Friday I visited the Edison-Ford Winter Estates. There is a museum and the houses toured for a fee, but since the gardens and trees were so utterly fantastical and interesting, they were the focus of my visit this time. I’ll do the houses, museum, and car collection on a future visit.
The two homes and assorted buildings date back to an 1885 beginning and as with the wealthy of that era, are a fascinating collection of furnishings and artifacts of that time. Most of the furnishings are original, making each house a museum.
Twenty acres of gardens contain more than 1,700 plants from 400 species native to six continents, and the variety is quite amazing. Originally began as an experiment to find a better, faster growing tree for latex, since at the time rubber was in high demand, most of the original plantings were for research. Over time, however, they became a botanical garden of unusual plants and trees unlike anywhere else.
Gallery
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garyvarner.com 
WOW! Would love to draw those…
– Tina
I know! Have so swept up in the camera thing I forget about sketching. Have to remedy that by the time I get to the west and the pueblos of New Mexico.
Those trees are amazing. There’s a big one in downtown St. Petersburg that sprouts red flowers and various others with big roots. Crazy how they grow and spread.