia National Park.
July 1970, Illustrated by Ruth Soper, BHGC Member
The Wild Gardens Early History
For the Bar Harbor Garden Club’s contribution to the 2016 Centennial Celebration of Acadia National Park, the Garden Club conducted interviews with Club and community members who had been involved in the early development of the Wild Gardens of Acadia.
The Bar Harbor Garden Club, an approved Acadia Centennial Partner, is pleased to now offer the “Wild Gardens Memories“, a selection of excerpts from interviews with individuals who shared their love and recollections of the Wild Gardens of Acadia.
Learn more about the Wild Gardens of Acadia
Wild Gardens of Acadia News & Events
Wild Gardens of Acadia
1:00 PM, Thursday, December 9, 2021 Wild Gardens of Acadia — Violets, Volunteers, and Vaccinium — A Virtual Presentation — The Bar Harbor Garden Club is pleased to present “Violets, Volunteers, and Vaccinium at the Wild Gardens of Acadia” with Helen Koch, volunteer...