Records of the Norfolk Botanical Garden's history, facilities, daily operations, exhibits, gardens, plants, and various events from 1937-2015. Included are correspondence files, reports, ledgers, publications, news clippings, and photographs. Operations documentation includes internal correspondence, finances, and various committee records. The daily operations and income ledgers date from 1965-1993, with a gap from 1987-1988. Publications in the collection include Bloom (2002-2013), Norfolk Botanical Garden Society Newsletter (1963-1997), and Old Dominion Horticultural Society Bulletin (1940-1962).

The records also include 24 scrapbooks, of which 14 scrapbooks relate to the International Azalea Festival for the years 1965, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, and 1981. The remaining scrapbooks cover history of the Norfolk Botanical Garden from 1961-1988, Federation of Garden Clubs from 1951-1970, Tidewater District Virginia Federation of Garden Clubs from 1952-1959, and Cape Henry Woman's Club from 1959-1961. There are also eight boxes of photographs primarily dating from the late 1980s to 2007 and two boxes of negatives from the 1990s-2000s. There are six boxes comprising approximately 7,000 slide photographs from 1940-2007. Finally, there are eight boxes of audiovisual materials including 16mm and 8mm film reels, VHS tapes, CDs, and other electronic media.