The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory on Belle Isle is owned and operated by the City of Detroit Recreation and General Services Departments. The conservatory is open every day of the year from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and is free. The phone number for the conservatory is 313-822-2867 and the supervisor is Leticia Bertaud. For information about scheduling weddings or other events in the conservatory or gardens please contact the Island Administration office at 313-628-2081.
The Belle Isle Botanical Society, BIBS, is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) volunteer organization. The Belle Isle Botanical Society was founded in 1988. Our mission is to raise funds and seek donations for the restoration and maintenance of the Conservatory and surrounding gardens, to provide educational programs for the public and to work with the City of Detroit to achieve these goals.
Annually, BIBS volunteers give thousands of hours gardening in and around the conservatory and greenhouses, conducting guided tours by trained docents, hosting a Science Learning Lab for elementary school children, and raising funds for this historic building.
In 2005, The City of Detroit Recreation Department was awarded a $340,000 matching grant from the Federal Government Save America's Treasures program for restoration of the Conservatory's central dome. This was a highly competitive process and Detroit was very fortunate to obtain this grant. In 2006, 500 panes of broken and chipped glass were replaced and caulked, the glass in the dome cleaned inside and out, the heating system in the conservatory replaced, the foundation repaired and the ladder repaired and painted.
Over 4,000 children have participated in BIBS Science Learning Lab where we focus on the life cycle of plants. We welcomed children from the City of Detroit Recreation Center summer programs in addition to children from the metropolitan Detroit area in public and private schools, scouts, churchs and other education related programs. BIBS has received rave reviews from the participants in our lab.
BIBS also has a Docent program for adults which provides free guided tours of the conservatory by our trained docents. The tours give historical facts about the conservatory and detailed information about the plants within the various houses.
This past year BIBS funded the replacement of over 81 panes of glass in the conservatory and greenhouses, the repair of slipped windows, patched 42 minor breaks in windows, installed vent arms and repaired broken vent wheels in the Show House. We are currently taking bids to repair the boulders in the Lily Pond and planning the building a viewing deck and repairing the pool and its drainage system.
We look forward to continuing to support this historic structure, and making the conservatory a cultural, educational and scientific destination for visitors.
For further information about BIBS and its programs, please contact us at 313-331-7760. For information about our financial status, please go to our page of links and click on GuideStar, the leading source of information about U.S. nonprofits.
Don't forget to check our calendar for upcoming events.
The Friends of Belle Isle clean-up will be held Saturday, April 26 from 9 am to 1 pm. Meet at the Belle Isle Casino for your assignement. Bring your rakes and gloves. Lunch will be provided.
The Annual Plant Sale will be Saturday, May 24, from 9 am to 3 pm at the Belle Isle Greenhouses. We will have our usual great selection of annuals, herbs, designer perennials, annual and scented geraniums, peppers and heirloom tomatoes and some house plants.
We will not be hosting A Day in the Gardens this year due to space considerations but do hope to host a lecture series this spring. We will keep you posted on this on other activities.
