BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Botanical Garden has officially opened the first completed spaces of its 10-acre expansion, marking the largest physical transformation in the Garden’s history.
The expansion increases the Garden’s footprint from 15 to 25 acres and adds new spaces designed for community events, education, accessibility, and connection with nature.
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The $8 million project includes a new Parking Garden, an Event Lawn and the Borbonus Family Educational Arboretum. More than 3,000 plants have been added as part of the project, with additional plantings planned in the coming seasons.
“This is an $8 million investment into the garden and an $8 million project,” Idaho Botanical Garden Executive Director Erin Anderson said. “Within this project, we've added a new parking garden, an event lawn that's behind me here, an arboretum education space. We've added over 3000 plants, and we're just getting started.”
The new Event Lawn will provide space for concerts, cultural events, educational programs and other community gatherings.
The expansion also creates a new primary entrance to the Garden, along with new pathways and accessible spaces.
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Anderson said the Garden expects to continue adding to the new spaces throughout 2026 and 2027.
“The next phase of the expansion project is going to be our therapeutic garden,” Anderson said.
The nearly 1-acre therapeutic garden will be designed for wellness-focused programming serving groups including children and adults with disabilities, veterans and seniors.
For longtime volunteers like Morgan Smith, the expansion is another way the Garden can serve as a gathering place for the Treasure Valley.
“I think first and foremost, just the beauty of it and the enhancement of the area to have such a large area be turned into something so pretty,” Smith said.
Smith said the Garden provides an opportunity for people to enjoy the outdoors, attend events and connect with others.
“Open space, beauty, a destination where you can come and relax and just kind of kick back and enjoy yourself,” Smith said.
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The Garden plans to host additional free and paid activities in the new expansion throughout the fall and winter, including Winter Garden Glow.
The expansion is part of a larger long-term vision for the Idaho Botanical Garden. Plans include a Visitor, Event & Education Center, Culinary Garden, Scholar Garden, and a permanent home for the Boise Farmers Market.
The Boise Farmers Market is expected to move to the property next to the Idaho Botanical Garden expansion in November.
The Idaho Botanical Garden welcomes more than 140,000 visitors each year.
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