A nine-acre tropical botanical garden on Biscayne Bay that was once the home of plant explorer David Fairchild, the man responsible for introducing mangoes, avocados, nectarines, and hundreds of other plants to the United States. The gardens are lush and wild-feeling, with rare tropical fruit trees, palms, and flowering plants from around the world. The house itself is a charming 1920s Mediterranean villa. Visits are by advance reservation only, Tuesday through Friday, which keeps the crowds away and makes it feel like a private garden.
story: > Fairchild introduced more than 200,000 plant varieties to the US during his career. The kampong — Malay for "village compound" — was named after the tropical settlements he visited during his plant-hunting expeditions in Southeast Asia.