Adjacent to Lake Mirror and the Barnett Family Park is the spectacular Hollis Gardens in Lakeland.
Combining a visit to Hollis Gardens, Lake Mirror and the Barnett Family Park makes the one hour trip to Lakeland from downtown Orlando quite worthwhile. You can spend the day and, aside from refreshment if you don’t bring your own, you won’t have to spend a dime!
Not to mention that you can visit the greatest agglomeration of Frank Lloyd Wright structures in the nation not far from Hollis Gardens too, if you wish. See the Frank Lloyd Wright in Lakeland page on this site for more details about that.
According to professional gardener Doug Green Hollis Gardens are what is known as a formal garden. We had the pleasure of having Doug and his partner Mayo with us our last visit to the gardens.
Throughout the garden are beautiful topiary, flowers arrayed in geometrical beds with others banked against the luxurious hedges. Ornamental shrubbery abounds, garden grottoes, modern and classic sculpture is found throughout, and visitors can even find beds of herbs as well.
The designers of Hollis Gardens pack quite a lot into the 1.2 acre site.
The Hollis Gardens were donated to Lakeland by Clayton Hollis, a self-made Lakeland success story.
The garden grounds may be rented for weddings and wedding photography.
Hollis Gardens in Lakeland is open daily, has lots of free parking nearby, and a visit here can be bundled with stops at the Lake Mirror Promenade and Barnett Family Park both of which are beside Hollis Gardens in Lakeland.
All of this just about one hour down I-4 from downtown Orlando Florida.
