Vero Beach History in Full Bloom this September -- Inaugural Rare & Exotic Orchid Exhibition and Sale September 6 and 7

Nearly ninety years ago, visionaries Arthur McKee and Waldo Sexton created something remarkable in Vero Beach—their garden sanctuary along the Indian River where rare and beautiful plants could flourish.

McKee, a mechanical engineer with a conservationist’s heart, became captivated by orchids, journeying deep into the Andes in the 1940s in search of delicate, high-altitude specimens. To keep them alive in Florida’s subtropical heat, he worked with Dr. David Fairburn to design the world’s first mechanically cooled greenhouse—an innovation that reshaped orchid cultivation.

Sexton, known in Indian River County for his imaginative architecture and love of storytelling, added distinctive spaces such as the Hall of Giants and the Spanish Kitchen, infusing the gardens with a sense of character and place. Together, they made McKee Jungle Gardens one of Florida’s earliest and most cherished attractions, an enduring blend of ingenuity, artistry, and the natural world.

Today, Executive Director Rochelle Wolberg and Marion DeVogel, McKee's great-granddaughter, guide McKee Botanical Garden into its next chapter. Under their leadership, the garden continues to strengthen its orchid collection, advance conservation efforts, and engage the community through educational programs and partnerships. Their dedication ensures McKee remains inexorbably linked to the cultural fabric of Vero Beach.

Marion DeVogel and Rochelle Wolberg | Photo credit: The Scout Guide Treasure Coast

This September 6–7, that heritage will take center stage with the inaugural Rare & Exotic Orchid Exhibition & Sale. Over two days, leading growers—including Krull-Smith, Odom’s Orchids, and Springwater Orchids—will share exceptional specimens, accompanied by presentations from noted experts such as plantsman Robbie Honey and Dr. Martin R. Motes, Florida’s foremost authority on Vanda orchids.

For those who walk its paths, the garden offers more than beauty—it offers a connection to nearly a century of vision, determination, and love for the natural world. This weekend’s exhibition will be a quiet yet profound continuation of that story, where history and horticulture meet in graceful harmony.