Shangri La Botanical Gardens & Nature Center
The Shangri La Gardens and Nature Center in Orange, Texas would be a great place for a field trip! I sure wish we lived closer, because I love to visit places like this with my kids.
Not only is this a great place to take the entire family, but even cooler is the platinum certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for New Construction (LEED?-NC) that the U.S. Green Building Council has awarded Shangri La Gardens. Earning this award is no small feat. This verifies that the design and construction of the Shangri La has reached the highest green building and performance measures. Their website includes all of the green details that their center boasts that earned them this prestigious award. I encourage you to go and see everything they have worked so hard on!
If you are going to be anywhere near Orange, Texas, you really should include a tour of this garden center. Next best thing would be to visit their website. It’s very well done and it includes great information about all of the great features that the Shangri La has for your pleasure and entertainment.
A little about their botanical center - my favorite part! The Botanical Gardens feature over 300 species of plants in nine formal gardens. It sounds wonderful! The Botanical Gardens include five garden areas: The Line Garden, The Hanging Garden, The Shape Garden, The Texture Garden, and The Color Garden. A historic garden known as The Pond of the Blue Moon honors the original Shangri-La and features 41 varieties of azaleas.
They have tailored many interesting features especially for kids that would definitely make this a great trip for any family. Like I said before, I sure wish we lived closer.
