Category Archives: Horticulture

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The Mark of Adventure (4 of 4)

So here we are at day 4 of our virtual explorations of plants and adventurers.

Being a like minded adventurous spirit,  I am always eager to learn a little behind the scenes – just what goes into planning an expedition… so I was delighted when ‘The Mark of Adventure‘, Mark Weathington, stepped in  at a recent event -Volunteer Appreciation Day –  for  J .C.  Raulston, Sarah B. Duke Gardens, North Carolina Botanical Garden, and Juniper Level Botanic Garden –  to share what was in his suitcase.

Even though Mark was leaving in 2 days to give a talk at a prestigious event: 5th Global Botanic Gardens Congress    and hunt plants in New Zealand, he took the time out to delight his audience with his always packed and ready to go roller bag for plant collecting.

MW Suitcase1This bag gets checked, let’s see what’s inside:

  • MW tech2Notebooks for documenting & sketching, multiple pencils for writing &  marking.
  • Business cards printed in English and the language of the visiting country… plenty of them!

All collected plants must be meticulously cleaned, packed and labeled.  No traces of  soil can be left on a cutting or on seeds… so each night plant hunters can be found in their lodging with sinks or trash cans filled with water for cleaning…  a soft brush is  handy.

MWZiplock2

  • Hefty Zipper Bags  – Mark prefers those with the actual plastic zippers.
  • Scissors  and knife.
  • A spray bottle for a little moisture.  Plastic Plant markers.
  • MWtech3Mark showed the size of the specimens collected (held in right hand), which after cleaning get wrapped in foil.  Paper towels, some moss which also acts as packing material.MW sifter
  • Little sieves from the Dollar Store help when cleaning and sifting seed.
  • Small muslin bags for storing seed in a variety of sizes.
  • A loop or magnifying glass to insure correct ID and check for tiny insects or minute traces of soil.  It is not uncommon for Customs agents to dump the whole lot!

MWtech4Then there’s the tech equipment…

  •  GPS,  to mark location of collected specimens.
  • Chargers for  phones,  that is if there is any reception!
  • Laptops, etc.  which  must also be compatible with the country’s power.
  • Charging for same in vehicles,  Mark brings a charger that accommodates multiple gadgets simultaneously.MW machete
  • Duct Tape – Of Course!!!
  • A re-engineered fishing rod,  when coupled with a cutting implement, PVC pipe  and wire…

MWMachete2An invention of Mark’s to give him extra reach up in a tree or down a ravine to get that plant of desire just out of reach.  Can’t you tell he loves his work!

  • MW booksBooks to research and ID in the country visiting….
  • Passports, Visas,
  • Collecting permits…
  • Folders,
  • Padded envelopes,
  • Flattened fed Ex boxes
  • Labels.
  • MW permits2 Research lists of  plants – those that can not be collected  in particular country and
  • A wish list for the expedition!

MW listAll collected material gets dropped at inspection center usually near an airport and the plant hunter holds their breathe hoping the documented specimens make it out of customs of the visited country.

Then more waiting as the specimens are sent on through to the US Department of Agriculture for another round of inspections… the waiting begins…

MW labelsWhile Mark was still out in the hinterlands of New Zealand… this was posted by Lizzi Lathers of JCRA…

imageLuck!!!   Some of the plants already arrived at the JCRA!

Stay Tuned!  I’ll be following up with a behind the scenes look at what happens next…. as we follow the journey of the collected plants!

Thanks again Mark for the interesting and creative presentation… It was a huge hit!

Enjoy – living the  EntwinedLife

Jayme B

NC Certified Environmental Educator

Garden Conservancy Regional Representative

JC Raulston Arboretum Volunteer

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Plant Collector’s Garden – Designed To Inspire…

This manicured ray of sunshine reflects the personality of inspirational lecturer and UNC – TV Host Bryce Lane and his ‘behind the scenes leading lady’… Sue Lane!
A virtual horticultural classroom & plant collector’s garden – designed to inspire…

I had the pleasure of hearing a talk by Bryce Lane over a decade ago, at a Master Gardener meeting… 

The topic was “Soils”…

As a city /suburban gal  from Chicago, I was new to getting my hands dirty.  I had no earthly idea that there was a field of study called Horticulture or Plant Science… but on that day, after Bryce’s lecture, I came away inspired…

In an hour, Bryce made soil sound so fascinating.  We were all so “fired” up about dirt!  I had only wished I had heard that talk before heading off to college, I might have chosen Horticulture Science as my major.  But instead that lecture changed the way I thought about well… everything!  It is the source, the root of the plants we grow, the food we eat!  What happens in the soil stays in the soil…I had no idea it could be so down right provocative! 

Bryce Lane has received so many awards for teaching and inspiring at NC State University, I can just see him blushing as he reads this.  

 He is also a sought after speaker/lecturer with talks such as: 

  • “The Birth of a Greenhouse: A history of manipulation!”
  • “Gardening on the Edge: Latest Trends in Gardening”
  •  “Is it Warm in Here?” New Approaches to Gardening in our Changing Climate
  • “You’re not From Around These Parts”: Gardening With Native & Exotic Plants
  •  “Eliminating Murder: How Not to Kill Plants!”

Bryce shares two Emmy awards with his Garden – the co-star of his virtual classroom on his weekly television program – “In the Garden With Bryce Lane” on UNC TV and his high school sweetheart Sue Lane. 

They welcome you to the Lane Family Garden

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How long have you been gardening at this location 

30 years!

What is the first thing you did on the property?

Removing over 100 Liriope that were planted everywhere! I gave them to the the person who sold me his house for his new home!

How much time do you spend working in your garden?

Varies significantly, 5 to 20 hours per week. Less now that it is established.

Do you collect plants and if so what?

Depends on the month… I have been through many plant stages… Japanese Maples, Datura and Brugmansia, Colocasia, Heuchera, Dwarf Conifers, etc.

 Any favorite Garden tools? 

 AM Leonard soil knife and Felco pruners are the bombs!

 What is your mulch preference?

Cheapest, most available and what suits my mood at the time of year.   I have used pine straw, hardwood bark, yard waste, compost, and soil conditioner.

 Anything new added to your garden?

Driftwood piece from family vacation this past June at Emerald Isle.  Fished it out of the ocean with my 4 year old Grandson Ellis.

If money were no object what would you add or do differently?

Water element maybe, I might find 5- 50 acres!!  Actually my garden is the perfect size.

 What is your first memory in a garden?

Mmm, let me see…  Mom’s rock garden growing up in Massachusetts.

What is it that got you started gardening?

A part time job in High School at a Garden center…fell in love with plants… the rest is history.

 Where do you go for inspiration? 

Bible, nature, other gardens all over the world, other gardeners

Do you have a favorite Garden you’ve visited?

No, not really I love visiting them all, however, if I had to name one I would name one not created by humans…Bristlecone  Pine forest at the Inyo National Forest in California.

Do you have a favorite Garden Book?

Not really. Cut my Horticultural teeth on Donald Wyman’s Gardening Encyclopedia

Who is your Horticultural Hero? Or Garden mentor?

Can’t really name one…so many have influenced my horticultural development…  JC Raulston was my colleague, mentor, and friend.

Describe where you most often sit in your garden or looking out at your garden.

A few places, Our sun room looks out into the garden so sun room time on Saturday mornings is special… feel like we are sitting out in the garden.  The patio is also a great place to sit.  Kitchen window is also a great vantage point.

How much time do you spend just enjoying your garden? And what type of things…

See sun room time answer.  Anytime I am in my garden working or otherwise, I enjoy it!

Do you have garden wisdom’ to share? 

In gardening “disaster spells opportunity”. And as gardeners we need to honest with ourselves about how much direct sun we actually have!

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Perhaps we’ll get an advance peak at the latest featured Plant of the week!

Hope  to see you in the Garden of Bryce & Sue Lane!

Proceeds benefit the Garden Conservancy and locally the JC Raulson Arboretum!

DSC00767Enjoy – living the  EntwinedLife

Jayme B
NC Certified Environmental Educator
Garden Conservancy Regional Representative
JC Raulston Arboretum Volunteer

 

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Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day

Today is Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – Hurray!   A reason to head outside and see what surprises await throughout Entwined Garden.  The brisk temperature this morning is 37 degrees with a high expected of a sunny 60!!!   Ooh la la!

Enjoy a virtual stroll through our Wake Forest, North Carolina – zone 7b garden…

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These lovely blue striated Crocus chrysanthus ‘Blue Pearl’  emerge on a hillside reminding me of a nest of baby Bluebirds – beaks wide open.  Note: Make sure Bluebird nesting boxes clean. Continue reading →

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Horticultural Test of Time for the Holidays

So the true test…

Could I remember how to successfully use an O’dapter,  a month later to create a botanical whimsy for the holidays?

See the results and “How To”… Continue reading →

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Step away from the glitter….

Often there comes a time… when you just have to step away…

For the past 3 years every holiday we celebrated was in a nursing home;  many of our family traditions  had to be put aside.

Although wonderful to be spending it together, it was never private; visits seemed far too short or confined.

There is only so much decorating one can do in a shared room with limited space.

A wreath for Jayme's Mom!

But there was nothing like the smile on my Mom’s face when the new Seasonal wreath appeared for her door, or a tiny Christmas tree which I decorated in all of her favorite colors was revealed!

Color co-ordination - pleasing to Mom!

Color co-ordination – pleasing to Mom!

The tiny tree was a gift from my friend Barbara – who’s husband had died.  Barbara understands the kindness of little things to delight, and the space restraints in these times of transition.  Continue reading →

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Horticultural Hero

 

I first met Mr. Rehder, many years ago volunteering for the NC Azalea Festival. He was directing a motorcade made up of State Troopers on Motorcycles, a slew of limousines filled with national and local celebrities, and a motor home, over some sensitive property, with tactical ease.

Mr. Stanley Rehder, Sr. was memorable – tall & lanky, impeccable dressed, elegant in manner – a true Southern Gentleman.  I met him  in the years before I gave up manicured hands for the pursuits of gardening.

Husband Phil & I once spent a weekend,  Sloggin’ & Boggin’ through the peat bogs of Holly Shelter, NC and the area known as the “Bays” further inland toward the Sandhills. Under the leadership of Mike Dunn of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Science we were following the Footsteps of B.W. Wells, Botanical Pioneer.  It was on this trip I became interested in Carnivorous Plants.

In relating stories of this trip to my friend Julie Rehder, I learned that her dad was known as “Mr. Flytrap!” It was then he became my Horticultural Hero!

My friend Julie writes about her dad, “Stanley Rehder learned about Venus’ Flytraps and the various varieties of Sarracenia (pitcher) plants from his father, Will, and for more than 80 years he and his brother, Henry, enjoyed locating and cataloging the sites where these native plants flourished.”

Mr. Rehder, who graduated from NCSU in 1947 with a degree in Horticulture, was relentless in pushing forward the 1951 North Carolina Legislation to protect these rare plants – found only in peat bogs along the North and South Carolina coasts.

“To share his love and knowledge of the rare plants,” Julie adds, “ He appeared on national television shows – “That’s Incredible”, “Good Morning America”, and “The Today Show” where he had the privilege of being interviewed by Barbara Walters.

“He spent many years helping to cultivate a showcase of insectivorous plants behind Alderman School where today visitors can see the fruits of his efforts.”

Venus Flytrap

The first time I visited his Carnivorous Plant sanctuary, Stanley, already in his late 80’s, drove like crazy through tall scrub pines.  I did all I could to hang on as Stanley skillfully maneuvered his jeep bearing “FLYTRAP” license plates, through the maze wondering if it were wise to be on this “Uncle Willy Ride”.  Sand sprayed in a wake as Stanley yanked the steering wheel, left, then right, then left, pines barely scraping the sides of the jeep.  It was unmistakable that this was how he enjoyed showing his devotees an adventure – clearly a path he had traveled many times.  Perhaps it was a way of disorienting one from returning – to protect the plants.   I was certain he could do this  trip blindfolded.

Getting out of the jeep,  a twinkle in his eye, he said, “we have arrived!”

I was trying to peel my fingers off the” hang on straps”, as I could feel the color returning to back to my cheeks.  I hopped down, and behold – there spread in front of me, a tapestry of botanical delight and awe.

This endangered array of Carnivorous  Plants were save in Stanley’s Haven.

I was delighted to attend the dedication this past April, when the City of Wilmington officially named the garden passionately protected and created – natural garden –

The Stanley Rehder Carnivorous Plant Garden.

Stanley passed away this week  – a life well lived, in passionate protection of the land he loved.  He walked with celebrities with graceful elegance, of his beloved  Sarracenia.  A citizen fully devoted to community and nation.

A true World War II Hero and Horticulture Hero,   I am honored to call  friend.

Rest in Peace dear Stanley.

You have championed an EntwinedLife

Jayme B

NC Certified Environmental Educator

Note:

There is a fund set up to honor his passion and plant heroism through the
North Carolina Coastal Land Trust, 131 Racine Drive, Wilmington, NC 28403 for the continued preservation efforts of the Stanley Rehder Carnivorous Plant Garden.