The Founders Garden at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden is now officially open! This outdoor garden showcases unique horticultural skills and is designed to demonstrate the transforming beauty of the gardens. Inspired by an Iowa sand prairie, the Founders Garden features a custom native annual seed mix and native ornamental grasses.
The garden also honors the visionary individuals who played a key role in bringing the Botanical Garden to life. It serves as a tribute to Tom Urban, one of the four founders-along with J.C. “Buz” Brenton, Janis Ruan, and Fred Weitz-who worked together to reestablish the renewed Botanical Garden in Des Moines in 2008.
Additionally, a standout feature of the garden is a 16 foot tall steel sculpture titled “Threshold”, which depicts a Combretaceae leaf and was created by internationally acclaimed Basque artist, Juanjo Novella. Additionally, Novella intentionally crafted the sculpture with a lace-like surface that interacts with the sun’s movement. As the sun moves across the sky, its rays cast shadows through the sculpture’s perforated surface, creating dynamic patterns on the ground below.
CDA is proud to have provided all civil engineering and surveying services for this latest addition to the garden.
To learn more about the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden and their exhibits follow along here.
To read about more project updates, view our Happenings page here.