Matthaei Botanical Gardens

Four long beds of perennials define this garden as a traditional English cottage garden, with long aisles of grassy lawn in between. More than 120 varieties of plants create repeating drifts of color that change from May to September. Each month of the blooming season brings new and beautiful changes combining pastel blues and pinks with white, yellow, lime, silvers and dark green. The most popular arrangement for this garden is a formal layout; chairs in the central aisle with the ceremony taking place in the semi circle of white perennials. The changing colors of the perennial beds will always blend and reflect any color scheme for fantastic photographs. The Perennial Garden takes a maximum of 150 guests including the wedding party.

The design of this garden exemplifies a traditional English Tudor style. A low yew hedge encloses the garden, the main paths are framed with boxwood, and the central bed of creeping thyme forms the woven Tudor knot design. Fragrant herbs will delight your guests and provide a beautiful foliage backdrop of diverse textures and colors for your photographs. Choose to seat your guests in the semi-circular wooden bench running around one end of the garden, also arranging chairs at each end of the focal paved areas, using the paths and symmetrical design for a dramatic entrance. The open space is flexible for many different combinations and takes up to a maximum of 50 guests, including the wedding party. Another way to utilize this Herb Knot Garden space, is to set up chairs facing the entrance to the Garden, all on the long grass mall area, and have the ceremony conducted in front of the constructed arbor.

Sunflowers, zinnias, marigolds, milkweed, poppies, purple coneflower, salvia, and many others blaze with color as they attract butterflies and hummingbirds to the blossoms. The central bed is planted with shrubs and accent boulders, with an array of flowering annuals encircling. The pavilion is the focal point of the garden and is flanked by two beehive-shaped stone fountain pools. It makes a perfect gathering area for your ceremony to take place. This large space will take up to 150 guests including the wedding party. The round design and radiating pathways will ensure all your guests have a great view of the ceremony from wherever they sit. Over 6,000 annuals are used to plant this garden, which is available for ceremonies that are scheduled beginning the last weekend in June through the end of September. The Gateway Garden is at its peak mid-July through early September. There is electricity at the bases of the two back pavilion pillars.

A natural bower offers a quiet setting for a seating area, ceremony or photographs. From this enclosed space the visitor moves out to an open lawn, where a stone stage creates the perfect venue for a wedding ceremony with a beautiful backdrop of majestic spruce trees. Crossing the water and passing between the reeds to a secret garden creates a sense of serenity and isolation. With views across wildflowers to the tranquil water beyond, Willow Pond Island will surround you and your guests with rugged natural beauty. The intimate Island space can accommodate 150 guests, including the wedding party, in a formal or informal arrangement. It is beautiful from late May through mid October. No power supply is available.

Packed with plants from around the world, the conservatory provides a warm, calming setting that’s great for cooler-weather events. Good for private parties. Note: conservatory available after 4:30 pm only, late September through mid-May approximately.