Bayou Bend Gardens: A Southern Oasis

Bayou Bend Gardens in Houston, Texas, is one of the most beautiful public gardens in the United States. Originally conceived in 1926 by the legendary Texas collector and philanthropist, Miss Ima Hogg (1882-1975), to surround Bayou Bend, her magnificent home, the gardens are a splendid oasis along Houston's Buffalo Bayou. An active and adventurous gardener, Miss Hogg supervised the plans for the eight formal gardens that are set among the woods and ravines bordering the estate. The gardens feature a variety of native and imported plants, including the azaleas, camellias, magnolias and crape myrtles for which Bayou Bend has become famous. Bayou Bend is situated in the heart of River Oaks, which was a remote and tranquil suburb of Houston when it was originally developed in the 1920s and is now a stately enclave in the nation's fourth-largest city. In 1957, Miss Hogg bequeathed her home and gardens to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Fully renovated and conserved, the house displays one of the na