CONSERVATION

GARDENER FALL/WINTER 2018/19 $4.95

THE UNIVERSITY OF AT CHAPEL HILL IN THIS ISSUE

ON THE COVER Starting a 5 Garden Maintenance: Less is More 6 Top Ten Weeds Myths of Tree Planting Watering can in the Mountain Habitat 10 12 near the Paul Green Cabin Photo by Emily Oglesby Woody 14 What Not to 16 Therapeutic 20 100 Years of Forest Theatre 22

6 12

Illustration by Dot Wilbur-Brooks

20 22

To inspire understanding, appreciation and conservation of plants and advance a sustainable relationship between Illustration by people and nature. Sandra Brooks-Mathers What Does it Mean to be a Conservation Garden(er)? BY DAMON WAITT, NCBG DIRECTOR

Dear Members and Friends, The original concept of being a niche it occupies in the public garden and education, and is only available conservation garden has its roots in world. to botanic carrying out plant the early 1970s at the North Carolina conservation activities of local, national, Botanical Garden in response to the What does it mean to be a conservation or global importance. problem of over-collecting in the wild garden today? In broad strokes, I like by native plant enthusiasts, , to think a 21st century conservation If that is what it means to be a and plant nurseries. The solution was garden works to… conservation garden, what does it to create an alternative source of native • Create compellingly beautiful garden mean to be a conservation ? plant species by propagating them in displays that transform the way A conservation gardener is someone our nursery, develop a market to serve people think about native plants. who enjoys the human health benefits people who wish to garden with natives, • Preserve and protect the from spending time outdoors. A and disseminate a “conservation imperiled plants of the southeastern conservation gardener is someone who through propagation” message to the from extinction. conserves precious resources like fresh public. Through this combination of • Cure plant blindness and nature water and uses locally sourced and/or on-site research and off-site outreach, deficit disorder and reverse the recycled materials in their landscape. the Garden became an early leader in homogenization of the American A conservation gardener is someone plant conservation, long before it had landscape. who through their gardening practice physical facilities and public display • Increase botanical capacity locally, enhances the environment’s ability gardens to match its growing reputation regionally, and nationally. to provide the natural benefits that as a conservation garden. support life on earth. Of course it is one thing to call yourself In the mid-1990s, then Garden director a conservation garden and an entirely Want to learn more about being a Peter White published an article in the different thing to be recognized by conservation gardener? Then keep American Association of Botanical your peers as one. You can imagine reading, because this issue of the Gardens and Arboreta magazine, The our excitement when we were selected Conservation Gardener is all about how Public Garden, that broadly articulated by Botanic Gardens Conservation to be, rather than to seem. the meaning of conservation in a International, the largest plant botanical garden context. In that article, conservation network in the world with Esse quam videri. he discussed the many conservation- 508 botanic gardens in 92 countries, related activities that were at the heart to be accredited as one of 11 botanic of the Garden’s mission and programs. gardens adhering to internationally Shortly thereafter, the Garden began recognized conservation standards. The using the tagline “A Conservation accreditation recognizes excellence Garden” to lay claim to this special in plant conservation policy, practice,

Left: Ken Moore and others collect plants at Grandfather Mountain as part of the Garden’s NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN “conservation through propagation” efforts. 3 If you are interested in more tips and advice about gardening with native plants, contact our Green Gardener desk, open Tuesdays and Thursdays, noon - 2 p.m., or call 919-962-2393.

Bringing Conservation Gardening to You BY JENNIFER PETERSON, MANAGING EDITOR

If you are like me, your mind fills In addition to the information found with questions as you wander in this edition, we have opportunities through the North Carolina for you to learn even more! This fall, DAMON WAITT Director Botanical Garden. Often, my our education programs are also questions are about the plants focusing on home gardening, and LISA HICKS Business Operations themselves, but many times, I’m the instructors for many of these curious about how our classes are our very own horticulture CHARLOTTE JONES-ROE Development staff is able to get the plants to look staff. During these workshops, they so great. I know, a deer fence goes will be able to provide much more

JOHNNY RANDALL Conservation a long way toward that. But, I also information than we were able to know from the conversations I have fit in this publication. Be sure to

DAN STERN Horticulture had with our horticulturists, they look through the insert of education hold a wealth of information about programs to find the perfect classes every aspect of gardening. for you. ALAN WEAKLEY

It is this knowledge I tapped into Sharing our conservation values for this edition of the Conservation with the public has been a part Gardener—a comprehensive guide of the North Carolina Botanical to growing your own conservation Garden’s mission since our very Botanical Garden garden. From how to start a garden beginning. Whether you are new to how to prune a tree, from garden to gardening or if you have been maintenance to knowing what not to gardening for decades, I hope Foundation plant, I have tried to include useful you find useful information in the information, straight from the experts following pages! Officers themselves.

GREG FITCH President

MELISSA CAIN Vice President THE FOODSCAPE REVOLUTION CAREY DURHAM Treasurer NOVEMBER 4; 2:30 - 3:30 P.M.

JENNY ROUTH Secretary Visionary horticulturist Brie Arthur presents her signature design technique of , a sustainable landscape practice that integrates edible and ornamental plantings to create beautiful and functional gardens. Brie will LECTURE FITCH discuss how pairing edibles in a traditional ornamental Conservation landscape increases biodiversity and adds purpose to underutilized, everyday spaces. Attendees will get a sneak peek of scenes from her next book, Gardening with Grains Gardener (January 2019). Book signing and reception follow lecture. Free, pre-registration required.

DETAILS AT JENNIFER PETERSON Managing Editor GO.UNC.EDU/FITCHLECTURE

4 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 A mattock can be a useful tool when starting a new garden in the clay of the North Carolina Piedmont.

Six Tips for Starting a Garden

BY CHRIS LILOIA, NCBG HABITAT GARDENS CURATOR

Planning a garden, whether a 3. Got clay? Soil that has a lot of 5. If your space is an intractable perennial garden, a shrub border, a clay has some upsides for gardening, weedy mess, consider laying fern glade, or a grassy bank, can be but easy digging is not one of them. down cardboard or newspaper as much fun as enjoying an already You’ll do your soil a lot of favors if and covering it with a thick layer established one. Here’s some hard- you avoid working it when it’s too of mulch. This will help smother won wisdom to help you with your wet. You’ll do yourself a favor if you even tough weeds, and once the garden preparation. get a mattock (pictured above). They cardboard breaks down you’re ready are also very useful when working to plant. If the weather is on your 1. Start by considering your site and among tree roots, though it’s wise side, by which I mean not August, the garden you want. Whatever your to remember that trees need those sometimes you can cheat and plant growing conditions, there are native roots, so keep disturbance within the smaller plants right into the mulch. plants for them, and starting with a dripline to a minimum. Alternately, you can pile soil on top plan based on your parameters is of your cardboard layer but, again, a good way to succeed. That said, 4. Clay has plenty of nutrients and it’s a process and sometimes you just I have been known to put a shade holds water well, but it can also be need to look at some mulch for a plant in the sun and a sun plant in soggy so you’ll need to think about while as you dream your big garden the shade. Sometimes this means I drainage. Two ways to improve dreams. need to dig that plant up and put it drainage are to add organic matter where I knew I should’ve put it in the and to create a raised bed. At home 6. Patience is an important first place. Sometimes a calculated I use my own , mulched ingredient. Unlike plants with a long risk pays off. It’s a process. leaves, and anything else I can get history of selection for horticultural my hands on. When thinking about expediency, native plants sometimes 2. Plan a whole bed. Unless your soil creating a raised bed, keep in mind need a couple growing seasons is amazing and needs no amending, that it can be edged with stone or to reach their full potential. It’s a your plantings will be more wood or anything else that strikes process, and the journey is half the successful if you create a prepared your fancy, but it doesn’t have to be. fun. bed rather than just digging holes All you need for drainage is to be and adding plants here and there. higher than the surrounding area.

Find plants for your garden at our Fall Plant Sale! Choose from a wide variety of southeastern native wildflowers, shrubs, trees, vines, and ferns at our annual sale, in addition to an entirely new selection of donated

books and native wildflower seeds.

Members’ Night: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 4-7:30 P.M. Members enjoy a special plant sale preview party with live music and refreshments. Non-members are welcome to FALL PLANT SALE become members at the door. Members receive a 10 percent discount on plant and Garden Shop purchases. FALL IS FOR PLANTING! Public Sale: NORTH CAROLINASATURDAY, BOTANICAL SEPTEMBER GARDEN 29, 9 A.M.-3 P.M. 5 Garden Maintenance: Sometimes Less is More BY MARGO MACINTYRE, COKER CURATOR

6 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 “Gardening with natives offers benefits to the environment by featuring plants that are attractive to wildlife and pollinators.”

Gardening is a human endeavor If this is what you want your garden insects. When Echinacea purpurea as old as civilization, and growing to offer, then knowledge about (purple coneflower) petals are plants for food and beauty is maintenance is key to optimize the fading to our eyes, the within something that gives us pleasure wildlife value of the plants. is ripening, and it’s only a matter of whether you are a beginner or an old time until the goldfinches descend. pro. If you are lucky enough to be A garden of natives will offer flowers, Now is when the maintenance, or among those who call themselves a fruit, and cover throughout the year, lack thereof, enters the mix. A bit conservation gardener, you enjoy the not just in the spring and summer. of a tangle is attractive to birds who process of gardening as well as the There will be layers of color, texture, need winter shelter. The sun at lower outcome. and interest. While some plants are winter angles creates shadows unlike producing buds, others are flowering, those displayed at any other time Gardening with native plants while still others are offering seeds, of the year, and the structure and requires a different approach to so there are stages in addition to architecture of a spent flower stalk is maintenance and brings different layers. something a conservation gardener rewards. Gardening with natives learns to appreciate. offers benefits to the environment by There will be quieter times too, and featuring plants that are attractive to what may be perceived as inert by Leaving the spent flower stalks of wildlife and pollinators year round. human eyes is essential to birds and perennials up after their bloom time

Top left: Coneflowers left after the petals have fallen Above: Bluestem and other grasses provide winter provide food for birds such as goldfinches. interest and put on a light show during winter’s setting Bottom left: Birds and insects rely on seeds, including those sun. In addition, they provide homes and cover for birds from asters. When it snows, their structures also provide and insects. nooks and crannies where animals find shelter.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 7 TOO MULCH OF A GOOD THING

When I took high school horticulture, my teacher kept his favorite MULCH GUIDELINES saying posted on the wall: Mucho mulcho is my motto. It is true that in every garden I maintained since then, mulch has been a • Mulch keeps weeds out, moisture in, and adds nutrients as it part of the look. decomposes.

A conservation gardener always use leaves from on site or as • Mulch adds a neat and finished look to the garden. close to the garden as possible. This chore involves picking up the leaves and shredding them. It’s a big chore, but by keeping the • Leaves or pine needles from your own garden are the best source leaves on site, gardeners conserve resources and don’t introduce of mulch for your garden. weeds they don’t already have. • Chop them or leave them whole (Whole leaves can blow away Let the leaves lie where they fall in your more natural areas. in winter winds; chopped leaves decompose fast and may need There is value in leaving the leaves intact to let the insects refreshing.) that overwinter on them and under them live. When mulching around trees, leave the trunk flare (where the trunk spreads and • Leaves from municipal green waste facilities are fine, but be aware comes out of the ground) bare. I notice many landscapes and that new weeds may come in, too. streetscapes where trees are mulched several inches up the trunks, and this “volcano mulching” is a bad practice. The flare of the • Shredded bark is good for tree rings, but could be difficult to use roots by design shed leaves and soil. Water, insects, and disease in flower bed settings due to its weight and tendency to wash can occur by covering this area with mulch. away.

• Shredded hardwood is also good for tree rings, but water can’t always infiltrate, especially in dry weather.

• Mulch 1-3” deep, depending upon how much suppression of seedlings you desire.

• Mulch around the crowns of plants and seedlings you want to nurture so the existing and newly emerging leaves are exposed to the sun.

• When mulching around trees, leave the trunk flare exposed.

can require patience and even tolerance. In the Coker Arboretum, we cut some particularly tall perennials back by a third or half in the early summer. This encourages them to branch laterally and they are less likely to fall over. In fall and winter, we leave most of the grass and perennial stalks up well into January to provide food and cover for birds and other wildlife. It’s a balance between providing habitat and presenting a tidy garden that visitors expect to see on main campus.

In late winter we cut the stalks down, weed around everything, and mulch. Mulch is one thing that can help the garden by adding nutrients and suppressing weeds, and it can give your garden a well-maintained and purposeful edge.

Gardening is a highly personal endeavor; how you maintain your garden gives it that personal touch.

Left: mallow seed pods add winter interest to the garden landscape long after the seeds have fallen. Top right: After aster seeds have blown away, the remaining structures provide a perch for small birds. Many insects live inside flower stalks through the winter. If this material is composted, these homes are destroyed. Bottom right: Wattle fences provide an attractive way to keep spent flower stalks in the garden. 8 “Gardening is a highly personal endeavor; how you maintain your garden gives it that personal touch.”

WATTLE FENCES

As a conservation gardener, I have trouble in late winter Use a piece of rebar and a hammer to make pilot holes for when it comes time to start cleaning up and preparing for the uprights. If the material is from shorter perennials, lay the next growing season. Last year’s perennial stems are the stems between two rows of uprights and tie the tops valuable habitat for insects—be it overwintering adults, with twine to keep things from leaning. One thing to keep larvae, or eggs—as well as other wildlife that need a safe in mind as you set your uprights is that whether you’re place to hide. They also hold the nutrients the plants weaving stems between a single row of uprights or laying pulled from the soil and useful organic matter. Turning them between two close uprights, your horizontal stems them into compost is great, but leaving them in place to will work best if they are at least as long as the distance fulfill their ecological destiny is even better. covered by three uprights.

My first attempts to do so resulted in serpentine brush Hollow stemmed plants like Joe pye weed, switch cane, piles inspired by environmental artist Andy Goldsworthy. and elderberry are especially valuable as nest sites for Linear piles meandering through garden beds can be cavity nesting bees. My fences are mostly horizontal with interesting and functional and require very little effort. vertical elements to hold the whole thing together. More This year, I got more ambitious and built modified wattle vertical elements would arguably benefit the bees even fences with the old stems. The aesthetic is more formal more. There is no end to the possibilities in creating a and visible. wattle fence, so when you build yours, be creative and highlight the functions that are most important to you. Wattle fences can be built in a couple of different ways. When you have tall perennial stems to work with, weave — Chris Liloia, Habitat Gardens Curator the stems between a row of upright branches anchored in the soil. At either end, use two uprights to keep things tidy.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 9 Our Top Ten

Weeds (and how to rid your garden of them, too!)

BY AINSLEY BRIGGS, NCBG HORTICULTURAL TECHNICIAN

Webster’s dictionary defines the word weed as “a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth; especially one that tends to overgrow or choke out more desirable plants.”

Being a conservation garden, the North Carolina Botanical Garden refines that definition a bit further to mean primarily a non-native plant that is not valued where it is growing, especially an exotic invasive. Digitaria sanguinalis Our conservation department has crabgrass studied and managed exotic invasives extensively and has written a An annual grass brought to North comprehensive booklet on the topic. Cerastium vulgatum You can find out more about this America from . It is used booklet and how to download your as a graze for livestock and its mouse-ear chickweed own copy on the next page. seed can be collected as grain for humans. Its adaptability makes it a A winter annual native to Eurasia. Excluding those species addressed in tough weed to control. It acts as its own mulch, smothers other plants, This plant ultimately grows to form the booklet and those that are native a mat and has thick, fuzzy leaves and unintended, the following plants and can tolerate harsh conditions. It is best controlled by pulling it and small, white flowers. Remove are the top ten weeds most commonly plants before they set seed. removed at the North Carolina before it can go to seed. Botanical Garden. Photo by Randall G. Prostak, Photo by Randall G. Prostak, University of Massachusetts-Amherst University of Massachusetts-Amherst

A late-winter/early spring A perennial invasive native annual invasive from eastern to Europe and West . It Asia. It has spread extensively emerges in late winter and throughout the southeastern its bright yellow flowers are U.S. and thrives in disturbed some of the first of spring. It areas, roadsides, fields, and is toxic and potentially fatal lawns. Youngia reseeds widely to grazing animals, and several and the best practice is to pull states have banned it or listed it before it is in flower and sets it as a noxious weed. Its spread seed. is a particular threat to spring ephemerals because its tubers separate easily to become new plants, allowing it to colonize new areas quickly. This trait also Youngia japonica makes eradicating this weed oriental hawks beard difficult. It can be controlled with a 2-3 percent glyphosate Ficaria verna solution. If the plants are in a wetland area, it’s important lesser to use a formulation that is celandine approved for aquatic use. 10 A winter/spring annual native A late winter annual native to Eurasia that has been to Europe that grows as a introduced to most places in groundcover. It is sometimes the world. A member of the grown as a vegetable mustard family, it is edible as for both humans and poultry, a bitter . When the fruit a source of nutrition when is ripe, the seeds will burst food is scarce. This plant explosively, using a seed flowers and seeds at the dispersal strategy known as same time and is widespread ballochory to send seeds far throughout . and wide. This weed is best Remove them before they removed before it starts set seed. Cardamine hirsuta to flower, and absolutely Stellaria media Photo by Dr. Mary Gillham before it sets seed. Archive Project, CC V. 2, bittercress chickweed https://bit.ly/2LKbl3R

An annual legume introduced A summer annual invasive to North America from from eastern Asia. It is found Eurasia as animal fodder. It is mostly in moist, shady areas sometimes sown as a cover- and is typically initially crop because it is sprawling spread by nursery plants. and acts as a nitrogen-fixer. It Once introduced, this weed is shallow rooted and best to can reseed while very small remove before flowers and and its seeds ripen quickly. seeds are set. It’s smart to collect these in plastic bags and throw them in the garbage to Photo by Karan A. Rawlins, Vicia sativa University of Georgia, reduce the number of seeds Bugwood.org Fatoua villosa impacting the area. vetch Photo by Nancy Loewenstein, hairy crabweed Auburn University,

Bugwood.org

Photo by Nancy Loewenstein, Auburn University, Bugwood.org A summer annual native to Asia. It has small alternate leaves and A winter annual native closely resembles plants from to Eurasia. It grows the Mimosa genus. P. urinaria prostrate to form a produces a high number of dense groundcover and seeds, can tolerate shade, and has small, blue flowers. is widespread throughout the Remove the plants southern states. It is shallow before they set seed. rooted and best to remove before flowers and seeds are set. Veronica persica Phyllanthus urinaria bird’s eye chamber bitter speedwell

CONTROL YOUR INVASIVE PLANTS

Is your yard filled with invasive plants that plants are invasive and which are not. The displace the native plants necessary for our next step is knowing how to remove them. pollinators and other wildlife? The best way to avoid being overtaken by invasive plants Our Controlling Invasive Plants booklet is to not purposefully introduce them to helps with both, filled with color photos, your garden. If you already have an issue descriptions, methods for removal, and with invasives, you need to know how to much more! You can download your own control them. copy at:

The first step toward recognizing you have GO.UNC.EDU/CONTROLLINGINVASIVES a problem is being able to identify which

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 11 Common Myths of Tree Planting BY LESLIE MOORMAN, NORTH CAROLINA URBAN FOREST COUNCIL

Almost everyone can agree that water and sunlight and they are good are going to require a larger volume planting trees is a good thing, not just to go. So, location shouldn’t really of soil and more above-ground space for their beauty, but for the benefits matter, right? Wrong. Selecting the as they reach their maximum size. they provide like cooler temperatures, RIGHT TREE for the RIGHT PLACE is increased property value, and wildlife probably the most important part of Myth #2 habitat. However, where and how you tree planting. By selecting the wrong Roots mirror the tree canopy. plant a tree is crucial for its long- location to plant your tree, you are Many people think a tree’s root term success. The longer a tree lives, increasing maintenance needs as system looks exactly like the canopy the more benefits it provides. Many the tree grows,May as well as decreasingOctober (crown) of the tree, growing deep people have misconceptions about its life expectancy. Think carefully and staying within the dripline. Right? trees. Here, we bust some of the most about any site limitations—poor Wrong. A tree’s roots grow out 2-3 common myths. drainage, insufficient sunlight, or times as wide as the canopy, and overhead utility lines—and select a most trees do not have a tap root Myth #1 species appropriate for your growing that grows deep into the soil. Ninety Planting location doesn’t matter. conditions. Make sure you allow percent of a tree’s roots are in the Trees can grow just about anywhere, enough growing space for the tree’s top 24 inches of soil, with most in the give them any soil in any site, a little mature height. Larger trees like oaks top 6-18 inches. Roots need nutrients,

12 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 Right: Illustration by Robert O’Brien Opposite page: Tom Saielli from The American Foundation plants an American chestnut tree in Coker Arboretum.

oxygen, and water to grow and these Myth #5 Trees must be staked. and larger pots. Each time, they fill the are found within the top 24 inches of We’ve all seen the hose and wire pot with roots. This can sometimes soil. tree stakes, sometimes with as many lead to circling roots. Cut any circling as three wire lines, being used on a roots at planting to allow for roots to Myth #3 recently planted tree. Trees don’t need grow horizontally out of the root ball. Never prune a tree at planting. to be staked unless the site is windy, Use a spade to shave off the circling Always remove any dead or damaged they are planted on a hillside, or they roots, then make about five radial cuts limbs at planting, when the limbs have a large crown in comparison to to ensure you eliminate circling roots are small and within reach. You can the height. If you do stake, the entire deeper inside the root ball. correct any crossing limbs or structural staking system should be removed defects such as co-dominant stems within a year, otherwise you run the Myth #8 Tamp down soil in the easily at planting as well. This will risk of girdling the stem. A better planting hole. also mean better tree form over time, method is to use an underground Tamping down the soil with anything requiring less long-term maintenance. staking system that holds the root ball other than water or the shovel is Be sure to make proper pruning cuts. of the tree down. Use 2”x2” untreated unnecessary and will compact the soil See the article on page 14 for some wood, pointed stakes, hammering them in which the roots are trying to grow. pruning advice, and if you are unsure into the ground just outside of the root This eliminates pore space that holds what and where to make the cut, ball on four sides. Use screws to attach air and water for roots. To help settle contact a certified arborist. two cross pieces horizontally to the soil around the root ball, water the stakes, just on top of the root ball. Cut tree when the hole is about halfway Myth #4 off upright stakes at ground level. This filled, and then again when planting is Planting deep is better than can be hidden underneath mulch, and complete. Another option is to use the planting shallow. because the wood is untreated, it will back of a shovel to tap and settle the Many people mistakenly plant their decay over time. soil around the root ball. trees too deep. Planting deep became a myth because people thought it Myth #6 Always amend the soil. Myth #9 More mulch is better than improved tree stability, but in fact it It is unnecessary to amend the soil in not enough. causes girdling roots, trunk/root rot, the planting hole with organic matter. Mulch can provide nutrients to the and puts roots below where oxygen is Research shows that only amending soil, promoting better plant growth. readily available, leading to root death. soil within the planting hole could It regulates soil temperature (not too The trunk flare (where the trunk meets impede establishment of roots outside hot in summer or too cold in winter). the roots) should be at or right above the planting hole. If you have poor soil, It helps retain water within the soil, the land grade. Ideally you want to amend and till the entire site, not just making it available to tree roots for dig the planting hole exactly as deep the planting hole. longer periods. Too much mulch as the root ball and 2-3 times as wide. (called mulch volcanoes) creates To determine root ball depth, find the Myth #7 Cutting roots and conditions that promote fungus and trunk flare. You may have to remove disturbing the root ball is bad. attracts rodents. Too much mulch also soil from the top of the root ball to Many people think disturbing the root impedes oxygen exchange in the find it. Use theFALL handle IS FOR of a shovel or ball during planting will damage the soil, which leads to poor root growth. measuring tape to determine depth tree and lead to poor growth. This is Ideally, apply 2-3 inches of mulch before puttingPLANTING! the tree in the hole. false. It is important, especially if you across the root ball and out to the Make sure the planting hole has sloped are planting a container-grown tree, to dripline. Make sure not to pile mulch sides. This allows for a more natural, break up the root ball and remove any up against the tree trunk. horizontal growth pattern for the roots. circling or girdling roots. When in the nursery, trees are moved up to larger NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 13 BY GEOFFREY NEAL, COKER ARBORETUM ASSISTANT CURATOR Tips for Pruning Woody Plants BY GEOFFREY NEAL, COKER ARBORETUM ASSISTANT CURATOR

Many gardeners, regardless of their experience or skill level, do not stop to consider the effects of the cuts they make on the shrubs and trees in their yard. The primary consideration is often one of necessity: “This limb is in the way…I should remove it.” The immediate effect of the pruning cut is the only question answered when the loppers come out, and while this is worthwhile to think about, it should not be the only thing we consider.

Pruning, simply put, is the removal of plant parts. We prune to influence the growth of plants, enhance their performance in the garden, improve the strength of tree structure, and improve the ability of trees to bear fruit. Perhaps the main reason we prune is to make our garden more appealing.

Pruning is very much a “learn by doing” type of garden task, and it is as much art as it is science. By making the cuts and observing plant reactions over time, the patient gardener will become more confident season by season.

When to prune You will save yourself a lot of pruning if you think about it when you are planting. Consider how big the plant will grow when you choose a space for it. Check the plant label, ask fellow gardeners, consult reputable resources (NCBG comes to mind!).

Usually, if you have a limb getting in the way of a path or gate, you can just have at it. Make your cut and move on.

But more complicated cases can and do arise. You may be asking when should I prune that oak or cherry or hydrangea that I planted in my garden last year? Well, the short answer is: it depends. The best time to prune is a function of the species of plant, the condition of the plant, and the result one desires. Here are a few points to remember. • As a rule, a bit of light pruning can be done any time of year. Likewise, dead branches, broken

14 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 Right: Illustration by Robert O’Brien Opposite page: A recently pruned Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore) at the Garden.

branches, weak or heavily shaded Heading cuts remove the ends hold water (and subsequently ice) branches may for the most part be of shoots or limbs. This promotes and weaken over time. The textbook removed as necessary. regrowth near the cut. Imagine a example would be Pyrus calleryana • For deciduous plants (those that loose, sprawling shrub that has had ‘Bradford’ (Bradford ), a widely lose their leaves in winter), the its tips removed over successive planted cultivated form of an Asian dormant period is usually the best seasons to achieve a hedgerow. pear. This fast growing tree often This is what a heading cut allows splits unexpectedly and can cause time to prune—the time between one to do. The natural form of the real damage if not tended (or better leaf fall and the end of winter. plant is altered to produce a more yet, removed). • Late winter is also a good time to compact form. This is often done with prune evergreen species. shrubs along a foundation that have What happens after pruning • Avoid pruning most broadleaf outgrown the space allotted them. It Just as we develop a scar after a species in early to late spring. is sometimes preferable (certainly wound, so to do woody plants. When more economical) to removing the making your cut, it is very important That said, if you notice your maple plants and starting over with a more to cut just outside the branch collar. limbs are hanging too low after space-appropriate plant. The branch collar is a raised ring of your tree has flowered, feel free to tissue where the limb is attached to do some corrective pruning to raise Thinning cuts remove entire shoots the stem or trunk. This is where the those limbs to a more comfortable or limbs at the point of attachment callus will form following a pruning height. These pruning cuts can be to a main branch. This type of cut cut. The callus is the plant’s response made from April through November does not stimulate regrowth as much to being wounded. It is a ring of tissue as various trees gain leaf and fruit but allows the plant to maintain its that closes up over the cut over time weight. form as the ends of shoots are not and protects the tree from pathogens removed. We use these cuts when and disease. Remember, make your To maximize flowering, pruning again we wish to open up a shrub or tree, cut close to the collar but not into depends on the plant. Knowing when improving light penetration and it. Too far away from the collar will your plants flower will inform your air circulation to the interior of the leave a stub, which is slower to heal decision on when to make those cuts. plant. This is also valuable when and thus, more prone to decay. Stubs • Species that flower in summer/fall considering limbs that cross and rub are often seen on trees that have on current season’s growth should one another. Over time, this stress can been hastily pruned. Correcting these be pruned in winter. provide a point of entry for disease. errors will result in a healthier and • Plants that flower in spring from Water sprouts are shoots that often (usually) more aesthetically pleasing the previous season’s buds are best arise from limbs that are close to plant. pruned at the end of their flowering parallel to the ground, though they period. are also seen on the trunks of trees. Pruning is an integral part of Betula spp. (birch) are susceptible nurturing a cultivated landscape. to these as are many spp. Over time, confidence increases and Types of pruning cuts Prunus Now you’re out there in your (cherry). Thinning removes these the results of your good work will be landscape, tools in hand, and you’re shoots and may be done at any time. evident in fitter, happier plants. Lastly, thinning cuts are useful in staring into that tangle of Morella removing limbs that share a narrow cerifera (wax myrtle) branches. Where to cut? How? Basically, there are two angle with their neighbor. Limbs that types of pruning cuts: heading cuts are crowded in this manner develop and thinning cuts. compressed bark between themselves and normal wood development is prevented. These tight pockets also

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 15 WHATNOT TOPLANT BY DAN STERN, DIRECTOR OF HORTICULTURE AND GEOFFREY NEAL, COKER ARBORETUM ASSISTANT CURATOR We recently went undercover to a couple large scale retail nurseries and were surprised to see them carrying several mediocre, non-native (and sometimes invasive) species. Buyer beware! Here is a handful of common, non-native landscape plants we found that you would do well to avoid, as well as some suggestions of what to use instead. You can find these natives for sale at the Garden as well as several local native plant nurseries.

COMMON NON-NATIVE NATIVE ALTERNATIVE

Berberis thunbergii Itea virginica Japanese barberry Virginia sweetspire • Deciduous shrub with attractive • Deciduous shrub with fragrant fall color white flowers in early summer and • 3-6’ high, 4-7’ wide attractive fall color • Non-native invasive with heavy • 3-5’ high, usually wider than tall fruit set dispersed by birds over • Highly adaptable native with no large distances serious pest or disease issues

Cupressus × leylandii Juniperus virginiana Leyland cypress Eastern redcedar • Fast growing evergreen tree • Native evergreen tree with often used for screening moderate growth rate and medium • Columnar habit with fine texture textured foliage • Habit of straight species tends to • Drought intolerant and shallow be columnar but lots of variation root system causes plants to in cultivars topple in heavy wind, rain, and • Highly adaptable to various site ice conditions

Nandina domestica Agarista populifolia Heavenly -hobblebush • Evergreen shrub with stout erect • Evergreen shrub with multi- stems stemmed, arching habit • 6-8’ tall, forms a wide thicket • 8-12’ tall but can be maintained at • New foliage often tinted bluish, shorter height with proper pruning changing to green and then • New foliage tinged red or purple reddish in fall • Small, cream-colored flowers in • Pink/white flowers mature into early summer that smell like milk bright red fruit in fall and honey • Non-native invasive with heavy • Will tolerate a wide range of light fruit set dispersed by birds over conditions but needs supplemental large distances. water in full sun 16 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 COMMON NON-NATIVE NATIVE ALTERNATIVE Ligustrum spp. Morella cerifera Privet Common wax-myrtle • Evergreen shrub with dark green • Evergreen shrub with medium to dark foliage green foliage • 10-15’ tall, multi-stemmed often • 10-15’ tall and as high but can be forming dense thicket maintained at smaller size with proper • Large clusters of small white and pruning fragrant flowers in early summer • Highly adaptable to a wide variety of • Prolific black -like fruit soil types and light conditions dispersed by birds over large • Grayish, berry-like fruit that persists distances through the winter and is an important • Escaped seed forms dense thickets food source for many native bird in the woods displacing native species ; highly invasive

Buddleja davidii Clethra alnifolia Butterfly bush Coastal sweet-pepperbush • Deciduous shrub, usually 5-8’ tall with • Deciduous shrub, usually 3-8’ tall with arching habit and gray-green leaves round-topped erect habit. Often • Large inflorescences covered with suckers to forms large colonies small individual flowers, available in a • Leaves are deep green in summer wide variety of colors turning goldish-yellow in fall • Blooms for several months and • Highly fragrant, white flowers (pink popular with bees and butterflies cultivars available) in July and August • Easily escapes cultivation and • Attractive to bees and other native establishes along streambanks pollinators displacing native vegetation

Elaeagnus spp. Illicium parviflorum Autumn Yellow anise-tree • Evergreen shrub, 12-15’ tall and • Evergreen shrub, 6-10’ tall often comparable spread suckering to form large colony • Medium texture, dark green leaves • Medium texture with glossy olive often silvery on the underside green leaves • Small, fragrant yellowish flowers in • Inconspicuous flower and fruit late spring • Highly deer resistant and tolerant of • Prolific berry-like fruit in the fall a wide variety of soil types and light dispersed by birds over large conditions distances • Escaped seed forms dense thickets in the woods displacing native vegetation; highly invasive

Pyrus calleryana 'Bradford' Cercis canadensis Bradford pear Eastern redbud • Deciduous flowering tree • Deciduous flowering tree • 30-50’ tall, 20-35’ wide with broad • 20-30’ tall, slightly wider at maturity conical shape with a rounded crown, arched • Medium textured, glossy dark green branches, and distinctive zig-zag stems leaves that turn yellow and red in the • Large heart-shaped leaves, medium fall green turning yellow in autumn • Abundant white flowers in early • Clusters of small pink and purple spring with unpleasant smell flowers emerge along branches and in • Branches at tight angles make it prone the axils in early spring to serious splits in wind and ice • Pea-pod shaped appear mid- • ‘Bradford’ cultivar is known to summer and persist through fall produce seedlings that revert to the straight species Callery pear, a highly invasive tree

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 17 Solidago nemoralis va r. nemoralis (gray goldenrod) and Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem) thrive in dry to average soil

COLOR and sunny conditions.

Gray goldenrod is a small and well-behaved FALL FALL goldenrod. Its upright and clumped habit and handsome grayish foliage help set off the great fall color and fine texture of little bluestem.

Staff Picks Staff Picks is a new feature of the Conservation Gardener. In each issue, the Garden staff will offer up advice that look and live great together. In this edition, our habitat gardens curator Chris Liloia shares two colorful combinations -- one for fall and one for spring.

Aquilegia canadensis (eastern columbine), Phlox divaricata (woodland phlox), and Packera aurea (golden ragwort) thrive in moist to average soil with part sun to shade.

These three bloom COLOR together fairly early in the spring when we’re all still used to a lot of gray and brown in the garden. The purple, red, and yellow combination is just right. 18 SPRING PLANTING SEEDLINGS Be sure to break up the root ball and knock the soil loose before you plant seedlings.

GARDEN WITH PATIENCE It takes an average of three years for a native plant garden to look lush. Be sure to give your plants space to grow during those years. Your garden will reward you with beauty, low maintnenance, and a thriving habitat for SOIL COMPRESSION pollinators, birds, and more. Be careful where you walk. Limit how much time you stand in one place to avoid soil compression. KNOW YOUR PLANTS Take a moment to get to know your plants and what they like. Some like sun, while others like shade. Staff Tips Some like moist soil, and others prefer dry conditions. Give them what they need, Our horticulture staff has spent countless hours in the and they will grow better Garden, and are experts in their field. Here they offer up for you. some tips for working with native plants.

USE THE RIGHT TOOLS The right tools can make GROWING MILKWEED gardening easier. Our staff Milkweed needs a lot of drainage recommends having these tools to grow successfully. At the Garden, on hand: shovel, leaf rake, hand we sometimes mix grit into the soil trowel, triangular weeding hoe around our milkweed plants. The or soil knife, pruners, gloves, plants also like full sun, and prefer loppers, digging fork, and nutrient-poor soil. possibly even a mattock. See the article on page 5 for more information about mattocks.

LEAF LITTER What is an environmentally- responsible way of dealing LAWN ALTERNATIVES with all the leaves each fall? Traditional grass lawns require a lot of resources and do Many critters rely on leaves not provide food or shelter for pollinators and other for shelter during the winter, wildlife. Invite your wild neighbors to your yard by so if you can, leave some in reducing the size of your lawn with these groundcovers: place. Collect the rest, mow over them to shred them, and SCIENTIFIC NAME COMMON NAME use them as mulch. Learn more about mulch on page 8. Heuchera americana American alumroot Asarum canadense wild ginger Chrysogonum virginianum green and gold Tiraella cordifolia var. collina foamflower Phlox divaricata eastern blue phlox Mitchella repens partridgeberry WATERING Piptochaetium avenaceum eastern needlegrass • Water in the morning or evening, but avoid the middle of Sedum ternatum woodland stonecrop the day when the water will evaporate faster. • Try to water the roots of the plant rather than its leaves. Antennaria parlinii ssp. fallax big-head pussytoes • Water thoroughly but less often. Water plants twice a week Polystichum acrostichoides Christmas fern for about a month when they are planted, then water once each week for the next year. cristata dwarf crested iris • Dig in the dirt near the plant to make sure it was actually Phlox nivalis pineland phlox watered. Water can roll right off dry soil or a layer of mulch, leaving the roots dry.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 19 Living Learning Landscapes: Therapeutic Gardening in Schools BY EMILY OGLESBY, NCBG COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT

Anyone who has dug their hands individuals with mental illness, Amy Brightwood was interning with into the earth, faithfully watered, and physical challenges, developmental Haskett as part of her training to watched as new life emerged from disabilities, memory impairment, and become a registered horticultural the soil is no stranger to the way more. therapist when she came up with gardening lifts the spirits. But the the idea for her long-term project: a professional therapeutic process of The Garden’s first horticultural therapeutic horticulture program for horticultural therapy is about more therapy program began in 1978, exceptional children—those who than just fresh air and new seedlings. just five years after horticultural are differently abled—incorporating It addresses the needs of the whole therapy was officially established as a goal-based lesson plans with person: horticultural therapy uses profession. North Carolina Botanical hands-on time in pollinator and plants and gardening to increase Garden (NCBG) staff worked in vegetable gardens. She brought the self-esteem, reduce depression and hospitals, mental health centers, project to Glenwood Elementary in anxiety, create community and a correctional facilities, and schools. Chapel Hill last summer, working sense of belonging, and provide Today, under the direction of program with teachers, counselors, and sensory enjoyment and a feeling of manager Sally Haskett, the NCBG parents to develop program goals awe and wonder. It provides gentle horticultural therapy program carries and prepare the school’s gardens. exercise and can be modified on that legacy through programs for Beginning in fall 2017, students at for many skill levels. It’s a tool for adults at the Garden, at continuing Glenwood with learning differences education and can provide job care retirement communities, and at and behavioral challenges learned training and practical skills that The Farm at Penny Lane, a working about the importance of pollinators lead to greater independence. And farm in Chatham County serving and examined real-life chrysalises, all this to people with all kinds of individuals with mental illness. and then planted pollinator-friendly needs: populations served include native perennials propagated by the

20 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 NCBG nursery. Ongoing work in their Bees, Brightwood was also able to And the results are clear: the —watering, weeding, consult at each school about how exceptional children teacher and and more—not only provides hands- a therapeutic horticulture program the school counselor at Glenwood on therapeutic and educational or garden might be implemented. whose students went through experiences but also helps sustain Through Living Learning Landscapes, Brightwood’s program last fall this new habitat for native wildlife. over 50 distinct species have been agreed they saw significant, positive planted across the Chapel Hill- changes in their kids through Inspired to expand this program to Carrboro City School district, many their work in the gardens. Kids other local schools, NCBG applied from the NCBG nursery. The program’s with behavioral challenges who for a grant to train local teachers to vegetable gardens, harvested in the had been having a hard time with implement a therapeutic horticulture fall, promote the development of aggression demonstrated decreased program in their own schools. The home gardens and enrich family impulsivity and improved focus, thinking, according to Brightwood, access to healthy organic foods. cooperation, and social skills. Kids was that “schools may not have with learning differences showed the budget to hire a horticultural At Scroggs Elementary in southern improved language and social skills, therapist, but if we can train teachers Chapel Hill, Brightwood worked with a better ability to follow step-by-step to do therapeutic gardening with fourth grade teacher and school instructions, and an increased sense kids, that’s a way to keep that going.” garden club coordinator Jeanette of self-esteem and accomplishment. Thanks to a Honeybee and Human Dixon to plant a full According to exceptional children Health grant from the Burt’s Bees of plants that engage kids’ senses teacher Annabelle Davenport, the Greater Good Foundation, the Living of smell, touch, taste, and sight. Kids students who worked on the gardens Learning Landscapes program of different ages and with a variety last fall “are still very proud of their was born: a program that develops of developmental and physical achievement” and are “very keen to sustainable pollinator and vegetable differences plant, weed, and water show their creation to visitors to the gardens at schools in combination together in gardening programs school.” with teacher training in therapeutic at Scroggs, an integrated learning horticulture. experience that builds community The exceptional children program at among students. Glenwood has officially adopted the Last March, teachers, occupational school’s butterfly garden, the one they therapists, and counselors from Beyond helping teachers with the themselves planted with pollinator- five different schools in the Chapel initial development of a school friendly perennials with Brightwood Hill-Carrboro City School district therapeutic horticulture program, last fall. Gardening is the gift that participated in the new Living the Living Learning Landscapes keeps on giving: through caring for Learning Landscapes training. training provided an opportunity a garden, students are able to grow, The training was an A-to-Z of for peer support and sharing ideas nourish, and care for themselves and implementing a therapeutic that Brightwood hopes will continue the world around them. horticulture program in a school, to motivate teachers going forward. from basics of plant and gardening Teachers in the training swapped therapy to workshops on how ideas about programming and talked to grow a and about how to make their programs Below left: A student waters the lessons on pollinator-friendly plants. sustainable by applying for grants and new garden at his elementary school. Below right: Teachers learn how to use As part of the grant from Burt’s cultivating parent involvement. horticultural therapy in their schools. Facing page: The pollinator garden at Glenwood Elementary School.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 21 100 Years of Forest Theatre BY JENNIFER PETERSON, NCBG COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Many of us know and love Forest In this role, he encouraged his nation that North Carolina was filled Theatre as the late summer home of students to create dramas based on with rich culture. A recent essay by the Paperhand Puppet Intervention’s their own experiences of farm and H. L. Mencken had criticized the annual performances. Others frontier life. Koch was passionate South as “a vast plain of mediocrity,” remember frequent performances by about Shakespeare, and he believed citing the little theater movement various groups through the mid-1970s, by having students write about as evidence. According to Mencken, and a few might even remember the themselves, eventually someone community theaters and art work of its namesake, the father of would write in a way that would exhibitions were sweeping the nation, American folktale. reflect America and resonate with the exception of the South. universally, becoming an American The Frederick Henry Koch Memorial Shakespeare. Graham brought Koch to UNC in 1918, Forest Theatre is celebrating its 100th and the drama department quickly birthday next year. The story of its Meanwhile, in Chapel Hill, UNC took off. Shortly after his arrival in youth is a story of community culture president Edward Kidder Graham was Chapel Hill, Koch and William C. combined with the passion of Koch. interested in extending education Coker, professor and chair of off campus to the community and the grounds and buildings commitee, Frederick Koch grew up in the beyond. He appreciated Koch’s work met to determine the location of an Midwest in the late 1800s, earned in community drama, and thought outdoor theater, the venue we now several degrees in drama, and dramas created by the people of know as Forest Theatre. The location eventually became a professor North Carolina demonstrating their they chose had already been used at the University of North Dakota. heritage could be used to show the for this purpose—one of the earliest

22 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 Left: Professor Koch, known to his students as “Proff Koch,” works with students during a dress rehearsal. Below: Paperhand Puppet Intervention performs at the Forest Theatre every summer. Photo by Lee Capps Photography.

performances at the site was in honor Flanagan felt a new building for the many performances, and received of the tercentenary of Shakespeare’s Playmakers would be a candidate for little maintenance. In 2004, the death, and freshman Paul Green a WPA construction project. That plan management of Battle Park, which had performed his self-authored collapsed, but from 1940-1943, a WPA includes Forest Theatre, was “Surrender to the Enemy” there in grant was used to renovate Forest transferred to the Garden. In 2012, 1917. Theatre. Flagstone steps were built a grant enabled the Garden to in addition to stone lighting towers, enhance the electrical capacity of In 1919, Koch established the a director’s box, ticket box, main the stage, but there are many more Carolina Playmakers, now Playmakers entrance, and a stone stage backdrop. improvements necessary to allow Repertory Company, to produce The new stonework was designed Koch’s vision to flourish, including and perform original folk plays in by Albert Q. Bell, designer of the addresing drainage issues, repairing addition to performing classic and Waterside Theatre, home of “The Lost the lighting towers and other contemporary plays. Forest Theatre Colony” written by Paul Green. structures, and improving lighting and became the home for their annual sound infrastructure. As we look to outdoor production. In 1943, the new Forest Theatre the next 100 years of Forest Theatre, was dedicated before a Carolina the Garden hopes to work with Thomas Wolfe, Paul Green, and Playmakers production of campus and community partners numerous other students created Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s to sustain Koch’s dream of outdoor folk drama, writing about legends or Dream.” Unfortunately, Koch died the performances. day-to-day college life. Often, these following year. In 1953, the theater plays portrayed the conflicts of the was officially named the Frederick To learn more about Forest Theatre New South, adding to the university’s Henry Koch Memorial Forest Theatre. restoration planning or to make a radical reputation. Meanwhile, the financial gift toward Forest Theatre Carolina Playmakers were critically By the mid-1970s, Playmaker’s enhancements, contact NCBG acclaimed. Beginning in the 1920s, new building offered several associate director of development the troupe traveled across the state indoor production facilities. Forest Stephen Keith at 919-843-2411 or and the nation, and UNC was home Theatre was no longer a venue for [email protected]. to a leading academic program in playwriting and production with Koch as the head.

In the 1930s, the university’s drama program was tapped to aid in recovery from the Great Depression. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) created the Federal Theatre Project, led by Hallie Flanagan who worked to build a nationwide program despite the concentration of theater artists in Los Angeles and New York. To do this, she turned to directors at community and college theaters across the country. She worked closely with Koch and the Playmakers, hoping this would become the model for other rural areas.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 23 Bill and Mary Coker Joslin generously supported the Garden, and continue their support through planned gifts.

A Garden of Gratitude BY CHARLOTTE JONES-ROE, DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Gardeners are often good planners, from the estate of Barbara Roth arrived The Garden offers a number of paid because creating even the simplest to build the Mason Farm Endowment. opportunities for students to work at gardens and landscapes takes thought Barbara defended Mason Farm for the Garden and gain direct experience and consideration. Gardeners don’t take nearly half a century, and her planned in their major or intended career fields. for granted the basics like sunshine gift will support management of this UNC botany alumni Larry Blanton and rain and are grateful for the research reserve from now on. and Candace Haigler gave $25,000 to reemergence of favorite plants after complete the permanent endowment a long winter. The North Carolina A record number of contributors added that generates funds for the Mary McKee Botanical Garden doesn’t take your up to more than 3,600 members. Your Felton Herbarium Internship. Janice support for granted, either. I personally dues and additional gifts helped us Swab’s gift for the Edward C. want to thank everyone who helped meet our fundraising goals for general Swab Floristics fund will be available us succeed this year and increased support as well as for specific programs immediately to support botanical field our permanent revenue sources for and places. Not all of the Garden’s work for the Herbarium. programs and places at the North financial support came from individuals. Carolina Botanical Garden. Syngenta Crop Protection’s $50,000 Chicita Culberson made two very gift for conservation will make a wide generous gifts this year to make sure we Our largest gifts this year came from range of native plant conservation have the funds to care for her former founders, volunteers, and other loyal projects possible. Similarly, the Oak home and woodland, Villa Pinea. Our friends who planned ahead, leaving Foundation’s $50,000 for Wonder Carolina Campus Community Garden significant gifts for immediate use or to Connection will provide support for the was the recipient of an especially large provide permanent resources. Additional Garden’s program to involve children gift this year from a donor who prefers trust distributions from William and at UNC Chidren’s Hospital with nature. to remain anonymous. The Burt’s Bees Mary Coker Joslin continue to build The Chapel Hill Garden Club presented Greater Good Foundation contributed the Coker Arboretum Endowment and $32,500 in proceeds from their 2018 toward Living Learning Landscapes provide funds for construction of a spring garden tour for the Children’s (see page 20) and creating a pollinator new UNC Herbarium. These gifts were Wonder Garden. Florence and Jim toolkit for North Carolina. Dave Robert in addition to the Joslins’ generous Peacock’s generous contributions are sponsored the Dead Mule event to contributions throughout the history of funding new hands-on interpretive raise funds for student interns at Coker the Garden and the gifts made in their displays for children in the Peacock Arboretum and Battle Park, and he honor by family and friends. Volunteer Children’s Discovery Room. Marcella contributed $15,000 to launch the fund Patricia Aulick’s planned gift for general Grendler’s challenge for the Garden’s for the replacement of the arbor in the support of the Garden will go a long way entry landscape improvements inspired Coker Arboretum. to help fund basic operations, staff, and many contributions, and she has offered students. Similarly, Julia Irwin’s eighth an additional match up to $30,000 for It’s one thing to plan a Garden, but distribution from her charitable lead contributions made by our members’ quite another to keep it growing! To annuity trust is helping with critical annual meeting on November 16. help us raise our largest total ever for expenses. An additional distribution general support, our members sent in Continued on page 26.

SEPTEMBER 16 - DECEMBER 9 Our annual outdoor sculpture exhibition unites the work of North Carolina artists with the curated landscapes of the Garden. Free and open to the public. NCBG.UNC.EDU/SCULPTURE

PREVIEW PARTY, SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 4:30-6:30 P.M. Meet the artists, vote for the People’s Choice award (announced in October), make early purchases, and enjoy beverages and hors d’oeuvres. Tickets: $30 per person. GARDEN COMMUNITY DAY, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2-4 P.M. Tour the exhibit, enjoy refreshments, and vote for the People’s Choice Award. At the end SCULPTURE IN THE of the afternoon, we’ll announce the People’s Choice Award winner. Free and open to the 24 public. We appreciate all memberships and additional gifts to the Garden! Tribute Gifts below were received from January 25 to July 16, 2018.

IN HONOR OF Margo MacIntyre Marilyn D. Blanton Harry Gooder For Coker Arboretum Endowment For the Mary McKee Felton Herbarium LiddyBet Holsten Brie Arthur Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Internship Fund Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Springdale Estates Garden Club Emilie P. de Lucas Lynne Blanton Stephen L. Keith and Lisa C. Glover Larry Mellichamp Larry Blanton and Candace Haigler Barbara and Bob Wendell Lynda Baddour, Peter and Carolyn White on the occasion of her birthday Sarah Manfred, Jane F. Brinkley Eric J. Zogry Duffy and Fred Askin, for Children’s on the occasion of her birthday Julie W. Peck Wonder Garden Katherine Manfred, for Carolina Campus Gozelle Ham Community Garden Melinda Kellner Brock Martha and “B” Townes, Geoffrey Barton and Shoshana Fried, Eunice M. Brock for the Living Plant Fund on the occasion of their marriage Harriet Wall Martin Emily and Richard Scoville, for Battle Park Tina and Jerry Bell Janie Leonard Bryan William and Evelyn Heuser Endowment Betty Kenan, for Battle Park Endowment Charlotte Jones-Roe Daniel and Jane Heuser

Melissa McComb Cain Harriet and D.G. Martin Betye Boyd Carey Mary McCleskey Hinton Kimberly and James Goff, for Coker Grier and Louise Martin Martha A. Propst Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Arboretum Endowment Jim R. Massey Wayne E. Cash Frederick J. Houk Nancy Easterling Sherry Morgan, for Carolina Moonlight Linda G. Cash Thomas A. Yermack For the Horticultural Therapy Program Garden Party Catherine Alguire My Cat Angel Jonathan Howes Sandra Brooks-Mathers and Mike Mathers David B. Moss Susan Shevach Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Pam and Bill Camp Angie Hall Stephen L. Keith and Lisa C. Glover Barbara Carman and Larry Hodges J.N. and Kate Coble Sarah and John Dendy NCBG Tour Guides Rebecca S. Coble Mercer Reeves Hubbard Betsy Donovan Grant and Leslie Parkins Charlotte Jones-Roe Allison J. F. Colvard Nina and Milton Forsyth Scottie Neill Charlotte Jones-Roe Kenneth W. Hunt Anne D. Geer and David Scott, Mary and Joe Dudley Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe for General Support Gretchen and Zeke Cozart The Greenbriers Leah Peterson, Charlotte Jones-Roe Mary Ishaq Anne F. Harris on the occasion of her birthday Charlotte Jones-Roe Shawn Hoffman For Wonder Connection Emily Cox DeLapp Elisa Jones and Judy Riley The McDaniel Family For Natural Areas Endowment E. Felton Jones Glenda P. Jones The Nelson Family Connie King Harold and Kristina Johnson, for Coker Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe The Wisdom Family Laverne Smith Arboretum Endowment Stephen L. Keith and Lisa C. Glover Rick Trois Lynn K. Knauff Stephen A. Rich Edgar Leonard Jones and Timothy A. Kuhn Harriet and Kimball King, for Carolina Francois Xavier Deprez Charlotte McCleskey Jones Paula LaPoint Moonlight Garden Party Mary Clara Capel, for Battle Park Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Joanne and John Lott Expendable and Coker Arboretum North Carolina Botanical Bill Ross and Susan Gravely Improvement Fund Mary Coker Joslin Garden Staff Charlotte Battle, for Battle Park Bob Davis and Judy Morgan-Davis Mary Norris and Pat Oglesby Endowment Diamond Family Bettina Patterson Lauren Diamond William and Mary Coker Joslin Missy and Sam Rankin Sue Tiedeman Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Margot and David Ringenburg Betty White David Dyer Roberta and Douglas Tilden Beverly and Samuel Dyer, for Mason Farm Caitlin Kennedy Kelly Susan C. Turbak and Kenneth R. Tindall Susan Trout Endowment Mildred G. Kelly Damon and Sara Waitt Randy and Robin Mullis, Barbara and Bob Wendell for Wonder Connection Karen Elder Fred O. Kiger Fran and Gary Whaley Charlotte Jones-Roe Freddie Kiger, for Battle Park Endowment Damon Waitt Elizabeth McIntyre Fitch-Sweet Catharine and Wood Burns, for Carolina Jean Fort Jack Ralph Lamm Nancy G. Schoonmaker Moonlight Garden Party James C. Fort, for Coker Arboretum Susan and Allan Eure, Endowment for Conservation Fund Marilyn Henshaw Fran Whaley William R. Henshaw, Meredith Quinn Priscilla Freeman Marguerite MacIntyre for Friends of UNC Herbarium Alan and Maxine Stern, for Living Plant Charlotte Jones-Roe Fund Wesley Huppert, IN MEMORY OF Bet and Sandy McClamroch on the occassion of his 2nd birthday Elizabeth S. Fudge Charlotte Jones-Roe David and Sarah Huppert Sally Elizabeth Anderson Mary Beth and Robert Keiter, for Elizabeth A. Dutton Horticulture Fund Sam McCleskey Charlotte Jones-Roe Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Harriet and D.G. Martin Ray E. Ashton, Jr. Rob Gardner Grier and Louise Martin Elizabeth A. Lord Charlotte Jones-Roe Kathryn Charles McCoy Brandon and Kelly Wright Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe C. Ritchie Bell Eleanor George Mary Kiger Charlotte Jones-Roe Charlotte Jones-Roe Scott McLean Jr. Freddie Kiger, for Battle Park Endowment For Battle Park Endowment David Godschalk Gerry Barrett Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Paul M. Vernon

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 25 Carol Lasher Miller Nancy N. Pruden Josie Stipe LEAVE A LEGACY For Living Plant Fund Gerry Barrett, for Battle Park Laurie J. Norman Clay Miller Endowment If you would like to speak with Cyrus L. Miller Nancy “Teeny” Stronach someone about making a special gift Albert E. Radford, Harry E. Ahles Charlotte Jones-Roe to the Garden, call Charlotte Jones- Judith A. Miller and C. Ritchie Bell Roe at 919-962-9458 or UNC’s gift Brenda W. Ashe, “On the occasion of the 50th Margaret E. Taylor planning experts at 800-994-8803. for Living Plant Fund Anniversary of publication of Nina G. Wallace of the Carolinas” Amie Modigh John and Elizabeth Bozeman David N. Thompson Sandra L. Venegoni Charles and Patricia Susan Preston Resnik Thompson, for Coker Arboretum Mary L. Waitt Marguerite Pearson Morrow David B. Resnik Endowment Carey and Billie Durham Jeffery S. Beam and Stanley G. Finch, Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe for Coker Arboretum Endowment Karsten A. Rist Bernice Stiles Wade Patti Smith and Educational Outreach Carl and Lisa Rist For Battle Park Intern Program Frank and Joan Adler Jane Carter Walker Katherine Bradley Mouzon Nancy Howes Robinson Anthony and Tricia Amitrano Richard I. Walker Charlotte Jones-Roe Carol S. Rosenberg Charles and Jane Byrd Jewel L. Crawford Anne Louise Dutton Wharton Paul Nettesheim Isaiah F. and Dorothy S. Roe Geraldine E. Day Elizabeth A. Dutton, for Wonder Barbara L. Nettesheim Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Jan and Jim Dean Connection Arthur and Mignon DeBerry Shelia Nickerson Barbara Roth Sara P. Faccidomo, for Battle Park Kemp Winstead Charlotte Jones-Roe Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe Endowment Henry G. Grossberg, for Battle Park Deborah M. Hock Endowment Oliver Hamilton Orr, Jr. Marsha Schlander Jean Holcomb Audrey J. Booth, Joanne Custer, for Carolina Campus Harriet T. Holderness Richard Harden Ziglar for Mason Farm Endowment Community Garden Stephen L. Keith and Lisa C. Glover, Mary Clara Capel, for Battle Park Charlotte Jones-Roe and Chuck Roe for Battle Park Endowment Expendable and Coker Arboretum Thomas A. Sharp The Kilgore Family—Marge, John, Improvement Fund Carolyn Anne Owen Tyrrell C. Sharp Johnny, Sara and Megan Jim and Kathy Gallucci Mildred and John Long Charles Zimmerli Jean and Pearson Stewart James E. Luebchow Jeanne P. Duggan Athena Geanetos Parker Barbara and Larry Rowan Orange County Extension and Charlotte Jones-Roe Community Association Barbara Stiles and Josie Patton Harold C. Pollard III Bernice Stiles Wade Martha and Wilborn Roberson Louise B. Pollard, for Battle Park Charlotte Jones-Roe Barbara G. Schliebe Endowment Becky and Robbie Smith Jack and Nancy Tomkovick Bob and Susan Williams

Continued from page 24. unprecedented annual gifts, including volunteers in the early days of the We follow in the footsteps of people extra contributions from Harriet and D.G. Garden, now provides more than $25,000 who have done whatever they could Martin, Greg Fitch and John Sweet, Tom annually toward care of the Mercer to advance the mission of native plant Kenan, James and Beth Joslin, and David Reeves Hubbard Herb Garden. These and conservation, and, in some modest way, to and Laurie Joslin. other permanent endowments, totaling preserve our beautiful planet. more than $4 million, generate more than Especially gratifying is the growth of $200,000 each year to support free public With gratitude, permanent endowments to provide for lectures, plants and displays, exhibits, and Charlotte Jones-Roe some of the Garden’s special places internships. Director of Development and programs. The Coker Arboretum (919) 962-9458 Endowment basis has surpassed $1.2 You have helped us achieve or exceed all million and generates more than of our fundraising goals for the year, and Stephen Keith $50,000 per year for staff as well as you have invested in the Garden’s future Associate Director of Development student assistants. The newer Battle as well. I am grateful for my colleagues, (919) 843-2411 Park Endowment generates more than past and current staff, as well as all the $13,000 for staff and interns who care many volunteers, students, and members for our campus forest. The Herb Garden who built and continue to care for Endowment, established by Garden the North Carolina Botanical Garden.

Folding pocket guides are designed to be an indoor/outdoor quick reference filled with tips and IN THE resources for your home garden needs. We carry a wide variety of titles including Bugs and Slugs, Edible GARDEN Wild Plants, House and Garden Pests, North Carolina Trees and Wildflowers, Butterflies and Moths, Invasive SHOP Weeds, Garden Insects and Bugs, Dragonflies and Damselflies, and many more.

26 Conservation Gardener FALL/WINTER 2018/19 THANK YOU, COMMUNITY PARTNERS!

CONSERVATION VISIONARIES MARK YOUR CALENDAR September 15 Sculpture in the Garden Preview Party September 28 & 29 Fall Plant Sale October 26 Boo-tanical: HABITAT SUSTAINERS Pumpkins in the Garden November 4 Jenny Elder Fitch Lecture featuring Brie Arthur November 16 Botanical Garden Foundation Membership Meeting December 7 Botanical Garden Foundation Holiday Party December 8 & 9 Winter in the Garden Holiday Festival

For more information: GARDEN SUPPORTERS ncbg.unc.edu/2018-events

BECOME AN EVENT HOST Would you like to sponsor one or more of the Garden’s signature events by becoming an Event Host? We can customize a hosting program that meets your individual needs and philanthropic goals. For more information, please contact Stephen Keith at skeith@email. unc.edu or call 919-843-2411.

NORTH CAROLINA BOTANICAL GARDEN 27 North Carolina Botanical Garden The University of North Carolina Campus Box 3375 Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3375 Phone: 919-962-0522 ncbg.unc.edu · [email protected] ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

NCBG.UNC.EDU/GET-INVOLVED