Spring returns to Maine slowly, and with it comes the reopening of gardens and arboretums across the state. From coastal plantings in Boothbay to the quiet design of Mount Desert Island, these spaces offer a seasonal way to experience the landscape as it comes back to life. Ideal for a day out or a Mother’s Day visit, each garden reflects a different side of Maine in spring.
Asticou Azalea Garden
Southwest Harbor, Mount Desert Island, Maine
Open May 2 – November 1, 2026
Asticou Azalea Garden sits just above Northeast Harbor, shaped by the landscape of Mount Desert Island and the influence of Japanese design. The space moves quietly between stone paths, water, and surrounding plant life, with each season bringing a gradual shift in color and texture.
Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens
Boothbay, Maine
Seasonal opening (dates vary year to year)
Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay brings together woodland, garden spaces, and tidal edge. The landscape opens and closes as you move through it, with shifting views and plantings that change through the season.
McLaughlin Garden and Homestead
South Paris, Maine
Open May 9 – October 2026
Welcome to the McLaughlin Garden and Homestead in South Paris, Maine, a historic site listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a cultural landscape. The McLaughlin Foundation has been proud to steward Bernard McLaughlin’s renowned 1840s farmstead, gardens, and public green space for more than 25 years.
Merryspring Nature Center
Camden, Maine
Open daily, year round
Established in 1974, Merryspring Nature Center is a cherished 66-acre sanctuary dedicated to preserving the natural beauty of the midcoast of Maine.
The Gardens at Pinelands Farms
New Gloucester, Maine
Seasonal tours June – September 2026
In New Gloucester, the gardens at Pineland Farms are spread across a working farm landscape, where cultivated spaces sit alongside open fields and campus grounds. Perennial beds, vegetable plots, and seasonal plantings are part of a broader setting shaped by agriculture and daily use. The experience is informal, with areas to walk through and return to over the course of the growing season.
Viles Arboretum
Augusta, Maine
Open daily, sunrise – sunset
Discover the beauty of Maine’s landscapes, explore scenic trails, enjoy year-round recreation, and discovery a variety of habitats and wildlife.
Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden
Seal Harbor, Mount Desert Island, Maine
Open July 14 – September 13, 2026
This unique garden at the Preserve holds a prominent place in American garden history, both as the work of a distinguished designer and as the representation of a time of significant growth and development in American landscape design.
Thuya Garden
Northeast Harbor, Mount Desert Island, Maine
Open June 13 – October 13, 2026
Thuya Garden is a quiet place to wander, reflect and enjoy nature’s beauty. The mossy, granite-stepped Asticou Terraces provide an ethereal approach to the door of the Thuya Lodge and the border gardens beyond. The hallmark carved wooden gates welcome visitors. Named for the white cedar trees, Thuja occidentalis, growing around it, this garden in the woods has an intimate and private feel.
