Milwaukee County’s goal is to enrich your life by providing essential services that meet your needs and those of your family, neighbors, co-workers and friends.
We enhance the quality of life in Milwaukee County through great public service.
Milwaukee County is home to over 950,000 people living in one of 19 communities, which range in size from the City of Milwaukee, with 595,000 residents, to the Village of River Hills, with roughly 1,600 residents.
Still a manufacturing stronghold, the region features 16 Fortune 1000 companies and thousands of others in the financial services, medical device, hospitality and retailing industries.
Find information about things to do and happenings in Milwaukee County.
Thousands of plants bring the seasons to life at the Botanical Gardens, with colorful and fragrant displays laid out in a variety of formal gardens. Explore a rose garden, peony garden and daylily garden; stroll under blossoming crabapples; and enjoy the view while at an event in the Garden Room. Boerner Botanical Gardens is located just 15 minutes outside of Milwaukee in the Village of Hales Corners. Visit throughout the year to see the different gardens in bloom.
See What's Blooming!
including Margie's Garden (children's garden)
Note: The Garden House is locked one hour before garden closing
including Margie's Garden (children's garden) and Garden House
Adult, age 18-59, $8
Senior Adult, age 60+, $6
Junior, age 3-12, $6
Adult Group of 20+ (per person), $7
Junior Group of 20+ (per person), $5
Adult, age 18 & up, $9
Adult Group of 20+ (per person), $8
Junior Group of 20+ (per person), $6
Student – of any age, $6
Military – Veteran or Active Duty, $6
Person with Disability, $6
Friends of Boerner Botanical Gardens Member, Free
American Horticultural Society Member, Free* *Note: Each AHS card will admit only the individual whose name is listed on the card and one other person. In the case of a family, couple, or household membership card that does not list individual names, the Botanical Gardens will admit a total of two of the members. A photo ID is required.
Themed garden spaces offer a succession of blooms from early spring through late fall. See something new each time you visit!
This 3-acre garden is designed especially for children. The flower-themed garden features an "enchanted village" with a playhouse, fiddlehead path, twig hut and mushroom-chair rings. Additional spaces within Margie's Garden include a sound garden, secret garden, bug garden with friendly bug sculptures, a storybook nook, a pollinator garden, sunflower garden, and prairie and wildflower zones.
In keeping with its educational mission, Boerner Botanical Gardens offers a Trial Garden, featuring over 500 new varieties of plants. These plants are tested for their suitability for the Great Lakes region.
Stop at the Visitor Center to find unique items in the Friends of Boerner Botanical Gardens Gift Shop. Entry to the Visitor Center is free. The Visitor Center also houses a library, classrooms and event spaces available to rent.
Thanks for a great 2024 event!
Brighten your autumn evenings with a visit to China Lights, on the grounds of Boerner Botanical Gardens. Enjoy illuminated scenes, live performances, cultural displays, and a bustling marketplace. Food and beverages are available for purchase at this family-friendly event.
More About China Lights
Each spring we celebrate Arbor Day at Boerner by inviting local school children to plant a new tree in the gardens with the Milwaukee County Parks Forestry team. The day also marks the official start of the botanical gardens season, with free admission to view the work that goes into preparing the gardens for the season. Admission fees begin May 1st through October 31st.
Enjoy a free summer concert series, sponsored by Wimmer Communities, held on Thursday evenings in the gardens. Performances are from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and visitors can explore the gardens for free after 6 p.m. Food and beverages are available for purchase at the concerts; however, guests may also bring food.
More About Concerts in the Gardens
Temporary displays of nature-inspired artwork are on view in the Exhibit Room of the Garden House.
If you or your group would like to be considered for an exhibit at the Garden House or the Botanical Gardens grounds, please complete the Art Exhibit Placement Request
Friends of Boerner Botanical Gardens offers one-hour, educational, docent-guided tours to groups of 12 or more.
More About Garden Tours with the Friends
Boerner Botanical Gardens hosts educational programs, houses a plant library, displays a trial garden and more.
Individuals and groups can experience the restorative nature of gardens and gardening through programs offered by the Friends of Boerner Botanical Gardens.
Your questions about trees, lawns, shrubs, flowers, fruits, vegetables, pests, and plant diseases can all be answered by the University of Wisconsin Extension horticultural team and Master Gardeners. If you are unable to visit Boerner Botanical Gardens, submit your questions, along with relevant photographs, through the form on the Wisconsin Horticulture Division of Extension site. You may also contact the Horticulture Helpline by calling or texting (608)-298-6945.
A special project of the "Bloom Team," the cooperative partnership of BBG, UW-Extension, and FBBG
As Milwaukee County's "Living Museum," Boerner Botanical Gardens keeps records of the plant collections and shares them with all who have an interest in the vital role of plants in our community.
Bloom Reports (Excel)
The Friends of Boerner Botanical Gardens (FBBG) is an independent, non-profit group that supports Boerner Botanical Gardens through fundraising, educational programing and special events.
Become a Member
Boerner Botanical Gardens offers variety in venue size, function and decoration. With expansive wide-windowed halls, as well as more intimate gathering spaces, the Gardens has options for every event, wedding, or corporate party. Located just 15 minutes outside of Milwaukee, this location not only offers convenience, but also impresses — and offers 300 free parking spaces!
The Boerner Botanical Gardens Grand Hall features a 21-by-21 dance floor, two 6-by-8 risers, 60-inch round tables for eight guests each, and upholstered-style chairs. Large windows let guests enjoy the view of the Fragrance Garden.
Rentals and catering of Boerner Hall are provided by Zilli Hospitality Group. Contact Zilli’s for current rates at (262) 547-9447. Group admission rates to Boerner Botanical Gardens are also available.
Capacities
Banquet Style: 300 Theatre Style: 350
More About Boerner Hall
The Garden House was constructed in 1935 using native fieldstone. The Exhibit Room features hand-carved animals above the entrance, hand-hewn oak beams, wooden furniture, and a fireplace mantel inscribed with an excerpt from a poem by Alexander Pope. Renters may bring in beverages, home-prepared foods, and light snacks only. Formal catering is available from Zilli Hospitality Group.
During the garden season, April through October, admission fees to the Botanical Gardens are required with rentals. Ask about group rates for admission.
Capacity: 45
More About the Garden House & Permits
Rooms at Boerner Botanical Gardens include two main-level classrooms with sinks (each with a capacity of 36), two lower-level lab-style classrooms (each with a capacity of 45), and a multi-media room (with a capacity of 180). These rooms are ideal for presentations, meetings, or art and garden workshops.
Coffee service and audio/video equipment are available for an extra fee. Educational partners, plant societies, and garden clubs qualify for special rates. Rentals and catering are provided by Zilli Hospitality Group. Contact Zilli’s for current rates at (262) 547-9447.
Group admission rates to Boerner Botanical Gardens are also available.
Room 114 – Garden Tree Club Room: 36 Room 115 – Connie Grove Memorial Room: 36 Room B05 – Grandparents Room: 45 Room B24 – Rosarian Room: 45 Room B06A – Multi-Media Room: 96 classroom style or 180 theater style
The Garden Room at Boerner Botanical Gardens Visitor Center is located off the Atrium and overlooks the Silver-Blue Garden, allowing guests a nice retreat from a business meeting. This space is ideal for meetings, cocktail receptions, intimate sit-down dinners, and more. Ideal for groups of up to 96 people. The Garden Room can also be combined with Boerner Hall as a perfect site to enjoy cocktails and dancing.
Rentals and catering are provided by Zilli Hospitality Group. Contact Zilli’s for current rates at (262) 547-9447. Group admission rates to Boerner Botanical Gardens are also available.
Cocktail Setup: 96 U-shape Setup: 50 Other set-ups available on request
More About the Garden Room
Boerner Botanical Gardens is ideal for everything from an intimate wedding for 30 guests in the Annual Garden gazebo to a large ceremony for 200 guests in the Shrub Mall. The historic Garden House can also be rented for use as a bridal room, or an alternative ceremony site in case of inclement weather. Outdoor areas are available spring through fall and remain open to the public.
Boerner also offers several indoor spaces for receptions through our catering partner, Zilli Hospitality Group.
Ceremony Site Map
The Annual Garden includes a central water garden with water lily and lotus, grassy malls with flowered borders, ornamental flowering trees, and dazzling beds of colorful annual flowers. A low, decorative wall made from native glacial-stone outlines the garden, and a traditional gazebo offers quiet repose.
Capacity: 30
In early spring the Rock Garden is carpeted with Wisconsin wildflowers and the delicate blooms of Asian and European bulbs. As spring flows into summer, Japanese Primrose and Siberian Iris lead a parade of flowering perennials. Summer gives rise to a host of ferns, fragrant-flowered Japanese Hostas, and bright South American and African tropical flowers.
Capacity: 200
The Rose Garden that today’s visitor sees is very much the same garden seen by guests in the 1930s. Many of the roses originally planted in this garden were provided by Eugene Boerner. The wedding site also offers a vista beyond the Rose Garden.
Capacity: 200, larger events may expand into the Perennial Mall
The Shrub Mall has the regal look and feel of an English country estate garden. Its impressive central lawn or “mall” offers an impressive vista to the south.
Capacity: 300
Catering at Boerner Botanical gardens is provided through Zilli Hospitality Group. Call Zilli's at (262) 547-9447
Boerner Botanical Gardens provides the perfect backdrop for engagement, wedding, prom, and family photos. Formal photography requires a photography permit.
Wedding Photography Permit Rate Subject to Sales Tax Package Rate (includes admission for up to 20 adults): $160 for up to 1 hour Additional Half-Hour: $80 per additional 30 minutes beyond package
For more information or to reserve a time, call the Botanical Gardens at (414) 525-5600
Complete the Boerner Photo Permit Request
Purchase a personalized paver as a memorial, to honor an individual, family or organization, or to share a favorite nature quote, poem or haiku!
The pavers are part of the Rotary Circle, an accessible pathway and terrace that not only provide connections to previously wheelchair-inaccessible garden collections, but also showcase best practices in storm water management.
The permeable pavers are available in four sizes, with pricing starting at $100.
Get Details & Request Your Bricks!
9400 Boerner Dr, Hales Corners, WI 53130 (414) 525-5600
Parking Available
Wheelchair Accessible
Gift Shop
NO DOGS - except service dogs performing tasks for a person with a disability
Download Garden Map
9480 W. Watertown Plank Road Wauwatosa, WI 53226 (414) 257-PARK (7275) Parks E-News Signup