历史沿革与双园区格局
美国亚特兰大植物园 (Atlanta Botanical Garden) 的源头可追溯到 1973 年由当地市民提出的建园倡议，机构于 1976 年正式成立，并在 1980 年与亚特兰大市签订长期土地租约。1989 年开放的 Dorothy Chapman Fuqua Conservatory 奠定了室内植物展示体系，2010 年 Canopy Walk、Edible Garden 与 Cascades Garden 开放后，园区面积几乎翻倍。位于市中心的主园现有约 30 英亩室外花园；2015 年开放的 Gainesville 园区则建成美国东南部规模领先的保护性苗圃，形成展示、育种与保护相互支撑的双园区格局。
室内外花园与植物收藏
主园以 Fuqua Conservatory、Fuqua Orchid Center、Storza Woods、Skyline Garden、Conservation Display Garden、日本花园、玫瑰园和儿童花园等空间组成完整的游览体系。兰花中心通过热带高海拔温室等不同气候环境展示多样兰科植物，馆方称其收藏属于全球公共花园中规模较大的兰花收藏之一。植物园还获得 ArbNet Level IV 认证，并拥有 Acer、Magnolia、Sarracenia、Gongora 与 Stanhopea 五项美国国家认证植物收藏；据官网介绍，在 Plant Collections Network 中达到五项或以上认证收藏的机构仅有四家。
科研平台与珍稀植物保护
植物园将保护工作集中在 Southeastern Center for Conservation，围绕美国东南部、加勒比地区与厄瓜多尔的濒危植物和脆弱生态系统开展种质保存、遗传与进化研究、种群监测、繁殖回归及栖息地修复。团队拥有三十余年珍稀植物恢复经验，并与高校和公共机构合作研究海岸湿地、兰花根系与传粉关系、Apalachicola rosemary 等项目；相关技术覆盖分子遗传、种子库与超低温保存、规定性燃烧及野外重引入，使植物园同时承担活体收藏库和区域保护研究中心的职能。
国际植物探索与合作网络
2016 年启动的 International Plant Exploration Program 建设植物评价苗圃，组织东南亚种子采集并接收访问学者，重点评估新物种在美国东南部景观中的适应性，同时保存和共享种质。该计划与中国上海辰山植物园、越南科学院生态与生物资源研究所、佐治亚大学及 Longwood Gardens 等机构协作；官网记录其在越南北部和中部高地的十六年调查形成十四次野外考察，发现至少七个植物新种，并支持越南一处 175 公顷生物多样性研究站建设，体现了收藏、科研与人才培养的国际联动。
公众教育与城市文化影响
园方使命是为展示、教育、研究、保护和公众享受而发展与维护植物收藏。成人园艺与植物艺术课程、Edible Garden 的从园地到餐桌项目、6 至 10 岁儿童营地、学校活动和教师资源共同构成全年教育体系。植物园也通过展览、艺术收藏、PlantIntel、Collections Connections 与保护研究年刊 Synecology 传播知识：2003 年会员已超过 12,000，2004 年接待量达到 425,000，2013 年超过 525,000；2021 年又获 American Public Gardens Association 的 Award for Garden Excellence，巩固了其在亚特兰大城市文化与公共花园网络中的影响力。
History and the Two-Garden Network
Atlanta Botanical Garden traces its beginnings to a civic proposal made in 1973 and was incorporated in 1976. A long-term lease with the City of Atlanta followed in 1980, while the Dorothy Chapman Fuqua Conservatory opened in 1989. The 2010 debut of the Canopy Walk, Edible Garden and Cascades Garden nearly doubled the Midtown property. Today the urban garden contains about 30 acres of outdoor landscapes, and the Gainesville Garden, opened in 2015, adds a major conservation nursery that links horticultural display, evaluation and plant recovery.
Gardens and Living Collections
The collection network includes the Fuqua Conservatory, Fuqua Orchid Center, Storza Woods, Skyline Garden, Conservation Display Garden, Japanese Garden, Rose Garden and a dedicated Children’s Garden. Specialized climates in the orchid center support tropical high-elevation species and other focused orchid groups. The institution holds ArbNet Level IV accreditation and five Nationally Accredited Plant Collections: Acer, Magnolia, Sarracenia, Gongora and Stanhopea. Its website notes that only four institutions in the Plant Collections Network have achieved five or more accredited collections.
Science and Rare-Plant Conservation
The Southeastern Center for Conservation coordinates work on imperiled plants and natural communities across the southeastern United States, the Caribbean and Ecuador. More than three decades of experience support conservation genetics, evolutionary and demographic studies, ex situ collections, seed banking, cryobanking, propagation, prescribed-fire management, habitat restoration and species reintroduction. Research partnerships address rare coastal wetlands, orchid roots and pollination, Apalachicola rosemary and other threatened plants, allowing the Garden to function as both a living repository and a regional research hub.
International Plant Exploration
Founded in 2016, the International Plant Exploration Program operates an evaluation nursery, conducts seed-collecting expeditions in Southeast Asia and hosts visiting scholars. Collaborators include Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, the University of Georgia and Longwood Gardens. The Garden reports that sixteen years of field research in northern Vietnam and the central highlands produced fourteen expeditions, at least seven plant species new to science and numerous new national records, while also supporting a 175-hectare biodiversity station near Hanoi.
Education and Public Impact
The Garden’s mission unites display, education, research, conservation and enjoyment. Adult horticulture and botanical-art classes, plant-to-plate programs in the Outdoor Kitchen, camps for children ages six to ten, school programs and teacher resources make education a year-round activity. Publications such as PlantIntel, Collections Connections and Synecology extend that work beyond the grounds. Membership exceeded 12,000 in 2003, visitation reached 425,000 in 2004 and more than 525,000 in 2013, and the American Public Gardens Association presented its Award for Garden Excellence in 2021.
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