Hidden gem
Just yards beyond the asphalt and pavement on state Road 520 in Cocoa is a verdant field of gardening dreams — the Brevard Discovery Garden. TOM WILBY PHOTOS
Brevard Discovery Garden: a place of growing inspiration
Butterflies such as this hungry monarch are frequent Discovery Garden visitors.
Most motorists navigating the maze of car dealerships, roadside restaurants and gas stations near the intersection of State Road 520 and Interstate 95 have no clue that just beyond all the asphalt and pavement lies a verdant field of horticultural dreams: the Brevard Discovery Garden.
Palmettos and pines act as a shield between this three-acre oasis and the suburban sprawl beyond. The natural barrier preserves a rural illusion, so visitors can focus on connecting with nature. Brevard Discovery Garden is a living embodiment of naturalist John Muir’s philosophy that “everybody needs … places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.”
Maria Sonnenberg
Maria is a prolific writer and proofer for Space Coast Living and an adjunct professor at Florida Institute of Technology’s Nathan M. Bisk College of Business. When not writing, teaching or traveling, she can be found waging a one-woman war against her lawn and futilely attempting to maintain order among the chaos of a pack of extremely clueless wirehair dachshunds and an angst-driven basset hound.
