Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden Blog

Low Maintenance Doesn’t Mean No Variety

2011-08-15T17:13:00.000-04:00

Colorful tropical plants add beauty and create a relaxing atmosphere to any interior living environment whether at home or work. Maintaining tropical plants inside may seem to be challenging, but luckily there are many that are low maintenance. Three favorites come to mind:

The first is Sansevieria, commonly known as the snake plant. With very low water and light requirements, this is one of the easiest plants to maintain. There are several cultivars that range in size from six inches to around three feet. Colors range from dark green foliage to white with some cultivars having very intriguing combinations of both.

Consider using Sanseverias in containers along with the next plant on my list of favorite tropicals, Codiaenum variegatum, commonly known as the croton plant. There are hundreds of cultivars available, and my description cannot do this tropical treasure justice. Its bright patterned foliage includes an absolutely indescribable combination of green, yellow and red, with multiple leaf patterns and a variety of sizes. Crotons do well in indirect light and perform better if they are allowed to dry out between watering.

A third addition to this tropical container combination is bromeliads—specifically, the terrestrial Guzmanias or Neoregelias. The color range is wide open in this group of tropical plants, and their maintenance requirements are simple. Bromeliads can live without water for long periods of time, provided water is maintained in a naturally occurring cupped area located in the center of the plant. Keeping water in the “cupped” area will keep this tropical hydrated. Add fresh water once weekly to avoid the water becoming stagnant. Bromeliads, either alone or grouped in a container, will add remarkable beauty to any surrounding while not demanding a lot of maintenance.

Whoooo's Using Box #18?

2011-04-29T19:22:00.007-04:00

The bluebird season is well on its way with numerous chicks ready to fly, if they haven't already by now. A few of the nestboxes have been claimed by chickadees, titmice and, in one box, a tree swallow claimed the same one it used last year. When we peeked in the box, a Canada goose feather wafted out and the swallow chased it down and returned it to its proper place. It didn't like our disturbing the decorating scheme.

One box, in particular, has been a big disappointment this year. We are in the fourth year of the monitoring project, and Box #18 has been the most successful in producing little blues. We believe its location near open areas and a few lampposts for perching places contribute to its success. However early in the season, we found feathers (perhaps a mourning dove) at the base of the support pole. There has been no bluebird activity nearby at all. No blues watching us or singing their lilting calls from the trees. Recently, we found owl pellets around the pole so we're sure the box is doomed and an owl is using it as a hunting base. We're going to relocate that box and hope the bluebirds will take an interest again.

This is the first year that we've had nests with six eggs in them and, in fact, there are two boxes with half-dozens in there. If they all hatch, those parents are going to be very busy catching meals for hungry chicks.

Also this year, we've noted a pair of wood ducks hanging around the duck box on the larger of the two ponds. Although bluebirds are our main responsibility, we do keep a watchful eye for all the birds and always have our binoculars in ready-mode. Seeing the wood ducks near the nestbox was exciting and we hope they have decided to use it. At this point we haven't checked the box for fear of spooking the ducks.

As in past years, some nests have been disturbed and the eggs disappeared. In one case, it was a house wren. Those birds are notorious for destroying bluebird nests and tossing the eggs out of the box. Then they go in and build their stick nests on top of the bluebirds' nests and take over. We also believe that snakes have gotten into at least one box. However, it's all part of nature and we keep that in mind.

So at this point, the season already has had a few surprises and we're always interested in whatever we find when we ride the trail. There's still lots of activity to come.

The Evolution of the Cattleya

2011-02-01T10:48:00.006-05:00

By Lee Potts
DSBG Orchid Specialist

The Cattleya species has come a long way since being discovered by William Swainson in 1818. It soon became sought after for the large lavender flowers but had yet to be successfully grown and bloomed outside its native habitat. In an effort to try and grow the Cattleya outside of its habitat, Swainson shipped the Cattleya labiata orchids to English horticulturist William Cattley from Brazil in 1818.

At one point during the 1800s Cattleya labiata was thought to be nearing extinction in the wild due to Swainson's poor record keeping and in part to coffee farmers clearing land in Rio de Janeiro. It took 71 years before these orchids were rediscovered in Pernambuco, Brazil, but this was the beginning of an era that would change the landscape of orchids.

Cattleyas became known for their use in corsages but were only affordable to the very wealthy until Cattleya 'Bow Bells', registered in 1945, opened the doors for mass production of large, white Cattleya cut flowers. Through improvements in cross pollination, these cut flowers dominated the commercial sale of Cattleyas until the 1980s when orchid hybridizers improved tissue culture methods.

While still widely known as an orchid commonly used for corsages, the Cattleya would soon be known for the endless variety of sizes and colors they offer. Horticulturists and botanists have not only prevented the extinction of a number of Cattleya species, but also, through hybridization and tissue culture made it possible for all of us to enjoy the wide variety of colors, sizes and fragrance available today in the Cattleya alliance and earning the title Queen of Orchids.

Winter Gardening with Kaiti O'Donnell - DSBG Lead Horticulturist

2011-01-07T10:50:00.003-05:00

A winter garden is much more than just the silhouettes of bare branched, deciduous trees against the gray winter sky, and more than the shrubs whose flowers have long since turned to berries. A winter garden is more than just the scent of evergreen conifers that hint at the holiday season to come.

In addition to the outline of branches against a chilly winter backdrop, berries and textural bark – take note of a few plants worthy of mention that provide bloom as well as fragrance in the winter landscape.

Take for example Edgeworthia chrysantha, also known as rice paper plant that is featured in the Four Seasons garden. Not only will the unusual flowers entice you into taking a closer look, but the fragrance will surely make you look forward to each future winter come. What’s more, this unique shrub stays in bloom for several weeks!

Another winter blooming plant worth mentioning is Jasminum nudiflorum-an interesting shrub that provides a characteristic mound of arching green branches throughout the year followed by a vibrant, long lasting display of fragrant yellow blossoms in January.

Lonicera fragrantissima, a non invasive honeysuckle,(unlike it’s vine cousin),- produces a fragrance so notably sweet that it is to die for .

Camelia sasanqua and C. japonica have countless cultivated varieties, too many to name, - in fact, but these lovely broad-leaf evergreens provide a long season of interest-with the earliest varieties setting bud and often blooming as early as October. Others show flowers in middle to late winter, while others bloom through the early parts of spring. Fragrances range from sweet to spicy, and colors include a wide array of pinks and reds, white and rarely, but occasionally yellow. Flower shapes are many and include single, double, rose and peony forms. Because of their year round interest, robust nature and all around versatility- Camellias are a must have for any southern garden.

In years when winter weather is mild – Winter Daphne will perform true to its name generally showing blooms in February and exuding a wonderfully sweet fragrance.

For the tail end of winter into early spring note the Winter Hazel which may provide late winter to early spring interest with its fringy and fragrant blooms.

Early flowering spring bulbs such as Glory of the Snow, Snowdrops, species Crocus and even some daffodil varieties such as February Gold will often surprise you by emerging from the ground in late winter months .

Thus, the possibilities for winter blooming plants are more vast than you think and some of the season’s finest examples can be seen throughout the Garden .

Calling all Shutterbugs!

2010-11-17T13:42:00.005-05:00

As we end 2009 with a wonderful year of events, exhibits and amazing members and guests, it's nice to recap it all with our annual photography contest, Shutterbug! The contest deadline is Dec. 31 and it's just enough time to take pictures of Holiday Lights. It is so exciting to get an envelope marked Shutterbug entry and to open to see what magical moment was captured here at the Garden. We have 7 categories: Plants, Wildlife, Water, Architecture & Artwork in the Garden, Orchids & Tropical Plants, Events/Celebrations and People. Contestants may enter one photo in each of the categories if they like. Another exciting aspect of this contest is that we have an adult amateur and youth amateur category. To see some of the youth entries and then look at their age is incredible to think being that young and taking such a great shot. I remember using the Kodak disposables as a kid and that was either a hit or miss...most of the time for me a complete miss! The picture that accompanies this blog was taken by one of our youth contestants, Stephanie Aliano, and won 1st place in our Youth/Wildlife category. I think I'll be signing up for one of the many photography classes we offer here at the Garden to see how it's done. Good luck to all of our 2010 Shutterbug contestants and if you would like further details just visit www.DSBG.org.

600,000 Holiday Lights...anyone want to assist with putting them up?

2010-11-09T09:03:00.006-05:00

At the beginning of October we usually start planning what we're going to dress up as for Halloween, start buying Halloween decorations...here at the Garden, we start preparing for Christmas! In saying that it may sound like visiting a store and having Christmas decorations being put out on the shelves when Halloween hasn't even passed yet...but with 600,000 lights it takes us pretty much the whole time until Holiday Lights opens the day after Thanksgiving!

If we actually were to lay those 600,000 lights out they would reach from the Garden to Concord Mills Mall! Here are some additional behind the scenes facts for Holiday Lights at the Garden:

It will take about 2,500 man hours to complete the installation.
The Orchid Tree inside the Visitor Pavilion is composed of 300 live orchids on a frame that makes the tree 16 feet tall.
We use about 2,000 drop cords to run lights from existing power supplies.
Schneider Tree Care will assist us with hanging 50 ornaments, 2-3 feet in diameter, in a tree as high as 75 feet. (Thank you Schneider Tree Care!)
About 540,000 of the lights we use are LED lights which burn cooler and used 90% less electricity.

And the great thing about it, we absolutely love doing it and putting on a spectacular light display for all of our guests, and to create some wonderful holiday memories with family and friends! We'll have live entertainment and visits from Santa! For an additional fee we'll have baked treats, hot cocoa, coffee at our Garden Coffee Shop by Caravan coffee and carriage rides from Southern Breezes Carriages. Be sure to check our event calendar on the Garden's website at www.DSBG.org to see who will be performing the night you are looking to attend.

It is a wonderful time of the year and we look forward to having all of our Garden guests come and see our lights display! Holiday Lights at the Garden is sponsored by CaroMont Health and Lite 102.9.

Hank's Pumpkin Soup Recipe

2010-10-25T10:53:00.004-04:00

Our director of horticulture is sharing his pumpkin soup recipe with us this Halloween! Pumpkins are one of our favorite Halloween decorations and also makes some great pies...if you've never had pumpkin soup give this simple and delicious recipe a try brought to you by Hank Bruno, DSBG Director of Horticulture.

Hank's Pumpkin Soup Recipe
8 cups chopped fresh pumpkin (about 3 pounds)
4 cups chicken broth
3 small tart apples, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons minced fresh gingerroot
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds:
1/2 cup fresh pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions
In a 5 quart slow cooker, combine the first eight ingredients. Cover and cook on low for for 8-10 hours or unitl pumpkin and apples are tender. Meanwhile, toss pumpkin seeds with oil and salt. Spread onto an ungreased 15-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 250 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside. Cool soup lightly; process in batches in a blender. Transfer to a large saucepan; heat through. Garnish with toasted pumpkin seeds.

Yield: 9 servings (about 2 quarts)

New Fall Family-Friendly Event, Bootanical

2010-10-18T13:09:00.004-04:00

We are going to kick off a new family-fun event at the Garden, Bootanical on Oct. 30 and 31 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Many of the familiar sights of Halloween include pumpkins, scarecrows, and spiders which are based in nature, and form the basis for this fun new daytime event. Families will get a chance to work together to stuff and hang a scarecrow, pot up a spider plant, and mix up a batch of their own unique “bootanical” potion using dried herbs, and take a tour through the Garden in all its autumn brilliance. We have special autumn-themed photo vignettes that feature pumpkins and hay bales which make for a perfect fall family picture.

We encourage children to come dressed in their favorite costume and if they do they will receive a 50% discount with a paying adult.

Bootanical, part of a the Garden’s Fall with a Fourish celebration, is free with Garden admission. Carriage rides will be available for an additional fee through Southern Breezes, weather permitting. Snacks and drinks will be available for purchase from Karen Warren Catering. To see a menu for Bootanical just visit our event listing at www.DSBG.org.

Members are free, $12 adults, $11 seniors 60+, and $6 children 4-12. The Garden is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m., seven days a week. For more information call (704) 825-4490 or log on to www.DSBG.org.

Something's A-Flutter returns to the Garden

2010-09-02T10:04:00.004-04:00

Something's A-Flutter opened at the Garden yesterday and continues until Sept. 30. We kicked off the event with children from Presbyterian Hemby Children's Hospital to serve as grand opening opening ambassadors and release live butterflies the day before opening. This event is always a guest favorite and I have to say is for me as well! This was the first exhibit I worked on at the Garden and found myself everyday of the exhibit wanting to head down to The Orchid Conservatory to spend some time with my new fluttery friends!

This year's exhibit features a couple of new things. Every Friday and Saturday of the event there will be a butterfly activity station offered from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. We also have a Caterpillar Crib set up outside The Orchid Conservatory where guests can see the larval stage of butterflies, commonly called caterpillars. The Caterpillar Crib will also feature host plants for caterpillars, different from the food source for an adult butterfly. The Orchid Conservatory still serves as the main part of the exhibit, but the entire Garden has incorporated interpretative panels and butterfly plant labels that make up the Butterfly Trail.

In addition to the new features the Garden will also have a class every Friday and Saturday from 1-2:30 p.m. of the event titled, Butterflies "Behind the Scenes". Guests can learn about their general care and maintenance from the moment they arrive at the Garden till the time they are released. Guests can also participate in mounting chrysalis' and releasing butterflies in the Conservatory. The cost is $18 for members and $22 for non-members.

Don't forget to bring your camera for some great photographs and to wear bright colors to the exhibit so maybe a butterfly will land on you, just like this picture from one of our grand opening ambassadors!

A Seasonal Ending

2010-08-27T05:13:00.003-04:00

The Eastern Bluebirds have finished their nesting season here at the garden. Some of the juveniles continue to fly to the boxes where they began life. That's normal. One wonders if they like to check out the old homeplace just like people do, but we have to be careful not to anthropomorphize - apply human characteristics to animal behavior.

At the beginning of the season we tried something new, hoping to encourage the birds to use more of the boxes. We placed inserts made from egg cartons inside on the bottom of each box. Out of the thirty-three boxes on the trail, twenty-nine boxes had bluebird nests in them. This is an eight percent increase of box use over last year's activity. However, numbers don't always tell the whole story so we aren't going out on a limb to recommend using inserts. Bluebirds, like many other birds, often build nests and never use them. There were many perfectly made nests that never had eggs laid in them. Also, there were many eggs laid this year that never hatched. The parents just seemed to have abandoned those nests. It could be that the extremely high summer temperatures caused the eggs to fail to develop. In all cases, the eggs had discolored and we removed them along with the nests.

However, there was an increase in the number of birds that fledged. This year seventy-one fledged. That's a slight increase over the previous year when sixty-seven new "blues" graced the garden. Again, there were predators that invaded the nests, probably snakes and raccoons. One box was attacked by fire ants. These things are disturbing but, at the same time, nature has its own way of keeping life balanced and we keep that in mind.

Having said that, we are encouraged that over the last three years there has been an increase in nestbox use and the number of birds fledged. Young birds often stay in the same area where they hatched and fledged so it's logical that they would mate and reproduce here at the garden. For now they are still enjoying a season with lots of insects to catch but, come fall and winter, their diet will change to berries and other small fruit. During the cold nights they will snuggle together inside those nestboxes for comfort and warmth. Our monitoring is completed for this season, but we'll start again - along about the middle of next March.

A live Fall-Flourish Centerpiece

2010-08-25T14:20:00.006-04:00

Halle Russell, a floral designer for Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, shows us how to make a simple, beautiful, live centerpiece packed with fall flourish!

Southern Stories

2010-07-14T09:05:00.002-04:00

Working at a botanical garden in the south and seeing plants you'd typically find in your grandmother's garden can evoke fond memories! In addition our current exhibit, Come Sit A Spell, and the furniture and programming that we have based on the exhibit have led me to remember very special memories of my beautiful grandmother. Because of the southern connection and memories we asked our guests to write down their favorite "southern-time" stories and share with us!

I will admit I have too many great memories and not enough space in this blog to write them all. One in particular is remembering how my grandparents used to can every summer and I could not wait until the time was right to eat all of the special things they were preparing...especially the grapeleaf pickles! Not too many people seem to know what they are, but it's a sour pickle that is just a little bit of southern goodness! I loved summers with my grandparents and especially with my grandmother whose love you could feel with all the summer goodies she would create. She turned 91 this year and still cooks her legendary meals for us today. I loved sharing this story and hope that it reflects how much I love her and growing up with her meant to me (I had to attach a picture of her to just show how adorable she is)!

If you have a special memory like this we would love to hear it! Please send in 250 words or less a favorite "southern-time" story to southernstories@dsbg.org by July 30. The winner will recieve a $250 grand prize and be featured on the Garden's Facebook Page. Stories can also be submitted to the following postal address: DSBG Southern-Time Stories, 6500 S. New Hope Rd., Belmont, NC 28012.

Who We Are and What We do

2010-06-25T09:33:00.005-04:00

There are three of us who are devoted to riding the bluebird trail every week from March through August, or whenever the last nestlings have fledged. We keep detailed records of each of the thirty-three nestboxes. We also are avid birders and spend time looking for and at birds as well as listening and identifying them by song, call, and chips. Every time we go out, there is something exciting for us to talk about with each other. It's pooled knowledge and our friendship has become solid because of it.

Although it is not necessary to have three persons to do our assignment, we like it this way because we have backup if one of us is not available on a particular day. One of us is a retired school teacher, another a retired power plant supervisor, and one is a retired manufacturing factory owner. Together it's an excellent team because of our broad background experiences.

The records that we keep on each box are kept in a large notebook. There is one sheet per box with information to be checked off or written in. The categories include: date, monitors' initials, partial or complete nest, number of eggs, number of chicks, and probable number fledged. The last category is always a guess as we usually don't know for sure that the chicks actually flew. They could have been attacked by predators, but we keep a positive view and count them as having fledged safely.

There are other records kept also such as location of the boxes and how the location affects the probability of box use. As a result of these records, we have moved unused boxes to locations that have resulted in nests in those boxes. We don't have it right yet and we expect to move a few more by the next bluebird season. Our project may not be of great interest to many folks but, to us, it's a fascinating study of the Eastern Bluebirds.

Garden Nights Returns

2010-06-04T08:45:00.002-04:00

After a long day at work or a stressful day in life there is something to be said about a garden on a southern, summer night. With much anticipation, Garden Nights returned on June 3...the weather had called for rain all day but it turned out to be one gorgeous opening night! Garden Nights will take place every Thursday in June, July and August from 5 - 9 p.m. With our new exhibit, Come Sit A Spell, Garden Nights has tied in special southern themed festivities to be planned to coincide with the exhibit. Last night we kicked off with music from Carmen Giardino Sax and a K.Leigh Cuisine tasting and demonstration about summer vegetable risotto and a discussion on local dairy. Below is a peek into what all we have in store:

Come Sit A Spell Awards Ceremony
K.Leigh Cuisine tasting and demonstrations
Appearances from the Gaston School of the Arts
Botanical Illustration and Floral Painting Continuing Education Class
Photography for Advanced and Beginning Photographers Continuing Education Classes
Re-Purposed Planter Workshop
Book Discussion

Visit our DSBG event calendar to see what special southern fun we'll have planned each Garden Nights. Also new this year carriage rides will be available, for an additional fee and weather permitting, from Southern Breezes Carriages. Food and drinks will available for purchase from Something Classic Catering and live music will be provided every Thursday.

Stop by Thursday afternoon and "sit a spell"...unwind while strolling through the gardens & fountains, take a break and sit and relax on our exhibit pieces, enjoy great eats and music! We'll try to make time slow down for you just a bit!

Presenting Sponsor Watson Insurance

A 'Moon' Bird

2010-05-27T21:31:00.004-04:00

Each week we eagerly start the bluebird monitoring at 8:30 in the morning, usually a Tuesday, to find the latest happenings in the boxes along the trail. It is a delight to be at the garden enjoying the beauty of the surroundings as well as seeing the bluebirds and hearing their lilting calls. Folks driving by and on their way to work give us a friendly wave when they see us peeking in boxes. We're part of the scenery and that's confirmation that all is well.

That is, we hope all is well but we are having a few surprises from time to time. Sometimes a box that had five eggs in it the week before might have only one egg remaining. Or the chicks that were newborn have disappeared. Or the nest has been completely abandoned. We conclude that predators are the culprits. It's sad but it's also the way of nature and every animal has to have a meal now and then. A couple of boxes that are near the ponds have been vandalized. Snakes are suspect but one box has claw marks on it which suggests a raccoon. We make notes of all these happenings in our notebook.

The biggest surprise has been a tree swallow that refuses to leave the box when we try to check on it. That mother bird is steadfast. She does not budge. We even used a flashlight in an effort to confirm her identity and all she did was show us her backside. Imagine that! Being 'mooned' by a bird! Tree swallows are known to use bluebird boxes and, in fact, sometimes are regarded as pests. However, this is the first year that one of our boxes has been used. Maybe in the next week or two, we'll be able to peek at what's going on inside that box. Mama has to leave sometime in order to gather insects for the chicks. If we're lucky, she'll be gone when we come along.

As to the "blues" themselves, everything is on course for this time of the season. Chicks have fledged and second nestings have begun. Life continues and it gives us many surprises along the way. That's the way it should be.

Summer Garden Adventures for Kids

2010-05-16T03:13:00.006-04:00

Gardens provide ideal settings for safe, active summer fun for kids, and the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is no exception. Garden Adventure Camp begins June 21st, offering half-day, week-long sessions through July 30th. The camps are designed to provide engaging, hands-on activities that will foster a love of plants, gardening, and the environment for children ages 4-12.

What will they do? Register your child for Garden Adventure Camp, and they'll spend their time at the Garden:

Digging, planting, and watering plants in the Garden.
Exploring the Woodland Trail.
Catching insects in the meadow.
Playing in the Willow Maze.
Eating great snacks (that come from plants!) each day.
Building a bamboo teepee or other fun garden projects.
Solving a mystery in Nature Detective camp.
Creating their own planters to take home.
Discovering their favorite flower in a hike through the Garden, and then...
Cooling off at the Tunnel Fountain.
Riding the Garden Tram.
Finding beneficial dragonflies and ladybugs in Critter Cavaliers Camp.
Planting a plant of their own, and then checking and watering it each day.
Creating nature art projects in Artists in the Garden camp.
Tasting products made from tropical plants in the Orchid Conservatory.
Discovering the tracks of Garden critters that enjoy the Garden at night.
Observing garden life in action as pollinators go about their work.
Experiencing the wonder of nature through plant-based adventures.
Making new friends at the Garden.
Cultivating a love of plants, gardening, and nature that will last a lifetime!

The list could go on, but you get the idea-- Garden Adventure Camp is a whole lot of fun! Specific activities in each session will vary depending on the theme, but all sessions are designed to include time outdoors exploring the Garden balanced with indoor projects, hands-on time to dig and plant and water, planters that kids create and take home, and healthy plant-based snacks. Garden Adventure Camp is ideal for parents looking to provide some structure for their child's (or grandchild's) summer and ensure that it's exciting and special. In addition to the regular sessions for ages 4-7 and 8-12, special one-day mini-camps are also available for younger 3-year-old campers who will attend with a parent or other caregiver. Your child will be so busy having fun that they won't even realize they're learning, thus keeping their minds engaged through informal science experiences that will resonate long after camp is over.

For more information about Garden Adventure Camp sessions, dates, and registration information, go to the Garden's website at www.dsbg.org. Discounts are offered for Garden members and for multiple session registrations. Questions? Call 704-829-1252 for more information or to register your child today. We'll see you-- and your child-- at Camp this summer.

Happy Gardening!

Cindy

Hello, Mom

2010-05-11T12:15:00.000-04:00

Daniel Stowe Botanical welcomed more than 5,500 people to the Garden this weekend in what has become one of the most successful events of the year--Mother's Day Weekend.

Thanks to our partners, WSOC-TV Channel 9 and its Family Focus program and Rountree Plantation Garden Center, the Garden is able to create an unforgettable day for Moms and their families. With Channel 9's help we offer free admission to all Mothers and Rountree Plantation offered a free plant to each those Mothers lucky enough to get here early enough each day.

Something Classic, one of the Garden's preferred caterers offered picnic lunches in advance of the big weekend. Dr. Mitch Moser offered free mini-massages and Mary Kay Cosmetics Consultants were on hand with beauty tips for Mom.

Great planning by Garden staff paired with beautiful spring weather made for the creation of some fantastic Garden memories for the families that were here. And that' a lot of what a botanical garden is all about--creating memories with a connection to plants and nature.

If you haven't made it by the Garden this spring, and you want to see what we're talking about, you might want to make plans to come out soon. Our exhibit, "Come Sit A Spell," is now in it's second month. And connecting you to plants is what this exhibit is all about. In it, we hope you find inspiration for your garden, backyard deck or patio.

Fresh Faces and the Evil Eye

2010-04-29T16:27:00.003-04:00

With the end of April here, there are twenty-three bluebird chicks being fed and nourished by doting parents. Within the next week, ten of them probably will be out in the world learning the ways of chasing their own food. In addition there are forty-four eggs being incubated so the bluebird season is well on its way.

We have nests in seventeen of the thirty-three boxes. This is a slight increase over the number of nests last year at this time. Also, there are chickadee and titmouse nests in three of the boxes but we don’t include those in our data.

Unfortunately there is evidence of predators in the bluebird nests as some of the eggs have disappeared. The nests themselves don’t seem to be disturbed and we don’t find the eggs on the ground near the boxes so perhaps snakes are invading and eating them. Also, we are seeing the stick nests of house wrens in one box. The wren is persistent and we do remove them because, at this point, they are only the beginnings of nests and no eggs have been laid. If there are eggs or chicks in those nests, it is not lawful to remove them.

House sparrows have chosen one particular box for their use. They are a threat to the bluebird population so their nests are being removed also. House sparrows are not native birds and, therefore, not protected by law. They are messy birds and use lots of trash in their constructions. We’ve found materials such as cellophane, cigarette butts, and goose feathers. Like the house wrens, they will destroy bluebird eggs as well as chicks and sometimes prevent bluebird parents from entering the box.

As we peek into the nests, we are finding that the mother bird sometimes refuses to leave the box. We knock on the side of the box to make the bird fly out and when we open the panel to peek in, the bird is in there and just gives us the evil eye. When mama is glowering at us and refusing to budge, then we just tell her we’ll wait until next week to see what she’s hiding. Maybe her mood will be better then.

That’s the status of things along the bluebird trail here at the garden the last week of April.

Spring Cleaning in the Garden

2010-04-20T16:47:00.004-04:00

Spring is here and now we are looking for those April showers that will bring May flowers and save us the trouble of watering our plants. There are a few clouds this afternoon, maybe we'll get lucky. If you have irrigation it is a good idea to test the system for leaks, adjust the heads so they are not watering the sidewalk, and check the run time so it does not allow runoff. Water conservation is everyone's responsibility.
Here at Daniel Stowe we are cleaning up, pruning back and enjoying the cool weather and colorful garden while we work. It is important to get ahead of those late winter/early spring weeds. Henbit and chickweed are the most common and pulling them before they have a chance to set seed will save time later. Prune spring flowering shrubs as soon as they are done blooming, this includes forsythia, spirea, quince, cherrylaurel and azaleas. Now that leaves are out we can remove any winter damaged branches and cut back the fig tree by one third. If you have naturalized daffodils it is important to leave the foliage alone (no knot tying) until it turns brown. These leaves are feeding next year's bulb. If they are trying to produce seed it is OK to trim off the very tip so energy is not wasted on seed production.
Finally, there is a fragrant flowering, silver leaved shrub in bloom in the woods right now that merits our attention. This is Russian-olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) also known as Silver Berry and Wild Olive. While it has long been cultivated in Europe and sometimes used along highways here (as is it's cousin Autumn Olive) we should be on our guard.It has invaded the piedmont woodlands and is as thick as privet in many locations. Make it's removal part of your spring cleaning in the garden this year.

The Come Sit A Spell Connection

2010-04-19T16:00:00.003-04:00

Come Sit A Spell has been open at the Garden for over a month now with over 13,000 people visiting the Garden for this new exhibit! We started working on this project early 2009 and my involvement started in July 2009.

Come Sit A Spell: Views of the Southern Garden is an exhibit that reflects the importance and beauty of the southern front porch and how it has evolved over the years. We asked artists what inspired them about the front porch, what memories did it evoke, and to incorporate that into their piece.

The beginning stages of the exhibit came with a solicit to artists and for a sketch of their entry. As entries started coming in we were amazed at the creative pieces that we were seeing, and truly blown away for what the inspirations were for the artist pieces. One piece was inspired by memories of childhood and playing in tree-houses, another from playing with the Garden hose in summer, and one artist used the magic of nature that she enjoyed with her children and painted two Adirondack chairs with Day and Night Garden Fairies! It was such a pleasure to talk with the artists, schools and community groups about their pieces and their excitement to be involved with our new exhibit!

Working closely with the artists was such a wonderful experience...getting to know them, their inspiration, working with them throughout the entire process truly provided me with a connection to the exhibit that I was not expecting. I hope that you will feel the same connection when you visit the Garden to pieces for Come Sit A Spell!

Southern Superstars in the Garden

2010-04-06T16:09:00.003-04:00

We lucky southern gardeners are blessed with some of the best options for landscape plants. Our mild winters enable us to grow many plants that would not be reliably hardy in northern climes, though our tough summers can sometimes test a plant’s limits (not to mention a gardener’s). While it’s hard to limit to just a few, I’ve selected a few of my own favorite plants to highlight below. These are plants that will really go to work for you and show their stuff during the upcoming spring and early summer months. I've focused on woody landscape plants and perennials, since you will have these for years to come once they are planted.

Woody Landscape Plants add structure to your landscape and provide winter interest through their shapes and texture—often called the ‘bones’ of the garden because they provide the framework for other plants. We’re not just talking trees—shrubs, in particular, are often overlooked. I tend to lean towards flowering trees and shrubs, as I want to get as much seasonal interest as I can out of each plant. Beautiful flowers, often accompanied by lovely fragrance and interesting fruit later on, are exceptional bonuses in my book. Consider adding the following southern superstars to your garden:

The fluffy white floral clusters of the Snowball Viburnum (Viburnum opulus) stop passersby in their tracks here at the Garden, and will do the same at your home. It resembles a massive 25-30’ hydrangea—gorgeous! As it fades, the blooms of the Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginicus) are gearing up. They are more delicate—feathery dangles that change from pale chartreuse to a soft white as they develop. Though it seems exotic, it’s actually a southern native. Another great native is the Oak Leaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia), which begins its floral show in June. Its snowy white panicles are visually cooling, and then turn a soft pinkish red color as they dry and remain through the summer. It’s a shrub with multi-season appeal as it provides fall color and winter interest with its peeling, cinnamon-colored bark.

Perennials live for multiple years-- often many, many years-- though they die back to the ground each winter and re-grow from the roots once spring weather is conducive to their growth. Collectively, they provide a changing palette of color and texture through the season as they come in and out of bloom, so add interest and keep the garden from looking the same throughout the season. Many are referred to as ‘passalong plants’ since you can divide them and share them with friends as the clumps increase in size from year to year. There are many choices (really!), but here is a sampling of some of my own favorites for the southern garden:

Creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata) is one of the first perennials to show color in spring, and heralds the onset of many old-fashioned favorites like spicy-scented Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus) and simple but lovely Shasta Daisies (Leucanthemum superbum). Yarrow (Achillea spp.) offers lacy, fine textured foliage as well as flowers and will re-bloom for a long time if spent flower heads are removed—called deadheading—as will many other perennials including Coreopsis (Coreopsis spp.), Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), Beebalm (Monarda didyma), and Speedwell (Veronica spp). All of these are very easy to grow, and will provide years of pleasure for very little work on your part.

As you can see, there are many wonderful plants for great southern gardens—those listed above provide just the briefest of starting points, and I didn’t even include bulbs, or vines, or … the list is endless. However, those are blogs for another day. Now, get outside and plant a superstar in your garden, or drop by and enjoy a few plantful moments here. Happy spring, everyone!

Uh-oh! Here They Come

2010-03-26T06:59:00.006-04:00

After a long and cold winter, the bluebirds have become active here at DSBG. We can just imagine they have been waiting for us to start peeking into (intruding?) their space. When they hear the golf cart approaching, they know we’ll be knocking on the doors. Yes, it’s always polite to knock before entering but, in this case, it’s to make sure a bird isn’t in the box when we open the front panel. Knock- knock and if a bird is in there, it usually flies out so that we can take a look inside.

The Eastern bluebirds spent many nights cuddling up for warmth in the nestboxes along the bluebird trail and, now, they are thinking about the future generation. This is the fourth week of March and there are three complete nests ready for use and several more that are under construction. The birds are active and have staked out territory for hunting and gathering. They are sitting on the boxes and lamp posts. They are singing. These are the signs of the season. Life is glorious!

This year a suggestion was made to try nestbox inserts to encourage the birds to use the boxes. Last year sixty-three percent of the boxes were used by the “blues”. Since there was not enough time before nesting season to order the inserts, make-shift ones were made from the tops of egg cartons. These are the cardboard ones, not the styrofoam ones. The tops were cut in half (like a half dozen size) and a couple of snips with the scissors were made to fold the end up to make it fit in the nestbox. It’s a trial and it remains to be seen if it increases box use. However, three of the nests that are ready for use are constructed in the egg carton inserts, as can be seen in the picture. We’ve had a few laughs about the birds’ laying eggs directly into egg cartons. It’s a different twist, but we do have fun with our “assignment.”

There is one box in which a tufted titmouse is setting up housekeeping. At least we think it’s a titmouse. It could be a Carolina chickadee as the nests are very similar. This nest is quite different from the ones bluebirds make. As to the cardboard insert, the bird attacked it and tore it into small pieces but a nest is being built in it. The nest is made up of shredded dry leaves and lots of green moss as well as other unidentifiable material. At this point it isn’t ready for use as more depth is needed before the nesting cup is shaped. We’ll keep an eye out for which bird flies into it and give you an ID later.

Most nests of the Eastern bluebird here at the garden are made up of pine needles as there is an ample supply of them. However, in the past there have been a few that were made with dried grass. It depends on what’s available.

So we’ve hit the trail for the season and with good weather and some luck, there will be a new generation of little bluebirds fledging over the next few months.

Orchid Tips

2010-02-24T10:36:00.000-05:00

There are a large variety of orchids that bloom during the fall and winter and with this in mind, feed with a fertilizer higher in phosphorous, this can aid an orchid in flower size and flower count.This is also a good time to spray for insects before bringing them inside for the winter. Insecticides can be confusing with directions for orchids not listed. Follow directions given for "ornamentals"and if scales or mealy bugs are present, you will need to treat the potting medium as well. If you still not sure what to do, look up your local orchid society, they can be a very useful guide in growing orchids.

Orchid Spectacular Planned

2010-01-08T08:36:00.002-05:00

Garden staff is hard at work preparing for Orchid Spectacular that begins Jan. 15.

This is our annual showcase of orchids that opens with the NC Piedmont Orchid Society’s judged show and sale. The event continues through March 14 with a presentation of the best of the Garden’s collection of nearly 5,000 orchids, continuing education classes, lectures and more.

The NCPOS show runs through Jan. 17 and begins with the American Orchid Society’s judging of hundreds of varieties from the intriguing bulbophyllums to the colorful cattleyas presented in the theme of “Orchids in the Trees.” It’s an appropriate theme given that a vast majority of orchids are epiphytic, which means they grow upon rocks or trees, receiving nutrients from rainfall or from the humid air around them. The event includes the sale of orchids and orchid supplies from the region’s most respected growers and informal talks by members of the orchid society.

Friday night, Jan. 15, the event ramps up with “An Evening of Orchids,” an elegant celebration of orchids from around the world. In addition to the magnificent display of orchids, the evening will feature an auction of unique orchid packages, food and more. Tickets for the event are $55 or $85 for the Patron Level. Reservations must be made in advance by calling 704-829-1252.

“Orchid Spectacular” and the Garden’s ongoing lecture series continues Jan. 23 with “The Road Less Traveled: New Orchid Hybrids for Warm Climates,” a lecture by Milton Carpenter, owner of Everglades Orchid, of Belle Glade, Florida. An internationally recognized speaker with 42 years experience in growing and breeding orchids, Carpenter rarely lectures now. The results of his orchid breeding have enabled people in warmer climates to grow previously cold-preferrent orchids. Admission to the lecture is $15 for Garden members and $20 for non-members. The lecture begins at 10 a.m.

Throughout the ongoing event, Garden guests will be able to view some of the world’s most stunning varieties of orchids in The Orchid Conservatory. Here the garden displays fascinating orchids from around the globe in an incredibly creative and artistic fashion. More than 22,000 species of orchids exist on all but one of the earth’s continents and hybrids number in the hundreds of thousands. The orchids displayed at the conservatory represent the great diversity of temperate and tropical species, from the hot, humid lowlands to the cool mountain regions.

There is more, including a quilt display and continuing education classes, so come back to the Garden Blog later to learn more or check out the website at www.DSBG.org.

Christmas Crafts at Holiday Lights

2009-12-12T20:52:00.004-05:00

Holiday Lights is in full swing at the Garden, and it really is a fun event-- for guests as well as staff. I enjoy walking through the Garden and overhearing the appreciative comments and exclamations from visitors as they enjoy a lovely evening with family and friends. Beautiful lights, great music and entertainment, tasty hot chocolate, and jolly old Saint Nick himself... and much more-- it's all here!

There is one little corner of the Garden where I spend a lot of time, and that is the Christmas Crafts table in the Visitor Pavilion. We provide a nature-based holiday craft each night, which changes from week to week. So far, we have made Christmas Mice from pinecones, Nature Baskets that can be displayed on a table or hung on the tree as an ornament, and Nature Bags (sachets) that will fragrance a room. Still to come-- Pomanders and Glittered Pinecones.

The Nature Baskets and Nature Bags, in particular, would be easy to do at home as well. Take a few minutes to go outside with your kids and look around. Collect small treasures that you find-- a few small pinecones, sweetgum balls, a bit of moss, an interesting pod... all of these can become unique treasures in the eyes of a child. Back inside, take a small basket (app. 2-4 inches wide) and work together to arrange the treasures in the basket. Add a dash of color and sparkle, if you wish, by tucking in a small ornament or a bit of ribbon, and you're done! Set the basket on a table, or hang it on the tree. A larger basket can become a centerpiece or mantel decor.

Nature Bags (an updated and kid-friendly name for a sachet) are also easy. You can search outside for nature treasures, as described above, and tuck them in a small muslin bag or wrap them up hobo-style in a scrap of fabric and tie closed with a ribbon. At the Garden we use muslin tea bags, which are perfectly sized for a small sachet, and add fragrance with a few drops of essential oils that can be purchased at any craft store. We make use of cones, pods, and bits of greenery collected from around the Garden, and add ingredients like lavendar, cinnamon chips, allspice berries, cloves, and rose petals. The bowls filled with all the different ingredients are beautiful, and showcase the diversity of textures, colors, and fragrances from nature.

Though sachets are an old-fashioned craft, kids love making them and enjoy sorting through all the different ingredients to create just the right mix for their very own creation. Adults love making them, too. The craft corner is open to anyone who wants to participate. From the youngest toddler working with help from their parents to the most experienced senior, everyone has a small memento of their evening at the Garden to take with them that they made themselves. What a treat!

All in all, nature crafts are perfect for the holidays. Take a few minutes with your family to go outside and gather some treasures from your yard. Or, if you're in the area, come visit the Garden and enjoy making a nature-based Christmas Craft together and have a lovely evening of Holiday Lights with your family and friends. See you here!

Holiday Lights at the Garden Opens

2009-12-03T15:07:00.004-05:00

Holiday Lights at the Garden opened this past weekend with record numbers. It was our busiest open ever promising a busy holiday season at the Garden.

Continuing until Thursday, Dec. 31 these spectacular evenings will include displays with more than 600,000 lights, old fashioned trains, carriage rides, holiday carols, baked treats and other activities designed to fill the holiday season with memories that will last a lifetime.

Beginning at the Garden’s grand entrance on New Hope Road guests are immediately immersed to a Christmas wonderland as they travel past the still Garden ponds and make their way into the Visitor Pavilion, where they are greeted by white trumpeting angels, decorated in holiday splendor and sounds. The décor includes a guest favorite, a spectacular 16-foot-tall Orchid tree, featuring more than 300 orchids.

In the Garden guests are invited to enjoy a walking tour through a dazzling light display encompassing six separate gardens, The Orchid Conservatory and surrounding landscape that presents spectacular light displays at every turn. Guests can walk through a grand 30-foot tall tree of lights, visit the icy White Garden or the festive Canal Garden. A captivating display of lights engulfs guests in every direction.

The Orchid Conservatory offers a chance to warm up, and see two garden-scale trains snaking through the tropical plants and holiday favorites.

Carriage rides through a portion of the display are available Thursday through Sunday evenings for an additional fee.

Please see our web site http://www.dsbg.org/ for the latest information.

Lighting the Holidays by the Numbers

2009-11-13T14:04:00.006-05:00

By Dec. 26 each year, Jim Summey, our director of grounds, has already started thinking about next Christmas. He has to in order to figure out how to string so many Christmas lights they could reach from the Belmont attraction to Concord Mills Mall.

Holiday Lights at the Garden runs from the day after Thanksgiving, Nov. 27 to Dec. 31, but the planning continues all year beginning with a critique from staff of the current show. Monthly planning meetings keep staff on target for the opening night that has become one of the Garden’s busiest days of the year. The display, entertainment, activities, food service, guest services, parking and other logistics must all be arranged seamlessly.

For 33 nights the Garden becomes a spectacle of light, entertainment, tradition, nostalgia, cheer and merriment. Old fashioned trains, carriage rides, holiday carols, baked treats and other activities are designed to fill the holiday season with memories for guests that will last a lifetime.

Summey begins the project in early October, hiring as many as five temporary staff to assist full and part time staff as well as volunteers. Decorating takes six weeks, starting with the outer areas of the garden and finishing with the Visitor Pavilion.It will take about 2,500 man hours to complete the installation

More than 600,000 lights on 12,000 strands illuminate the entrance on New Hope Road, the roadway, the ponds, the buildings and about eight acres of formal gardens. Put end to end, these strands would stretch for more than 30 miles.

About 540,000 of the lights in the garden are LED lights which burn cooler and use 90 percent less electricity than the mini lights most people use in their homes. The Garden uses about 2,000 drop cords to run lights from existing power supplies.

So as you can tell we're well on our way. Next week we are expect Scheneider Tree Care, who will do some of the high work for us. So we'll keep you posted on how that goes.

Ho Ho Holidays!

2009-10-30T13:34:00.002-04:00

The final days of the Indian Summer are waning, the foliage is turning, and all of the grocery stores are competing for the best pumpkin prices. While for many it's a time to warm up some cider and pull out the nice fuzzy sweaters (you know, the ones you wash the first time and your dryer gets filled with tiny shreds of old kleenex, prompting the question, "when was I sick last?"), for the garden it means

OH MY IT'S ALREADY HOLIDAY SEASON AGAIN!!!

So begins the hustle and bustle at the garden!

Holiday lights is an increasingly important time of year for garden visitation, and no wonder! Beautiful twinkling lights, hot cider, santa claus, carolers, fireworks, and vivid tropical orchids all come together to create a memorable evening for families at the garden.

With so many different items to consider, our entire staff participates in the preparations. Horticulture has been busy as bees with pansy planting and refreshing tired summer plants through all of the nasty drizzly weather. They are truly warriors! Jim Summey and his lightning bugs are working hard on stringing thousands of lights throughout the gardens- no small feat! The conservatory crew is prepping 300 orchids for the tree (if you haven't seen this you NEED TO) and putting together a special centerpiece for the conservatory. Events has lined up a fantastic array of musical entertainment, and education has cooked up some super holiday crafts that will be enjoyed by young and old. All in all this is shaping up to be our best year ever, so go ahead and mark your calendars now to visit us between November 27th and December 31st!

Be sure to check your mail soon for details on this years events, I know you'll just love it!

PS gang... Be on the lookout for a couple of big, waddling, rosy cheeked pregnant ladies when you're here this fall. Gail Allen and Erin Murphy (that's moi) are expecting a pair of garden babies this November! So if we come charging through like angry bulls don't be afraid- unless of course there's a line for the restrooms!

Celebrating 10 Years

2009-10-16T10:35:00.002-04:00

In October 1999, Daniel J. Stowe and his family joined with captains of industry, horticulturalists, designers, philanthropists, political dignitaries and even royalty in celebrating the realization of his dream. Ten years after setting aside nearly 400 acres, followed by years of planning and fundraising, Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden open in grand fashion.

This stunning piece of lakefront property that once served as a working farm has put itself on the proverbial map in those years, becoming a world class botanical garden recognized by its peers, the media and guests each and every day. Attendance, which has grown gradually over the years, has mushroomed to more than 100,000.

Attracting top talent and best practices from the botanical garden world—from Longwood’s Philadelphia, from Chicago, Dallas, San Diego and more—the Garden has developed at a rapid pace. HGTV named it one of the nation’s 20 great gardens and USA Today called it one of the top 10 gardens in which to “welcome fall with a flourish.”

The Garden now hosts nearly 10,000 people annually for education programs; it welcomes visitors from all 50 states, sees a large handful of guests from foreign countries and attracts 35% of the Garden’s attendance from outside the three local counties. What began as the small garden on New Hope Road has become a sprawling oasis of color, texture and structure. Since opening a little more than 18 months ago, The Orchid Conservatory has dazzled some 175,000 people and membership rolls have blossomed at nearly 5,000 individual, household and corporate members.

Since the formal gardens opened in 1999, several large and small additions from the master plan have been made. Among them was the opening of the White Garden. Since 2003 more than 100 couples have begun their lives together each year at this and surrounding spots. More impressive, was the January 2008 opening of The Orchid Conservatory, where tropical plants from around the world have come to the Carolinas in spectacular artistic fashion.

This month the Garden takes a look back at its 10 years to help guests learn more about the Garden, its past and its future. Staff has planned a month-long celebration that includes a new display on the history as well as the master plan and events planned in the months to come.

"All Good Things Must Come To An End"

2009-09-10T16:40:00.002-04:00

Susan and I began the task of monitoring the bluebird boxes at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden on February 5th of this year. To borrow a phrase attributed to Chaucer from the mid-14th century, “All Good Things Must Come To An End”. And, as this was true in the 14th century, it remains true today. Our monitoring of the bluebird nest boxes came to an end a few weeks ago at the end of August.

The bluebirds at DSBG are still flying about and can be seen perching on some of the nest boxes, but they are through raising their families now. That work is finished until next year but they will still be busy looking for food and shelter to get them through the coming winter.

It was an interesting year on the bluebird trail. We had our share of ups and downs. We were thrilled to see chicks ready to fledge their nests and we were subsequently discouraged to find ant infestations that destroyed both chicks and eggs.

We did make an effort to reduce wasp infestations by putting foil on the inside tops of the nest boxes. But, the wasps were smarter than we were. They just decided to build their nests on the inside sides of the boxes instead. We can’t be certain if this in itself was helpful to the bluebird population but we did see an increase in eggs laid and chicks fledged this year. We cannot really do an apples to apples comparison of the data as we began monitoring later in 2008 than we did this year, we foiled the inside tops of the boxes and we also relocated some of the boxes from 2008 to 2009. With so many variables it is difficult if not impossible to draw conclusions.

In 2008, we recorded 28 total nests, 103 eggs laid and 56 bluebirds fledged.

In 2009, we recorded 28 total nests, 132 eggs laid and 67 bluebirds fledged.

The one thing we can say with certainty is that DSBG provides 33 nest boxes for the bluebirds’ use and the bluebirds used them more this year than last year. In 2008, bluebirds built nests in only 17 of the boxes. And this year, 21 of the boxes were used for nest building.

Even though the Eastern Bluebirds have finished their family business for this season there are still plenty of birds to see when visiting the garden. With the fall migration, it is a great time to visit the garden and observe the birds passing by. Susan and I will continue to come to the garden during the fall migration and we hope to see you there as well.

They're Here!

2009-08-28T11:33:00.006-04:00

It’s that time of the year again where The Orchid Conservatory and the Garden becomes home to some very special insects, butterflies! Some of the species we have this year include monarchs, painted ladies, swallowtails and mourning cloaks. The most fascinating part is some of the butterflies we receive come to us in the form of a chrysalis.

The beautiful butterfly you normally see goes through a long process before it becomes what you see. Everyone knows the short version of metamorphosis: caterpillar-larvae-butterfly. In our regular gardens, you may come across caterpillars. The Garden has some naturally so we don’t order any of those. For our Something’s A-Flutter exhibit, we receive butterflies both in the pupae stage (a chrysalis), and adulthood (butterfly).

Our first order of chrysalides came in on Tuesday. Enthusiastic volunteers and staff were armed with cotton balls and pins ready to prepare these little gems for display. We receive the chrysalides from butterfly farms via UPS or FedEx. When we get the package, the chrysalides are packed in foam cases, with individual slots. We’re expecting to receive several hundred chrysalides a week! After gently removing the chrysalides, we create artificial silk by taking a tiny amount of glue and gathering a small piece of cotton ball so it sticks to the chrysalis. Usually in nature, this silk would allow the chrysalis to hang from a twig, but we just take pins and hang the chrysalis up by the cotton.

Chrysalides are different depending on the species of the butterfly. The most impressive chrysalis is the monarch. With its seafoam green case and sparkling gold accents, the monarch chrysalis looks like the focal point of a fine piece of jewelry. Other chrysalides look more natural like a leaf such as the painted ladies. The reason why the monarch chrysalis is so pretty is because the case is a warning signs for predators to stay away. The monarch doesn’t have a very a nice taste. However, the painted ladies taste very good to predators so they require more camouflage to blend in with the natural environment. All of our chrysalides are safe from predators because we display them in a case for you to see part of the butterfly life cycle.

Then we just wait. The chrysalis will turn black and in some cases then clear. The monarch will turn clear and you can see the bright orange colors. When the butterfly hatches, it releases its extra blood it no longer needs (miconium) so don’t be surprised if you see red on the bottom of the display case. Then the emerging butterfly grabs onto the chrysalis while it pumps blood from its abdomen into its wings. The wings are smaller and look like folded blankets when first hatching. After pumping its wings, the butterfly is ready to feed and fly around. The hatching process is different depending on the species. We had some butterflies hatching on Wednesday, only a day later! Painted ladies are quick to hatch, while the swallowtails take a little longer. If you’re lucky, you can see the process yourself in our Conservatory. Be sure to check out both our friends under metamorphosis and our already fluttering friends!

Food Fight

2009-08-17T08:59:00.003-04:00

They say that if you truly love something you have to let it go. I'm not quite sure who "they" are, but "they" are also champions of other depressing adages such as "there ain't no such thing as a free lunch", "anything that can go wrong will", and my personal favorite, "beggars can't be choosers". Well kids, in this situation life truly imitates art. Perhaps I should tell my story...

The Orchid Conservatory features a lovely collection of tropical fruit trees and shrubs. Every effort is made to coax these wonders into producing fruit, which not only do our visitors enjoy viewing, but we, the staff, enjoy consuming. The fruits of our labor if you will. Some of these plants are bounteous, easy to grow and productive to the point of nuisance. The bananas would fall under this category, each season bringing us up to 100 pounds of fruit that ripen simultaneously and make us all sick of banana bread and pudding. Others are finicky plants and have very specific cultural requirements that must be met in order for fruit production to occur. In this latter category are the citrus, the chocolate tree (evil evil thing!) and the subject of our saga, the pineapple.

After a long years wait, defying rot, pests, and a freak boiler failure that plunged the conservatory into a night of forty degree temperatures, our pineapple plant sent up a lovely pink flower spike! Slowly but surely each flower dropped off, revealing a spiky green pineapple segment. A pineapple is actually a compound fruit- one that is composed of many small fruits fused together. Over a period of weeks the fruit grew to a decent size of about 8 inches long. As hot summer days ensued the ripening process began, changing the pineapple from a rock hard, dull green rock to a fragrant golden fruit. The scent of it hung in the air, enticing us with the promise of a treat no grocery store could deliver.

As luck would have it, two of my esteemed staff celebrate birthdays within the same week of August. A wonderful plan formed in my mind. What better birthday cake for the conservatory staff than a scrumptious pineapple upside-down cake, made with the luxurious fruit of our very own pineapple crop? I stroked the pineapple gently that Friday before leaving for the weekend. "Monday my dear, you become a culinary masterpiece." Over the weekend I gathered the other ingredients for my super-special-tropical-birthday-surprise-cake and planned our party for the next Tuesday.

Sadly, fate intervened over the weekend. Upon arriving at work Monday morning I received the report- the pineapple had vanished. A year's worth of love and care disappeared, replaced by a torn and ugly stub. All I can hope is that who ever took it enjoyed it, that it wasn't just tossed in the back of a fridge to turn to mush or thrown off a bridge to see how big of a splash it made. If the culprit is out there reading this enjoy your pineapple, you will never have another like it and I imagine the wheel of karma will turn your way eventually.

I guess we'll have banana bread instead.

Here's How We Do It

2009-08-14T06:26:00.002-04:00

This is the second year of the Bluebird Trail here at the garden and we’ve been in the saddle, so to speak, since the beginning of the project. We aren’t sure how we were selected to monitor the birds’ activities, but it must have been because we talk “birds” a lot. At any rate, it just sort of evolved and we consider it a privilege, as well as a pleasure, to keep tabs on the Eastern Bluebirds which we do one morning each week from mid-March until mid-September.

So what exactly do we do? We start out by taking a golf cart to the beginning of the trail and then we start knocking on doors (nestboxes). Knocking is supposed to alert the female that we’re going to open the box. If there’s one in there, she usually flies out but we’ve found that sometimes she stays on the nest and gives us “the eye.” In fact, in several cases the bird has been so obstinate that we’ve returned to the particular box later, after she has left, to check on what was happening in there.

We check each box for evidence of nesting such as a partial nest, a complete nest, or no interest in that box at all. If it’s a complete nest, we carefully peek in to see if there are eggs and if so, how many are in the nestcup that week. If there are chicks in the nest, we count heads (often wide-open mouths) and compare them to the number of eggs we had recorded. If the chicks have been in the nest into the second week, we know it’s about time for them to fledge so we’re very careful when opening the box and peeking in. We don’t want them to fly before their time.

All of this information is recorded on a checksheet which we developed. We have a sheet for each box, and the sheet shows four (sometimes five) weeks of data that we’ve collected for the month. Often we have to refer to the prior month’s sheet to see what had been happening in a box. There’s a section for additional comments and our notes in this column often are more helpful than just the numbers.

So we make the rounds checking boxes and doing some other birding along the way. We keep lists of all the birds we see during the couple of hours we spend on the trail. That information will be useful someday, also, and folks always want to know what we’ve seen. Ours is a great assignment!

Big Changes Coming to the Orchid Conservatory... OR... Fantasy and Reality Rarely Mesh

2009-07-24T09:42:00.002-04:00

I guess the best place to start is all the way back at the beginning.

Once upon a time there were grand plans in place for an Orchid Conservatory at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. The garden staff anxiously awaited architect's and garden designer's plans for a luxuriant tropical oasis. When these plans arrived they ooohed and aaahed and there was much rejoicing in the land. Part of this glorious vision was that of lush vines covered in blooms cascading and rambling over the structure of the building, creating a true jungle vision and camouflaging the ugliness of man's creation.
"How perfect!" they exclaimed. "There are no steel beams in the tropical rain forest. It'll be beautiful!"
And it was. Careful research and plant selection began to find THE PERFECT vines and lianas for the space.
"They must be beautiful." the staff said. "They must be strong and healthy" others added.
Come October the most excellent vines were selected and planted lovingly at the column bases of the Orchid Conservatory. By the grand opening in January they were all they had wanted them to be. With lots of sun, water, and a little TLC the vines thrived rambling, scrambling, and climbing towards the sky. The staff was delighted, they had done well.
Through the first year the vines grew, and grew, and grew, and the nervousness began.
"Ok, you can STOP growing now." The staff said. But the vines had grown so tall they could not hear them from the tippy top of the conservatory, fifty feet from the ground. And if they had, they would have only replied
"We can't stop. We have indeterminate mature sizes you see. You've fed us, watered us, and loved us, so we GROW."
"Indeterminate?" said the staff. "What on earth do you mean you can't stop? This label right here says thirty feet is your maximum size! And this book says twenty five!"
"Ahhhhh, said the vines. Books and tags tell lies. In a normal environment of harsh sun, drought, leaf eating animals and insects, and an occasional hurricane our growth is limited. But here we are in paradise and nothing harms us, we can reach our full potential and cover all that is here to cover."
"Oh." Said the staff.

The moral of this story is be very careful with what you plant, and be sure to temper your desire for instant gratification with knowledge that down the road you will have to maintain, yes maintain, the plants you select. Vines especially can quickly get out of hand, as any of us who just had to have a purple wisteria on the arbor now know. The garden's solution to this increasingly vigorous problem is removal of the vines, once so small and cute and now raging thugs from the conservatory all together. Considering said vines are now fifty to sixty feet from the ground this will include some extreme acrobatics and equipment provided by a local tree service. So next time you step into the Orchid Conservatory and grimace at the exposed steel beams of the roof supports, remember our tale, and don't let this happen to YOU.

The End

All Predators Great and Small (with apologies to James Herriot)

2009-07-10T08:47:00.003-04:00

Baby birds certainly have a hard time growing up in this big, wonderful world. They have quite a battle on their wings before they even take their very first flight.

I think we all are aware of the common predators to birds. There are snakes, raccoons, squirrels, chipmunks, cats and even other birds vying for the eggs or for the chicks. But, there are a couple of predators we didn’t even have on our radar screen this year. Our observations this year are that size really does not matter when it comes to predators.

We have had a bit of a problem this year with ant infestations. I am guessing they are fire ants but I can’t say this with a total degree of certainty. All I know is that these little devils do bite. And, I also know I’m a lot more alert about where I step when I step out of that golf cart!

We are treating the areas around some of the boxes where we observed the ants and we’re hoping that this doesn’t continue to be a major problem going forward. It is a mystery why we have had several boxes infested with ants this year when it didn’t seem to be a problem at all last year. We did have a great deal more rain this spring than we did last year and perhaps that is one factor that might account for the increase in ant infestations. Susan Holland’s photograph above shows the sad sight of what these tiny predators can do to a nest box full of chicks.

So, now you’re wondering aren’t you, what the “Great” predator is since I’ve already told you about the “Small” one. Well, it certainly was a surprise to me, but after reading up on the American Crow, I found out that they eat just about anything. Susan’s grandson Peter joined us on our rounds this morning and he happened to see an American Crow with something quite large in its beak. From a distance it looked like it could have been a mouse so we decided to drive over and take a closer look. Our crow had dropped his little snack and it looked to us like it was a bluebird chick. Who knew?

Well, enough of the bad news about predators. Let’s talk about the good news!! The good news is that we are still seeing a great deal of activity in many of the nest boxes. We have 27 bluebird eggs and 10 chicks in the boxes right now. We are confident that we’ll count several new chicks in the boxes in the coming weeks. There is still a lot of summer left for the birds and a lot of summer left for us to enjoy them.

Family Gardening: Garden Maintenance

2009-07-01T11:18:00.003-04:00

I hope you’re having fun in the garden with your family! Now that the planting is done, the focus shifts more to maintenance. This is sometimes regarded as a chore, but I have to admit that I really enjoy it. It’s one of the few excuses to just putter around in your garden observing the fruits of your labor. It never ceases to amaze me how much plants can grow and change in a short time—it’s a miracle in every plant!
While there is a lot to do in the garden, endless weeding doesn’t come across as appealing to anyone—least of all your kids. In order to prevent garden maintenance from seeming onerous, try the following tips to keep it fun and engaging for the whole family:

Mulch magic. Mulch is one of your best friends in the garden—it cuts way down on weeds, and helps conserve water in the soil as well. There is no single best material for mulch—I recommend an organic material that will break down over time and improve the soil, as well as a material that is locally available. This could be pine straw here in the southeast, or bark mulch, or even a thick layer of newspaper covered with leaves or straw. At my own home I have a lot of trees, so we create our own mulch by shredding the autumn leaves with the lawnmower. The result is a great mulch, and I feel good that I am not adding bags of leaves to the local landfill. I add a thick layer of leaves 2-4 inches deep to all my garden beds in the fall. As the leaves break down they enhance the soil by adding wonderful organic matter. When I plant new flowers and veggies in the spring I dig through the leafy mulch, turning some of it into the soil in the process, and then add more after planting to prevent weeds from taking hold.
Weeding wizards. Yes, weeding is a part of gardening, but it doesn’t have to be a burdensome chore. Keep it light and fun. First off, don’t let the weeds get to be taller than your children before you pull them; instead, make a tour of the garden once or twice a week to scout for new little encroaching weeds and pull them while they’re small. If your child has a difficult time distinguishing between weeds and sprouts of plants that you want, then focus in on just one type of weed at a time. Proclaim a ‘weed of the day’ and show them a sample, then have a contest to see who can find the greatest number of that specific weed. (It goes without saying that you should choose whatever weed is most prolific in the garden for your weed of the day.) The winner becomes the Weeding Wizard for the day. It can become a kind of a scavenger hunt, providing a lot of fun and some great quality time in the garden for you and your kids.
Dig in! Kids simply love to dig. They can expend endless energy and will generate great enthusiasm digging around and playing in the soil. There are a lot of discoveries to make in digging: small leaves, twigs, and rocks that make up the soil… different types and textures of soil… the joys of mud pies when water is added… engineering feats to be achieved in creating holes, tunnels, and caves for small imaginary villages… insects that make their home in the soil… and best of all, earthworms! If you have young kids—toddlers to middle elementary—leave a little patch of your garden open as a digging zone. They will want to continue their digging adventures long after the planting is done!
Wonders of water. Kids like watering even more than they like digging. Try to make it as easy as you can for them to water their plants. It’s a wonderful natural lesson in taking responsibility, and helps them learn to think beyond themselves in caring for living things. Plus, it’s just fun! I worked with a daycare center a few years back to create a small garden for their kids, and watering was their absolute favorite activity. To make it easy for them to be independent in their watering, we placed a large storage bin under the faucet and used it as a sort of watering trough. When it was garden maintenance time, we simply turned on the faucet and let the bin fill with water. We kept a bunch of small child-sized watering cans by the bin, so that the kids could help themselves to water. Several of them at a time could fill their watering cans in the watering trough. They could handle the diminutive watering cans with ease, and the small volume that the containers held ensured that they would not overwater and ‘drown’ the plants. They were wonderful caretakers, and loved that they could be independent and do it themselves.

What tips and tricks do you have up your sleeves to help keep garden maintenance fun for kids and the entire family? I’d love to hear them!

Happy Gardening!
Dr. Cindy

So Who Is Really Living Here?

2009-06-11T13:09:00.002-04:00

It’s not that we don’t like House Wrens. We do appreciate the male’s beautiful warbling song that lets us know there’s pride in his chosen nest site. It’s just that he has chosen a nestbox that is supposed to be for the Eastern Bluebird. The bluebird builds a tidy nest, usually with pine needles because of their availability but we’ve seen dried grass used also. However, the House Wren stuffs the box with coarse sticks, cramming them in so tightly that it’s almost impossible to check for eggs. The actual nest cup is deep inside along the back side of the box so we dutifully (and carefully) tilt the nest outward and downward in order to see into it. If there are eggs or chicks, we leave them. However, if it’s the beginning of a nest we remove it but, usually, the next week the wren has been at it again.

Now we have discovered something new – new to us, that is. There are double layer nests in some of the boxes. The House Wren is either an opportunist or is lazy but, then, there may be a fine line of distinction there and could be a subject for musing in a different venue. On the bluebird trail here at the garden, we have several nestboxes in which the bluebirds started building nests but, somehow, the wrens took over. After all, they are feisty little birds. In one there was one bluebird egg already laid and we expected to find a few more eggs the following week. Instead, we found a stick nest built on top of the pine needle nest and the bluebird egg was gone.

We know that House Wrens usually choose boxes that are near woody areas and we thought we had placed them far enough from trees and bushy areas. However, now we know these birds will use boxes that are out in open areas and, in fact, will take over the boxes already being used by the bluebirds.

Wrens are known to destroy bluebird eggs by punching holes in them, but they also will attack chicks in the nest and toss them out. They are a major problem if one is trying to have a successful bluebird trail. Obviously we are distressed when we find these stick nests, but we also know that it’s nature at work. But double layers? Oh, come on!

Family Gardening: What to Plant?

2009-06-05T17:45:00.004-04:00

There are so many plants to choose from these days, it can be hard to know where to start. For those of you planning and planting a family garden with your kids (or with a group of kids such as a summer day camp, scout group or church group), here are a few ideas to help frame some interesting options that kids will enjoy:

Giants, Minis, and Oddballs. When planting vegetables, think about oddities or extremes. They can be used to create a vegetable garden that is fun and interesting for kids. Also, most kids are more willing to try eating something that they have grown themselves, especially if it’s something different from the norm. Try planting giant varieties planted next to miniature ones to create a contrast, or strange-looking varieties. For a nice miniature tomato, try growing cherry tomatoes (my personal favorite is Sungold) right next to a giant variety like Park’s Whopper. Yard-long beans—an Asian type of string bean that truly does grow very long—are a fun bean to plant on a trellis or bamboo teepee. A nice colorful vegetable is the beautiful Swiss Chard called Bright Lights—the multi-hued stems look like old-fashioned ribbon candy, and create a lovely little rainbow right in your garden! You’ll be looking for recipes to try with your new-found crop. Don’t forget squash—it’s a great plant that is extremely easy to grow, so you can almost guarantee success. A few squash will produce enough to feed your entire family and all your friends, and there are some fun ‘different’ varieties, too, such as a small round squash called Eight Ball.
Floral Bounty. There are endless flowers that would be ideal for a children’s garden area. Zinnias would top my list (any kind), along with Sunflowers (Helianthus) and Tithonias, also called Mexican Sunflowers—they have bright orange daisy-like flowers, and the leaves are fuzzy and shaped like a dinosaur’s foot/paw. (No, I’ve never seen a dinosaur’s foot/paw-- which is it, anyway? However, this is what the kids I’ve worked with say, and it really does look like a three-toed foot. They make great dinosaur leaf prints…) There are so many options it’s hard to limit—it really just depends on the space you have available and the amount of sun or shade you have. Take your child and let them pick out a few flowers to try. It's a great outing. Plus, experimenting with something new fosters a wonderful aptitude for exploration and discovery—key components to critical thinking that are essential for developing young scientists as well as creative artists!
Herbal Delights. Create a fragrant sensory experience by making sure to plant a few herbs in your garden. Many have fragrant foliage, and it is simply delightful to brush against them and release their scent as you are working in the garden or just strolling through. Plus, you have the added benefit of having fresh herbs just outside your door that you can add to your meals. Basil is extremely easy to grow, as is mint, rosemary, and lemon balm. All of these—and many more—are very kid-friendly, and very commonly available at your local nursery. I especially like lemon balm and mint, as you can steep them and make your own herbal tea, or use them to flavor your iced tea. Some folks say that they will ‘invade,’ but I have never found them to be truly invasive—they just like to spread out. Makes me feel like a really successful gardener! They are easy to keep in check—you just pull up the surface runners, and then you have some to share with a friend.
Heirloom Heritage. Try planting some heirloom varieties. These are plants that have been grown for generations, with seed collected and passed down from one person to another. With heirloom plants you can collect and save your own seed to plant again next year, which is a fun and interesting activity in and of itself at the end of the season—a wonderful scavenger hunt in your own backyard! Heirloom vegetables, in particular, are some of the best-tasting varieties of vegetables you can grow. Many companies carry heirloom varieties along with hybridized ones—heirloom tomatoes like Brandywine and Mortgage Lifter are popular, and there are many more available. Plant several different types and conduct your own taste test—they will be the best-tasting tomatoes you ever put in your mouth!
Gourd-geous. Last but not least, grow some gourds. These are just plain fun—they grow very rapidly, and it’s amazing to see just how fast the gourds grow and take shape. Harvest some for bird houses or other crafts. You and your kids will all be enchanted to have a bird house you grew yourself! There are an endless variety of vegetables, herbs, and flowers to plant—I could go on and on. The point is to have fun experimenting and try some new things.

Obviously, this list of plants could go on and on. I would love to hear what the favorite plants are in your family garden. What do your kids enjoy? What do you have the most success with? How do you use the harvest from your garden? Please write and let me know!

Happy Gardening!

Dr. Cindy

What's New on the DSBG Bluebird Trail

2009-05-31T06:22:00.018-04:00

May has been a busy month for the bluebirds at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. The first brood of chicks from the nest boxes have fledged their nests and we are now seeing the second brood of the year. We noted that 8 of the nest boxes have a second brood and we counted a total of 28 eggs in those boxes. We also have one box with an active house wren nest.

If you are monitoring a bluebird box in your own back yard, do not be alarmed to see that the number of eggs in the second brood is smaller than the first. This is what we are seeing as well. We do have some smaller broods of just one, two or three eggs.

This year on the bluebird trail we had a slightly rare occurence in one of the nest boxes that we did not observe last year. During our monitoring of the boxes on April 30th we discovered that one nest box contained white eggs! The photograph above was taken on that day. After checking the box we drove a short distance away and waited. Sure enough a female bluebird flew right into the box. The eggs were also consistent with the size of the blue bluebird eggs that we are noting in the other boxes and the nest was consistent with the other bluebird nests.

According to www.sialis.org, up to 4 to 5 percent of bluebirds lay white eggs. The Sialis website also indicates that white eggs can occur in all three species of bluebirds and that the white eggs are just as fertile as the blue eggs. From what I read on this website, a female that lays white eggs will always lay white eggs. So, if we have blue eggs in the same nest box for the second brood, then another female has now inhabited the box. It will be interesting in the coming weeks to see if we have white or blue eggs in that same box.

As always, one other good thing about being outside monitoring the bluebird boxes is that it affords us the opportunity to see what new visitors we have flying around the garden. In addition to the usual suspects we saw a few new species of birds during May that we did not see in April. We observed the Indigo Bunting, American Goldfinch, Barn Swallow, Red-winged Blackbird, Orchard Oriole, Red-eyed Vireo and the Chimney Swift.

When you pay your next visit to the garden I hope you'll take some time and observe the birds as well as the beautiful plants and flowers. Please drop us a line if you see a species of bird that you do not normally see so that we can be on the lookout for them as well. Enjoy the garden and happy birding!

The Garden Becomes a Tropical Oasis

2009-05-20T08:41:00.003-04:00

Last week, the Garden began an impressive transition from Southern Spring to Tropical Oasis even as local nighttime temperatures dipped into the 30s.

Beginning last Monday, a strong force of staff and volunteers began rolling through the Garden to begin the work of creating the display that will be featured from May 29 to Aug. 30. Tuesday, director of Grounds Jim Summey reported that progress was smooth and that the plantings will likely be complete for Memorial Day weekend. That, however, will only provide a taste of the spectacular display guests will experience this summer.

The tropical display of bold summer colors combined with our perennial displays will make you want to visit the Garden again and again. Bright bromeliads, colorful coleus and hot-colored lantana will welcome guests for a spectacular experience all summer long.

These vibrant colors and striking shapes and textures come from around the globe. Pentas from North Africa surround familiar salvia while the South African plumbago gives a cooler effect with its periwinkle blue flowers. Also featured are the bright magenta leaves of the Hawaiian Ti and the unusual foliage of a South American bromeliad.

There is of course, much more to the display and we'll let you in on more as the summer goes on, so check back here often. Or better yet, visit. In addition to our daytime hours, we're open Thursday nights June 11-Aug. 20 for Garden Nights.

In addition, one Saturday a month is set aside for our Wild About Summer series. The first event is "Bee-Wild" on June 13. Then July 11 is set aside for "Wild-Life" when we welcome the Carolina Raptor Center and the Schiele Museum. Finally, you can make plans to join us for "Wild Wings: Hummingbird Banding" Aug. 1.

Out, Out Dastardly Beast

2009-05-14T12:34:00.000-04:00

In addition to having House Wren predators in the bluebird nestboxes at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, there is a serious problem with paper wasps. Last year only one box was taken over by them, and we learned not to go near that particular box. Our thoughts were to let the wasps have that one, and we designated it the "bad wasp box." This year it's a very different story. Wasps have moved into four of the boxes and that represents twelve percent of the boxes along the bluebird trail.

Early in the monitoring season and before the birds started placing nesting material in the boxes, we lined the inside of the tops with aluminum foil. We pre-cut the foil and secured it with double-sided tape. It was our understanding that the wasps prefer the top sides of the boxes, but now we know that isn't always the case. The vertical sides are also enticing. When the weather was still cool in the mornings, we made an attempt to remove the wasps and the stem/core of the beginning nests. We thought we were quite brave, both the one using the "weapon", in this case an umbrella, as well as the one taking the picture. However, the following week the beast was in the box again, building a new nest in the same spot.

Since then it has been an on-going battle and we are in a dilemma as to what to do. We don't want to spray the boxes with insecticide as that would contaminate them for future use by the birds. We have read that rubbing a bar of soap on the insides will keep the wasps from building, but that seemed too labor-intensive. After all, the two of us are volunteers here at the garden. We have other lives, too. We've considered removing the affected boxes from their poles but, again, who is brave enough for this job?

So don't let this little soliloquy discourage you from establishing your own bluebird trail. Just know that the Eastern Bluebird has a few challenges of its own. Checking boxes each week gives us great pleasure, but we do give the ones with wasps in them wide berths.

Tales from the dark side

2009-05-06T13:44:00.000-04:00

So, you loooovvveee butterflies right? Who doesn't? They're colorful, they flutter and flit amongst the flowers (wow, I'm a poet!). Here at the garden we love them so much we've dedicated a whole month in the fall to celebrating them during our Something's A-flutter exhibit. However, as many things do (babies, sports cars, masters degrees in art history...) they have a dark side.

"A dark side?" you ask. Indeed. As we all learned in 3rd grade, butterflies undergo a process called metamorphosis, during which they change from egg, to caterpillar, to pupa, to adult-aka the pretty stage. It's the caterpillar or larva that is the subject of today's tale. While adult butterflies feed on flower nectar, tree sap, or ummmm, animal feces (yes, poo) the larva feed on plant leaves. And as fate would have it a favorite source of nourishment this month seems to be our greenhouse crops!

A greenhouse is every gardener's dream. We have all daydreamed about such a lush tropical sanctuary complete with exotic orchids and bodacious tomato vines loaded with fruit, lovingly and effortlessly tended in your ample spare time. But just as that baby screams through teething and that corvette needs another clutch, greenhouse culture is not all wine and roses.

One of the most difficult aspects of greenhouse growing is pest management. Here at DSBG we use an IPM (integrated pest management) approach. This minimizes the use of harsh and dangerous chemical applications while producing healthy and attractive plants. It's a great method that has worked well for us since we began ten years ago. IPM also allows for a "threshold of acceptable damage". This means that a small number of pests is allowed, as long as populations do not become high enough to cause significant damage. Unfortunately with our wriggling larval buddies, damage goes from "no big deal" to "oh no!" at light speed.

After a few defoliated salvia and coleus were spotted Monday, it has come time to declare WAR on the wormies in order to protect our precious summer crops from annihilation. Ironically, in the midst of the great swine flu scare, our weapon of choice is biological warfare in the form of a bacterial agent called Bacillus thuringiensis, also known as Dipel or Bt. Harmless to humans, animals, fish, and even other insects, Bt infects the gut of caterpillars and prevents them from digesting their food (our plants) and causes death within 12 hours of ingestion. Swine doesn't sound quite so bad now huh? Controlled sprays after each watering in the enclosed greenhouse environment protect our plants without causing any danger to outdoor butterfly and moth populations, ourselves, or our guests.

So please enjoy our beautiful summer gardens next time you visit. And if the coleus look at tad short, well, blame the butterflies!

What We Don't Want To See On The Bluebird Trail

2009-04-30T16:50:00.000-04:00

There have been a lot of things going on during the past few weeks on the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden Bluebird Trail. Just in the past week alone we discovered that 19 bluebirds fledged their nests. We have at least 6 active nests and we have 4 nest boxes that are active with wasps. We are definitely having more problems with wasps this year than we did last year.

The picture at the right is a picture of what we don't like to see on our bluebird trail. This is a House Wren nest. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 protects these little native birds that build these big, clunky nests. The Act makes it illegal to remove active nests or eggs of the House Wren. It is acceptable to remove House Wren nests without a nest cup or eggs. You can see from this picture that it would be very difficult to determine whether or not there is a nest cup or eggs in this box. So, to be on the safe (and legal) side, it is best to let nature take its course at this stage. This is what makes regular monitoring so important. Early detection makes it possible to remove the sticks before a nest cup is established and eggs are laid.

We also discovered one nest box being inhabited by a Tufted Titmouse. This bird is also protected by the same act so she'll be raising her brood without any interference from us. The Tufted Titmouse makes downy nests of moss, fur, soft plant fibers and occasionally crumpled leaves. It is easily distinguishable from the pine needle nests that bluebirds build. It looks extremely soft and comfortable. If I were a baby bird I think I'd like this nest quite a lot!

We also had one more visitor to a nest box this week that is also protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. I noticed two tree swallows flying around one of the nest boxes. One of the birds landed on the front of the box and held on and sang away at the entry hole. So, next week the monitoring could be very interesting. We may just get the opportunity to see what the Tree Swallow's nest looks like as well.

So, do pay a visit to the garden soon. Sit a spell and see what else is flying around in the air besides wasps, bees and pollen.

Family Gardening: Planning a Garden with Your Kids

2009-04-27T17:14:00.001-04:00

It’s late April, and the spring gardening season is in full swing! The average last frost date (April 18th here in the Charlotte area) has passed. While this doesn’t guarantee that we won’t have another frost, it’s a pretty good bet. So, consider the ribbon cut and get out there and dig!

Planting a garden is one of the best—and most economic—family activities I know. If you want to have a great adventure with your kids this summer, consider planting a garden together. You’d be surprised how many special moments you and your children will have checking on and maintaining your garden together.

Although there are endless ways to enjoy gardening with your children, I’ve accumulated some tips and advice as I’ve worked with kids and families over the years. I’ve listed a few below that relate to garden planning. I’ll post a few more each week for the next couple of weeks on what to grow, and garden maintenance. (It could grow to more... we'll see!)

Shared ownership. We all like a say in what goes on around us, and kids are no exception. The garden is the perfect arena to include them in decision-making; besides, they will wander out to the garden much more often if they feel like they have some ownership in it. Let them in on the decisions about what to grow. Provide a few choices for them to select from, or peruse the garden catalogs or local garden center together. Ask everyone in the family to choose one crop, or perhaps everyone gets to choose one type of tomato and then have a contest to see whose tomato produces the most fruit.

Start small. If you are planning your first garden, start small. You don’t need a half-acre in order to produce a lot of food. In fact, you will be surprised how much produce you can harvest in a small plot. I recommend starting with a 4’ x 4’ plot, or a few containers on the patio or balcony. Better to smart small and have fun with it than to create a large garden that becomes a chore to maintain.

Don’t worry about perfect. Perfect gardens really only exist in books—don’t worry about it! Your rows do not have to be perfectly straight, nor your garden weed-free. Instead, focus on enjoying your garden together. Family gardening time is some of the best family time you’ll get—no TV, and just each other for company. You’ll have actual conversations! The important part in planting is that you do it together and keep it fun—a few minutes at a time a few times a week may be all the time you and your kids have to spend in the garden, and that’s okay. The entire garden doesn’t have to be planted at one time. Let it fit your schedule—you’ll all be happier in the end. You can always add more later or next year.

Be adventurous. Don’t be afraid to try new things together—one of the best lessons you can give your kids is to model being an enthusiastic and curious learner yourself. Don’t get caught in the trap of thinking you have to know all the answers; instead, teach your kids the joy of trying something new and waiting to see how it will turn out. Remember, all great gardeners have killed a lot of plants as they learn and discover what works in their gardens. If you see a plant that looks interesting, but that you don’t know how to grow, that’s okay—investigate it with your child and then try it if it seems appropriate for your conditions. Gardening is an ongoing investigation, and you never stop learning.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to keep your garden project interesting and engaging for you and your kids. Have fun with your kids in your garden this summer, and turn them into lifelong gardeners. It’s one of the best things you will ever do as a parent!

Have some feedback, or some additional tips based on your own experience? I would love to hear them—please post a response and help foster family gardening.

Thanks for reading-- now get out there and garden!

Cindy

"Spring"ing down the Bluebird Trail

2009-04-17T09:29:00.000-04:00

There are more things growing in the garden this week than just the beautiful spring flowers, shrubs and trees! Some of our bluebird chicks that hatched last week are now growing their pinfeathers. We expect our first fledglings next week so if you visit the garden please be sure and be on the lookout for those immature little bluebirds. The chicks in my photograph just have their down right now but take a look at how adorable they are.

This week was a very exciting one on the bluebird trail at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. The bluebirds have been busy getting their chicks raised up and ready for their big new world. We noted the same number of nests in the boxes as we had last week but the number of chicks has more than quadrupled.

A visit to the garden this week might have afforded you the opportunity to view the following species of birds which we noted on our regular monitoring of the bluebird trail: Canada Goose, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Mourning Dove, Eastern Kingbird, American Crow, Tufted Titmouse, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Common Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird, and the House Finch. We also took note of a Canada Goose on her nest so it's not just the bluebirds and the gardeners who have been busy this week at the garden. We'd love to hear from you if you have the time to post a comment. What birds are you seeing in your own backyard?

We are having a problem with wasps in some of the nest boxes so we are investigating our options in dealing with these pests. And, if you have had success in this area we'd love to hear from you on this topic too. We can all learn from one another in so many areas.

If you are monitoring a box in your own yard at home you might find that the female doesn't always fly out of the box when you knock on the side. This happened to us twice during our observations this week. For one of the boxes we had to circle back around to check it later and in another box the female would simply not budge off her nest. She may have been busy laying a new egg or maybe birds are a little bit like us. Maybe they don't want to get out of bed on a chilly morning either!

We hope you'll visit the garden this week. There is always something new to discover. Just don't forget to bring your binoculars!

Dogwoods in bloom

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We were really lucky this morning-it only got down to 32 degrees for a low here, and it didn't stay there long. There was some patches of frost, but no hard freeze like we were afraid of. There shouldn't be much plant damage. It's amazing how just a few degree difference in temperature can make such a huge difference in a plant.

Spring always makes me really excited-so many things coming in to bloom. The dogwoods are lighting up the woods. It is neat how they always come into bloom at Easter, regardless of when it is. They somehow seem to know the right time to bloom.

Dogwood (Cornus florida) is a small tree native to the eastern U. S. and the upper part of Mexico, most often seen in the understory of larger trees like pines and oaks, but I also see them pop up in abandoned fields and other sunny places. The pretty red berries they have in the Winter are good food for birds, which is what spreads them around.

One thing that makes the dogwood interesting is that what most people think is the flower is actually a bract-a leaf-like part of the plant that covers the flower bud until it opens. On most plants, the bracts are small and green, but on dogwoods they are creamy white and the showiest part of the plant. The true flowers are the little yellow parts in the center of the white bracts.

Another neat thing about dogwoods is that the bracts get larger and more white the longer they have been open. And if you take a close look, each bract has a notch at the end, giving them a heart-shaped appearance. They also have a brownish-red blotch at each indention.

Next time you see a dogwood, take a close look at the "flowers" and see how each plant comes with a story.

On the Bluebird Trail at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden

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Yesterday, April 2nd, Susan and I conducted our regular monitoring of the 33 Bluebird nest boxes at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in late afternoon. We are currently beginning the third month of monitoring. We usually monitor the boxes first thing in the morning and this is for a very good reason. In addition to monitoring the boxes, we also take some time to do a little "birding" along the way. The morning is the best time to see different species of birds. However, yesterday we saw on weather.com that we would have a small window of opportunity to do our monitoring without the rain so we altered our start time by just a few hours.

Since we monitored a little later in the day than usual we did not see quite as many birds but we did note 11 different families of birds which included 13 unique species: Canada Goose, Eastern Bluebird, House Finch, Northern Cardinal, Eastern Towhee, Pine Warbler, European Starling, Brown Thrasher, Northern Mockingbird, American Robin, Carolina Wren, American Crow, and the Turkey Vulture.

The garden is a wonderful place to visit all throughout the year as you never know what bird you just might see. Every week is different. A couple of weeks ago we spotted a Pileated Woodpecker overhead and in upcoming weeks we fully expect to see the beautiful Ruby-Throated Hummingbird return to the garden. There is really never a bad time to visit the garden.

Spring is typically a great time to move and the birds are following suit. They are picking their choice locations and moving in! We have seen an increase in nest building already over last month. At the end of March we had a total of 13 nests in the boxes and in the first week of April we noted 15 nests in the boxes. The really exciting thing we recorded was the increase in egg production. Just since the last monitoring in March we found that the number of eggs in the boxes has more than doubled.

This is just the second year of monitoring the Bluebirds at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. It will be a very exciting year for everyone at the garden to see what the changes are from last year to this year and also in the years going forward.

If you are a bird fancier and want to start keeping an eye on the birds in your own backyard, be sure and visit the Garden Store at DSBG. They have several of the same nest boxes in the Garden Store that we are monitoring regularly. And, even on a rainy day when there is nothing much to do, you can sit at your window and watch those beautiful flying jewels light up your front yard. I hope to see you in the garden!

Welcome to the Garden Blog

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You have arrived at the blog for Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. We are happy to be here where we can share our love of gardening and the outdoors with you.

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is a young garden, located in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. We're just west of Charlotte near the South Carolina border.

In 1991, Daniel J. Stowe, a retired textile executive, reserved these 380 acres of prime rolling meadows and lakefront woodlands on which to develop a world-class botanical garden. Nature lover and gardening enthusiast, Stowe and his wife, Alene, envisioned a complex, evolving over four decades, to rival internationally-renowned gardens. A 1999 gala celebrated the completion of the Visitor Pavilion and the installation of 10 acres of manicured gardens, 12 sparkling fountains and a woodland trail within 100 acres of green space. In 2008, we added a spectacular 8,000-square-foot glasshouse featuring the regions only display of orchids and tropical plants.

Today the Garden serves more than 100,000 people include tourists, groups, school children, lifelong learners, wedding and event guests and others. Our staff is a dynamic group of individuals with experience at public gardens and similar institutions across the country. We also have a vital group of volunteers who help us execute our mission on a daily basis.

So that's who you'll be hearing from in the blog. You'll learn about our bluebird program and read about the plants that will grow best in your backyard. We'll give you a glimpse of programs like our Garden Adventure Camps and special events such as Something's A-Flutter that opens in September. So check out our list of current bloggers and check back with us often.

Let us know what you think about our work. We'll plan to add contributors and other ideas as time goes on.

Thanks for joining us.