Growing the Future of the Garden

Community Grows Here: Help Us Build a More Accessible, Sustainable, and Inspiring Garden

About the Expansion

At the Idaho Botanical Garden, we believe in cultivating beauty, accessibility, and connection. With your support, we’re expanding our impact. We are creating new garden spaces that foster restorative wellness, enhance education, and offer gathering places for all.

A 10-acre expansion featuring new education and gathering spaces, an accessible event lawn, an arboretum, and added infrastructure to assist with future expansion milestones

A redesigned parking area to better serve our guests

A permanent home for the Boise Farmers Market supporting local farmers and providing access to fresh, local and healthy produce

Future milestones will include a new Visitor and Education Center to welcome and inspire generations

Parking Lot Garden

Visitor & Event Center/Education Classrooms

Event Lawn supported by Regence BlueShield of Idaho

Borbonus Family Arboretum Educational Space

Horticulture Therapy Garden

Teaching Vegetable Garden

Scholar Garden

Why It Matters

This project is essential to advancing our mission to connect people, plants, and nature. Every hands-on learning experience, accessible pathway, and peaceful moment in the Garden depends on it. This expansion is urgently needed to strengthen food security through our partnerships with Boise Farmers Market and City of Good, deliver horticultural therapy to at-risk populations, provide vital job training for community members including women reentering society through supporting work programs, and create more opportunities for education and gathering for people of all ages, circumstances, and abilities. It is all rooted in our commitment to serve and grow with our community.

Support

Our Mission: Connecting People, Plants, and Nature

The Idaho Botanical Garden is more than a beautiful space. It’s a living expression of our commitment to connect people with the natural world and each other.

Every garden bed, every pathway, and every program are designed to:

Inspire wonder and discovery through plants
Foster lifelong learning and environmental stewardship
Offer peaceful refuge and opportunities for restorative wellness
Create shared experiences that strengthen community bonds

As we grow, we stay grounded in this mission. The expansion ensures that even more people can find meaning, connection, and renewal in the Garden.

Looking Ahead: Why Your Support Still Matters

Reaching this first milestone is just the beginning. The next chapter of our expansion brings even more opportunities to serve the community in meaningful, lasting ways. Among them is the future home of the Boise Farmers Market — a vibrant, year-round destination that will expand food access, support local growers, and create stronger connections between our urban and agricultural communities.

We’ll also cultivate a dedicated horticulture therapy garden designed to support healing, growth, and wellness. Grounded in evidence-based practice, horticulture therapy has been shown to reduce stress, improve mental health, and foster a sense of purpose and connection. This space will strengthen our partnerships with local care providers and offer accessible, hands-on experiences to those facing trauma, isolation, or recovery.

These are just two examples of what your continued support makes possible. With every gift, we move closer to creating a Garden that gives back in deeper, more inclusive ways — one that reflects the needs and hopes of the community it serves.

Key Milestones

September 2025: Groundbreaking

We begin construction on the first milestone of our expansion. The work includes new gardens, updated infrastructure, a new parking area, and an accessible event lawn. This is where Community Grows Here takes root.

Fall 2025 to Spring 2026: Construction in Progress

Construction will reshape key areas of the Garden including the new arboretum and visitor infrastructure. The Garden will remain open, with adjusted access and on-site support to guide your visit.

Summer 2026: Preview Tours & Community Celebration

Experience the progress first-hand through guided preview tours and community gatherings that celebrate your role in helping the Garden grow.

Beyond 2026: Continuing the Vision

Fundraising continues as we move toward future milestones, together, we are building something lasting including the Visitor and Education Center, a Horticulture Therapy Garden and a permanent home for the Boise Farmers Market.

We're Making Progress

How You Can Help

Donate to Grow with Us

Support this community-driven effort with a gift of any size. Monthly giving, and naming opportunities are all available.

Garden Expansion	GARDEN CHAMPION $250-$999	ROOTS OF GENEROSITY $1000+	CULTIVATORS OF CHANGE $5000+
Your name featured here as a donor cultivating the future
Invitation to our exclusive Winter Garden aGlow Preview Night
Invitation to a premier Garden Party Campaign Celebration in Summer 2026
Community Grows Here Decal
Invitation to an exclusive concert in the Garden Fall 2026 (artist TBD)
Your name featured onsite in the new space as a Community Grows Here donor (gifts given by May 1, 2026; sign posted through 2027)
Option for unique naming recognition in the new space. These naming recognition opportunities are limited.			Click here to see naming opportunities
Donate now!	Contribue Now for Garden Champion	Contribue Now for Roots of Generosity	Contribue Now for Cultivators of Change

We're Making Progress

Leadership Cabinet

Gerhard Borbonus
Christopher & Elise Coyle
Dixie & Allen Dykman
Suzanne & Brooklin Gore
Linda Haley
Stephanie Nicholas
Claire Rosston
Adrienne Swain Smith
Cecil Wilcomb

Be Part of the Story

Join our campaign as a volunteer ambassador

Host a small fundraiser with friends and neighbors

Share your Garden story on social media using #CommunityGrowsHere

Every gift helps grow a more inclusive Garden for all.

Support The Garden Expansion

Thank You to Our Donors

Legacy Gardeners

Borbonus Family Foundation
Regence BlueShield of Idaho

Garden Champions

Beth Bartlett
Marcia Lewis Chatalas
Bill and Debbie Clark
Judy and Ron Price
Kathleen Li

Roots of Generosity

Kissler Family Foundation
Ellen and Mike Hibbs-McKinney
Allen-Heath Memorial Foundation
Suzanne Allen
Laurie and Tom Corrick
DJ and Danielle George
The Jeffry Stoddard Family Charitable Fund
Tom Kress and Rose Van Evera-Kress
Bob and Lindy Neufeld
Family of Lois and Bob Hibbs
Rita Sturiale
Alan and Royanne Minskoff
Sharon and Mike Burke
Jill Carissimi
Jane Chandler
Carolyn Chandler
Tom and Eve Chandler
Heidi and Steve Ehle
Suzanne and Brooklin Gore
Idaho Power Company
Stephanie and John Nicolas
Republic Services
Andrea and Caleb Roope
Clay and Marcene Taylor
Karen and Jim Whittaker
Anonymous
Erin Anderson
Conrad, Melissa, Jameson, and Gavin Ball
Bates Family Foundaton
Doug and Meredith Carnahan
Moya and Clint Dolsby
Jacqueline Groves and David Morledge
Linda and Charles Haley
In Memory of Jane Carpenter
Zeke and AnnMarie Johnson
Lois Lenzi
Lew and Sara Manglos
Debra Moorman and Pete Muskat
Andrea and Rod Morris
Judith and Christian Oakley
Ward and Kathy Parkinson
Jennifer and Scott Parks
Wendy and Wayne Rancourt
Jim and Shaunalee Shipman
Susan and Michael Smith
Linda Laguna and Justin Clark
Jim Smith and Steve Martin
Diana Malatesta Parker and Tom Parker
Karen and Peter Brine
Courtney Frost
Tabatha and Marshall Simmonds
Summer Winds Garden Center
Frank and Marion Benzing
Will and Taylor Fletcher
Landon and Jacinth Reese
Adrienne and Christopher Smith
Jennifer Banks
Candice Dawson
Jane and Bill Lloyd
Idaho Botanical Garden Employees
Jason and Vanessa Fry
Wilma Gnemi
Rourke O'Brien and Sayoko Kuwahara
Jed Splittgerber

Cultivators of Change

Gladys & Roland Harriman Foundation
Jim and Julie Matheson
In Memory of Carol Brassey
J.R. Simplot Company Foundation
Boise Cascade Company
Van Auker Family
Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation, Inc.
St. Luke's Health Systems
Sharon Christoff Davidson
Dixie and Allen Dykman
Gladys E. Langroise Advised Fund
Rodney J. Haars and Laura J. Jenski
Scoggin Family
Robert and Kathy Yoshida
Peter and Susan Hood
Harry W. Morrison Foundation
Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation
The Bews Foundation
Thomas Coleman
Chris and Lelei Coyle
Tory and Brian Goltry
Hansberger Foundation
In Loving Memory of Mary Jane Hill by David Hill
Kurt and Treacy Liebich
Carol Lloyd
In Memory of Christopher Davidson, Founder of the Idaho Botanical Garden, 1944-2022
Georgiann and Rich Raimondi
Claire and Ryan Rosston
Amy and Todd Rustad

Plan Your Visit During Construction

We remain open during expansion. We are committed to keeping your experience joyful, inspiring, and accessible.

Parking Updates

The main parking lot will be under construction beginning Fall 2025.

Off-site parking will be available. Locations and maps will be shared here.

Bike riders, Rideshare, and Valley Regional Transit usage is encouraged.

Accessibility

Temporary ADA access points will be clearly marked.

A drop-off area will be located near the Garden entrance.

Volunteers and staff will be available to meet your needs.

Wayfinding signs and an updated visitor map will make navigation easier.

Amenities

Once inside the Garden, the experience remains the same.

Temporary visitor check-in stations will be available.

Picnic and quiet areas will remain open.

Check this page weekly for updates on routes, closures, and programming.

Parking Lot Map

Frequently Asked Questions

Got a question? The answer may be below.

How can I see the progress?

Category: Garden Expansion

Join us for a hard hat tour or follow along online.

How will my donation be used?

Category: Garden Expansion

All funds support expansion and public access.

When will the parking lot reopen?

Category: Garden Expansion

Spring or Summer 2026.

Where is the best place to park when visiting the Garden?

Category: Garden Expansion

The parking for the Table Rock hiking trail has ample parking available.

Will the Garden remain open?

Category: Garden Expansion

Yes. With adjusted logistics.

Interested in a Tour or Meeting to Learn More?

Hard hat tours available on select dates. Check back here for the latest updates.
Contact Jennifer Parks, Senior Development Director at growhere@idahobotanicalgarden.org if interested in meeting.

Let’s Grow Together

Whether you give, visit, volunteer, or simply share the story, you’re a part of something bigger. Community Grows Here, and we’re so grateful you’re growing with us.

Donate Now Plan Your Visit Follow Our Progress