San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden

San Luis Obispo, United States

4

Open now

5 reviews

Accepts Credit Cards

Contacts

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Telephone:
+1 805-541-1400
Website:
www.slobg.org
Address:
3450 Dairy Creek Rd, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93405
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:
2 mi12,14
Categories:
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Bussiness info

Accepts Credit Cards
Yes
Accepts Apple Pay
No
Parking
Private Lot
Bike Parking
No
Wheelchair Accessible
Yes
Good for Kids
Yes
Dogs Allowed
Yes

Today

Today 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Open now
Local time (San Luis Obispo) 12:31 PM Wednesday, July 2, 2025

Business hours

Monday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Thursday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Friday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Saturday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Sunday 9:00 am – 7:30 pm

Description

Specialties

The San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden is the Gem of the Morros, a one of a kind garden dedicated to honoring and preserving our connection with nature.

We’re passionate about connecting people with the plants that have shaped human endeavors and cultures for generations. Our Preview Garden is a great place to see the exquisite plant life of the five major mediterranean climate zones while our nursery sells these same beautiful, drought tolerant plants. The San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden and its facilities are dedicated to the education, research, and celebration of horticulture, and sustainability is our highest priority. The Oak Glen Pavilion combines art and sustainability, a perfect rental space to host your special events among the gorgeous botanical scenery!

The current gardens and facilities cover six of the 150 acres that will be developed in years to come. Our award-​winning design features plans for 50 miles of paved trails, cafes, a 3,000 seat amphitheater, and more gardens! We are privately funded and rely entirely on the generosity of our visitors, donors, and members. Become a member today to receive benefits like 10% off all plants in our nursery! Perfect for our annual Fall plant sale on October 4.

Our magnificent San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden is open during daylight hours, ADA compliant, and a unique attraction for kids and adults alike. We invite you to join us in celebrating the incredible diversity of plant life at our truly one of a kind garden!

History

Established in 1991.

The first seeds for the Garden were planted in 1989, with the support of San Luis Obispo County Parks Department. Incorporated in 1991, a grassroots group, the Friends of San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, began searching for an ideal site.

El Chorro Regional Park was chosen and a 90-​year renewable lease agreement was signed with San Luis Obispo County in 1993 for 150 acres. With grants of financial assistance a nationally-​known landscape design studio was hired to create a master plan for the 150 acres. In the years since, we’ve completed work on the Preview Garden with the help of Cal Poly students, a full-​scale greenhouse and nursery, the artfully designed Oak Glen Pavilion, hiking trails, and our Children’s Garden.

Today we continue to grow and develop our 150 acres using sustainable building practices that honor the San Luis Obispo climate. We look forward to educating our visitors and celebrating plant life for many years to come!

Meet the Manager

Debbie H.

Manager

As Friends of the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, we are passionate about the gifts that plants provide us from food and shelter to clothing and medicine. Individually, we are doctors, professors, and investors, but together we are a group helping to educate our visitors through art, storytelling, and demonstrations. As a 501©(3) non-​profit organization, we rely on the generous gifts of donors as well as our incredibly membership community. We thank you for your continued support in helping make the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden a truly world-​class facility!

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Vicinity

Browse nearby places:
880
ft
El Chorro Regional Park
Dairy Creek Rd
1
mi
Camp San Luis Obispo
10 Sonoma Blvd
1
mi
Cuesta College
1504 Colusa Ave
1
mi
Cuesta College Community Programs
Cuesta College Rd
1
mi
Dairy Creek Golf Course
2990 Dairy Creek Rd Unit A
1
mi
Fairways At Dairy Creek
2990 Dairy Creek Rd

5 reviews of San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden

No registration required
Place rating: 2
West Seattle, Seattle, WA
Disappointing! Clearly more aspirational than of content. Although what very small garden they have is nice but the limited portion of their discovery walk that is finished is mostly weeds (and not of the intentional native plant variety). Signage referred to the «future garden» with little info on current plants. They started with putting all their money into a big building that’s closed and locked up on weekends. But there are restrooms at a nearby ball field. There is a small fee on Saturdays, at least.
Place rating: 5
Mission Viejo, CA
At this time the gardens are small, with plans to expand. If you go into it knowing its small, you will appreciate it more. The flowers and plants are gorgeous. I’d recommend the stop if you are in the area.
Place rating: 5
East Bay
This has got o be the sweetest botanical garden I’ve ever been to.
Although it’s been around for 25 years we never knew it existed despite our many trips through SLO.
Although it is small it is well tended, organized and signed. You can really feel the love that the staff and volunteers put into this garden.
We especially loved the Children’s Garden which had a sandbox, adobe oven, greenhouse and a Wishing Tree which had lots of wishes written on pieces of paper tied to the branches. The wishes ranged from wanting to marry Justin Bieber, wishing their friend would be cured of cancer, wishing to be a little taller, wanting to be changed into a wolf, wishing for world peace and many other wishes.
There was also an area for peace and contemplatio
I left the garden feeling a sense of warmth and happiness. It is always so wonderful to know that the simplest thing like a garden can evoke such happiness.
Place rating: 4
Garden Grove, CA
I didn’t know how much to expect when we first got out of the car. It’s a work in progress basically. There was only one other couple there with their dog and this is on a Sunday afternoon. No one else. We didn’t have to pay anything. You can easily walk around the place in 30min. A nice quiet place for a picnic. I would like to come back after it gets expanded.
Place rating: 4
Garden Grove, CA
While driving north on HWY 1 I saw a big sign saying «BOTANICAL GARDEN NEXT EXIT». Since I never noticed the sign before my wife and I decided to check it out. It’s in a state park so you have to pay $ 3 to get into the park.
I really wish the sign and or the guard shack stated «Botanical Gardens… coming soon» because as of today it’s a work in progress. Currently it’s only 2 acres but the projected plan is 150 acres with 50 miles of hiking trails. There will be trams taking people to different parts of the park, different themed zones (Dessert, woods, etc) kind of like the Huntington Library in Pasadena. At first I was pissed for wasting $ 3 on such a tiny botanical garden but then I I was excited about their future vision and was happy to donate $ 3 towards it. Right now it’s a tiny little stroll thru beautiful California native plants and it was a great way to unwind after 3+ hours on the freeway. The staff in the visitor center was extremely friendly. I also liked how local artists sculptures were placed around the garden and they had a building with local artwork. There was even a children’s garden where the local school teaches kids about gardening.
I probably wouldn’t go again until it’s developed more and the good thing is you can see the work already started with the hillsides being prepped for planting. Still… I’m glad I went and can’t wait to check it out again in a few years.