The Florida Learning Garden, a project of Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful in partnership with the Florida State Fair Authority, is a permanent one-acre interactive educational experience. The display garden features raised beds, hydroponics, hugelkulture beds, a Florida-Friendly Walking Trail, rain gardens, over 75 types of trees, an interactive greenhouse, the Humana Educational Pavilion for presentatio
ns, sensory gardens, butterfly gardens, upcycled gardens, composting system, gazebo and the Cargill Windmill. From ‘right-plant-right-place’ to best practices for water conservation, the Florida Learning Garden educates residents on multiple growing techniques and sustainable practices to utilize in their own homes and gardens. Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful cultivates plant materials to use in beautification projects throughout Hillsborough County. Harvested produce is donated back to local nonprofit shelters. The Florida Learning Garden is an environmentally sustainable training facility that helps us build a vibrant community. The Florida Learning Garden is utilized for educational presentations, community workshops, volunteer service projects, school field trips and educational tours. The Florida State Fair Agri-Science program utilizes the garden to provide hands-on agriculture learning experiences for more than 40,000 students. Additionally, the Florida Learning Garden is open to the 2.5 million visitors to the Florida State Fairgrounds each year. Visitors and residents alike are able to tour the garden while they are encouraged to use sustainable growing methods in their own community.
