UGA Cooperative Extension

Friends of the Coastal Gardens

What is Friends of the Coastal Gardens?

Friends of the Coastal Gardens is an organization formed for the purpose of supporting growth and development of the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens. Its membership includes a variety of people who appreciate the things the Farm and Gardens have to offer and who want to provide their support.

What do Friends do?

Friends support, whether in the form of money or volunteer time, helps make possible a calendar of educational, fund-raising and/or social events throughout the year. These programs are designed to share the Farm and Gardens' special plant collections and to teach about plants for the coastal area, landscaping, gardening, environment and natural habitats.

Young children, families, elders, garden club members, students, teachers, homeowners, professionals and visitors benefit from the programs that members help sponsor.

Volunteer opportunities include working in or managing specific gardens, working in the office and greenhouse, maintaining the grounds, conducting educational tours, and helping with fund-raising events and other activities.

What do I receive as a member of Friends?

As a Friends member, you will receive special invitations and advance notification of programs and events -- including plant sales. You will have the satisfaction of knowing you helped the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens become an increasingly important educational and research source to the people of coastal Georgia.

What is the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens?

Formerly a USDA Plant Introduction Station, it was known locally as The Bamboo Farm. For more than 60 years, plant materials gathered by plant explorers from all parts of the world were planted and evaluated at the facility to determine growth and potential use in the sandy soils and humid climate of coastal Georgia.

Today, the facility houses an internationally known collection of oriental bamboo as well as many rare and historic plants and trees. In addition to historical plants and trees, visitors will see seasonal displays of native and regionally adapted plants recommended for the coastal region.

Many of the plants are one-of-a-kind specimens in North America. Others are some of the oldest and best specimens in the United States.

Plant collections include bamboo, magnolia, crape myrtle, loropetalum, holly, daylilies and ornamental grasses. Display gardens include culinary herbs, perennials, annuals, ginger lilies and ferns. Demonstration plots include turf grasses, fruits and vegetables.

The Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens is a unit of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and is managed by the Coastal Plains Experiment Station. A USDA special grant provides for a number of research projects related to growing plants in this coastal area.

Conference facilities available for public and group use include an educational building with a demonstration kitchen seating 100 people, an open-air pavilion that accomodates 400 people, and an educational classroom for school groups. Two ponds on the property are used for special fishing events.

Friends of the Coastal Gardens Mission

The mission of the Friends of Coastal Gardens is to provide financial and human resources to support the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens.

Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens Mission

The mission of the Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens, a unit of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, is to serve as a research and educational resource for the citizens of coastal Georgia where visitors can see historical trees, shrubs and bamboos as well as native and regionally adapted plants.

Objectives

• To establish and maintain display gardens that will serve as an outdoor classroom in which visitors can learn about fruit, vegetables and ornamental plants recommended for the coastal region and cultural practices for successfully growing these plants.
• To evaluate new plants for their adaptability to the coastal region.
• To serve as an educational facility for extension agents, youth groups, professionals in the horticulture industry, and the general public.