Once you park your car and begin to walk through the Arboretum, you may feel like you are miles away from campus even though you are not. This beautiful park opened in 1991 as a partnership between UK and the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. It was named the “Official State Botanical Garden for the Commonwealth of Kentucky” in 2000. The gardens are open from dawn until dusk every day except for UK home football games and the Gala in the Garden.