Bellingrath Gardens and Home

 Yesterday, I had the privilege of visiting Bellingrath Gardens and Home. It is located in Theodore, Alabama, on the southwest side of Mobile Bay (near Mobile, AL). It is just north of Dauphin Island. It is open everyday except Christmas Day from 8:00 until 5:00. I arrived about 9:00 in the morning as it does get hot early in the morning from now until September.

I had hoped to visit in early spring when the azaleas were in bloom, but decided that I would go in May when I had the opportunity. This year, everything bloomed early and the blooming season was shortened. I hope to go back in March and also in late November when the cascading mums and Christmas lights will be up.

I also took the tour of the home, though photos are not allowed inside.  The gift shop does have a little booklet for $3 that includes photos of the home, but it looks a little dated (1998) but is worth the price. There is a river cruise that is available, but I chose not to take that. I had plenty to look at with just the gardens.

Below is a shot of the rose garden and Conservatory. The roses were just beautiful and the plants in the green house were very lush and happy!

 The couple that built this house bought the property first as a fish camp. Mr Bellingrath owned the bottling company in Mobile that bottle Coca-Cola. They hired a professional to help them plan the gardens, making use of things such as this Cartesian well that became a fountain.

 In the building below, which had been a guest house, there is a collection of porcelain artwork displayed as well as a short film about the history of the property to watch.

 There is also a small chapel.

 The couple traveled abroad and brought home ideas for their estate, such as this Grotto.

 The Grotto ends in a fountain down on the waterfront, over which the house looks. The views from inside are beautiful!

 Also on the property is a Bayou Boardwalk. I did not see any birds or wildlife while out there, but it was a nice place to see the plant life of a bayou. The only wildlife I found were mosquitoes which like to find me!

 The Rockery is another lovely area, a hillside rock garden.

 The Asian American Garden had very interesting architecture and was beautiful but was the one area of the garden that I thought could use a little more care.

 The fountain in the rose garden was added in 2010.

 The Great Lawn was bordered with flowers in a flower bed that is over 400 feet long and requires 4,000 plants each season!

 The Mermaid Fountain is near the Home.

 The hydrangeas were so beautiful and varied in types, some of which I had never seen.

There is a phone number you can call on your cell phone to hear more information about stops along the trail, which was very interesting. The workers in the gift shop and Magnolia Cafe were most friendly.

I really enjoyed this visit and like I said previously, hope to return in different seasons!