Photo Credit: Hermann Park Conservancy

One of the most magical places in Houston is atop the 30-foot Mount in Hermann Park. Part of the McGovern Centennial Gardens, this manmade feature rises from the green like a tiered wedding cake, with a paved trail that circles upward, crossing over the waterfall fall feature at two points. As the water softly bubbles and splashes downward you can cast your eyes to the picturesque surroundings, the gardens, the sculptures, the Museum Plaza skyline. It’s an easy, accessible walk up the Mount and it represents the very essence of Hermann Park. A place of history and modernism, a slice of pristine mother nature in a vibrant and bustling city. It is the crown of the McGovern Centennial Gardens, what designers Hoer Schaudt calls “An homage to the horticultural heritage of Houston.”

In 1914 George Hermann gave the original 285-acre park site, which once sported a sawmill Hermann owned, over to the city. Over the decades things expanded and changed. The original Miller Outdoor Theatre opened in 1922, the park grew to 445 acres, and in 1938 the Houston Garden Center and rose garden were added. As the decades passed, the park’s centennial approached and Hermann Park Conservancy decided to mark the historic occasion by creating the McGovern Centennial Gardens, an eight-acre, $31 million park-within-a-park. It took almost eight years and was dedicated in December of 2014.

There are five gardens as part of the McGovern Centennial Gardens: the Arid Garden, the Celebration Garden, the Family Garden, the Rose Garden, and the Woodland Garden. Each a different world of nature and fauna. There are three walkways including the Hawkins Sculpture Walk which winds through ten busts of notable world figures such as Robert Burns and Simon Bolivar. (There are other full-size statues throughout the park as well.) And, atop the garden Mount sits a permanent art installation to crown and commemorate the Park’s first 100 years. Houston artist Randy Twaddle was commissioned in early 2014 to design the installation known as Seeds, Trees, People that features three limestone benches, each engraved with a line from a Confucius quote, sharing a message that emphasizes the involvement of people: “If you think of a year, plant a seed. If in terms of ten years, plant trees. If in terms of one hundred years, teach the people.”

Photo Credit: Hermann Park Conservancy

There is also the Japanese Friendship Pavilion, a gift from Houston’s sister city Taipei and gifted in 1978. Rounding out the park-within-a-park, you’ll find the Celebration Garden surrounded by tall hedges that is perfect for a special cocktail party or wedding reception and the Cherie Flores Garden Pavilion which is a main entrance to the garden and is also available for rent for your special event. And yes, the glass front looks like the entrance to an Apple store, but that’s because Apple store architect Peter Bohlin of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson designed it.

Garden Etiquette:

For Your Enjoyment and Safety, and to Preserve and Protect This Garden:

• Leash your dogs (6′) max and clean up their waste.
• Do not pick flowers or plants, and please stay out of planting beds.
• Walk your bicycle.
• Scooters/Skateboards/Skates are prohibited.
• No active or team sports, and no exercise groups.
• No open flames or barbecues.
• Keep out of the cascade, pools, and fountains.
• Groups require an advance reservation.
• Weddings in the garden require a reservation.

The garden’s hours change seasonally and are closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Reservations for large groups are required, or if you wish to explore on your own you can see a map of the area here.

by Marene Gustin