Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
April 17, 2008 issue
Daniel Boone Native Gardens’ Wildflower
Tour and Sale April 26
Story by Corinne Saunders
The three-acre Daniel Boone Native Gardens are open daily from May to October, but a unique opportunity to see special, fleeting blooms this year will be offered Saturday, April 26.
The Daniel Boone Native Gardens’ Early Bird Wildflower Tour and Sale is a pre-season fundraiser for the gardens that will run from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and free for youth under 16.
This event provides an opportunity for the public to experience the “ephemerals” that typically reach their peak before the gardens open and a fantastic opportunity for professional photographers to capture the rare blooms.
“Spring ephemerals are those tiny, fragile plants that often bloom and mature in the early spring, before hot weather and shade send them into dormancy,” said Kit Olson, horticulture director at the Daniel Boone Native Gardens.
Ephemerals occupy an ecological niche and complete their growth cycle in a compressed timeframe, Olson added.
The flowers take advantage of early spring sunshine they can receive before the tree leaves prevent the majority of it from reaching the forest floors where ephemerals thrive. The colder temperatures keep larger plants dormant for longer, so the ephemerals enjoy little competition for water and nutrients and reach their blossoming peak around late April.
Weather conditions over the previous year affect the timing and intensity of the blooms, but some of the possible flowering plants to see on the wildflower tour include yellow lady slippers, bluets and Virginia bluebells, pinxter-flowers and flame azaleas, wild ginger, forget-me-nots, native orchids and violets, redbuds, trout lilies, spring beauties, crested irises, trilliums and more.
The gardens’ operating season avoids April because of frequent severe weather, but this month often boasts the largest variety of ephemerals in full bloom.
Last year, the board of governors that operates the gardens asked its members, “When is the very best season for wildflowers?” said Rebecca Kaenzig of Daniel Boone Native Gardens. “We all said unanimously the end of April,” she added.
The Early Bird Wildflower Tour and Sale “is an opportunity for people to see beautiful and rare wildflowers and [for us] to raise a little bit of money for our operating expenses,” Kaenzig said.
In addition to guided tours along the gardens’ paths, visitors will be able to buy locally grown plants from High Country vendors.
The Daniel Boone Native Gardens opened in 1966—a project of the Garden Club of N.C., Inc.—to nurture rare or endangered Appalachian trees, shrubs and wildflowers. The public gardens contain a bog garden, fern garden, rhododendron grove, rock garden, rock wishing well, vine-covered arbor, a pond beside the historic Squire Boone Cabin and several grand vistas. The hundreds of plant varieties ensure a progression of different blooms throughout the growing season.
Beginning May 1, the Daniel Boone Native Gardens will be open daily, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., with extended midsummer hours during the Horn in the West outdoor drama season. Season passes for the gardens are $10 for the general public and $50 for professional photographers.
Dogs are not permitted, with the exception of service animals. Group tours can be arranged, and the gardens are available for weddings and other events.
For more information, call 828-264-6390 or click to www.danielboonegardens.org.
What Exactly Is for Sale April 26?
All sorts of plants will be available for sale at Daniel Boone Native Gardens between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 26. The vendors all grow their own stock, and the lineup includes native, medicinal and rare selections, according to board member Rebecca Kaenzig. Each vendor, listed below with what they’ll sell, will donate 20 percent of their plant proceeds to the gardens.
• Lamtree Farm from Warrensville will bring
- Native azaleas, including the flame azalea (R. calendulaceum), pinxterbloom (R. nudiflorum), sweet azalea (R. arborescens), pink shell azalea (R. vasey) and nine other varieties
- Blueberry bushes (three gallons, 18 to 24 inches)
- Hummingbird (Clethra alnifolia)
- Fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus)
- Japanese maples
- White dogwoods (Cornus florida)
• Alicia Breton will bring her favorite plants.
• Larry Denny will have vegetables, herbs and perennials.
• Charlotte’s Greenhouse will bring a variety of plants.
• Appalachian Native Plants, Inc. will bring
- Three-gallon native azaleas raised from seed
- Three-gallon Ruby Spice (Clethra alnifolia)
• The Tennessee Rose Native Azalea Nursery will bring native azaleas
• Louie Wiseman will bring hemlock and other natives.
• Ron Fannon will bring boxwoods.
• Sheila Deal will have Stella D’oro.