Spring Plant Sale Preview: Peonies

'Felix Crouse' peony

By Katherine Hale

It wouldn’t be a Spring Plant Sale here at Duke Gardens without a wide variety of peonies available for your gardening pleasure. Depending on the weather and cultivar in question, these showy standouts bloom anytime between Mother’s Day and Memorial Day, offering an excellent way to honor those special people in your life.

Beloved by Chinese scholars and French Impressionists alike, peonies have a pedigree that spans over a thousand years of cultivation and appreciation, and they add character and class to every garden. In addition to old favorites like 'Sarah Bernhardt’, this year we’ll be offering another classic selection, ‘Felix Crouse’.

Known in the trade as a bomb-type double, ‘Felix Crouse’ blooms are a massive explosion of raspberry red petals with a silky texture and pleasant fragrance. First exhibited in France in 1881, ‘Felix Crouse’ is a top of the line selection that can live for up to 50 years, and it only improves with age. A bouquet of these beauties can last over a week if flowers are cut in the bud, or you can leave them on the plant to dazzle humans and butterflies alike, while pesky rabbits and deer keep their distance.

Like all peonies, ‘Felix Crouse’ will never need dividing, and it responds poorly to transplanting, so proper siting is critical for its longevity and success. Rich, well-drained soils in full sun or light afternoon shade are best, and keep it away from trees and shrubs that will compete with it for water and nutrients. Large, heavy blooms may require staking to remain upright, particularly in heavy rains. Aside from these details, ‘Felix Crouse’ is trouble-free, and equally at home in an informal hedge, the back of a perennial border, or as a beloved specimen plant.

Our peony lineup also includes ‘Bartzella’, ‘Bowl of Beauty’, ‘Festiva Maxima’ and ‘Red Magic’, and possibly a few additional surprises.  Come out and see for yourself which ones strike your fancy—with thousands of alluring cultivars commercially available, you never know what might turn up!

Photo courtesy of thesitegardener.com.


SPRING PLANT SALE DETAILS:
Date: Saturday, March 30, 2019
Time: 8 a.m.-noon
Members-only preview sale:  4-6 p.m. Friday, March 29
Member benefits: Duke Gardens members get 10% off all purchases, plus access to the members-only preview sale and a full list of plants in advance! Join online or on site.
Parking: Free during the sale.
Pets not permitted. Please see Duke Gardens' pets policy here.
Wagons + boxes: Our supply is limited; please bring your own if possible, and you'll have more time to spend gathering beautiful plants.
Your support helps Duke Gardens to provide summer internships to aspiring horticulturists from across the nation. Thank you!
Please see our event page for more information, and we'd love for you to spread the word by sharing our Facebook event page and inviting your Facebook friends.

Duke Gardens Visitor Vignettes: #1

Welcome to Duke Gardens Visitor Vignettes, a snapshot view of who's spending time in the Gardens  and what's on their minds.

Our first gathering of vignettes is by Julia Gong, a local high school student and an avid fan of the Humans of New York (HONY) interview project. Julia loves Duke Gardens, so she was eager to set out into the Gardens, HONY style, and talk to other people about what drew them to Duke Gardens.

Here's Julia's collection from a recent visit:

“It’s really peaceful here, and I kind of needed it," said the woman in the photo above. "I’m just here for a research program, so I’m here for a few weeks. It’s in the department of Cancer Bio and Pharmacology.

"It’s really different from the campus back home, for me. I’m from Georgia Tech. It’s in Atlanta so it’s in the heart of downtown, and you come here and it’s just so much nicer.”

She had been photographing the turtles. “I was sitting here and I just saw them. They just came here, and…it’s perfect! They’re all different sizes, which is pretty cute. That one was in a perfect pose, too, and another one came up and opened its mouth, and it’s…just beautiful!”

“We come here all the time. This is a great place to walk dogs!”

Is there something that draws you back?

“It’s just beautiful. You can kind of always change the route and it’s always interesting. It’s never boring. There’s always something new to see.”

Any advice for someone who just came for the first time?

“See everything. Make enough time to really see everything. Especially right here. The Asian Gardens are my favorite.”

“He’s visiting for the weekend.”

“I’m from New Hampshire.”

“I’m local for the summer. I’m working for ADF."

"It’s nice here in the shade. It was cool to see some of the birds. The baby duckling and the mama over there, it was really cute to see it just skirt across the water. And there’s that turtle, just chillin’. He doesn’t even care. I have a pond at home and we have turtles, and normally if you even get this close to them, they’re like, 'Nope. I’m out!' ”

I asked them when they were last here. In unison, they said, “We were just trying to figure that out.”

She speculated, “Probably a year ago.”

“I think a little longer than that. A year, a year and a half, maybe two.”

When asked about their favorite aspect of the gardens, he replied, “Peacefulness.”

She added, “Quiet. I love seeing all the different flowers. We can’t grow a lot because the deer eat everything, and I don’t know how you manage to keep the deer out, so I like seeing stuff that I couldn’t do at home. I neither have the energy, time, nor money to do it at home, so I appreciate the fountains, and all the different types of plants.”

“And if you were a horticulturalist, this would be the job to have. This amphitheater is really symmetrical, the textures, the colors. It’s interesting to me.”

She had some advice for prospective visitors. “I would try to get a little bit of each of the different ones, the formal gardens, the Asian gardens, the naturals. And I think it also depends on season, and when you need the shady pads.”

“Like this week.”

“Versus the sunny, like in the winter when we come, it’s nicer to stay out where you get the sun. And whether you have little kids that need to run around in the field.”

I wondered if they had brought their kids here before.

“Well, our kids are pretty old, but yes, we have.”

“We brought them here when they were little.”

“Yeah, we did, when they were growing up. And now we come back here with their spouses.”

“And if we ever get a grandson, he’ll come here.”

And they’re also proud locals. “We live ten minutes away, which is ridiculous for not coming more often.”

Do you have a photo of yourself in the Gardens and some thoughts you'd like to share in our Visitor Vignettes? If so, we'd love to see them. Please email them to dukegardensmarketing@yahoo.com. Thank you!

Creating and Caring for a Bonsai Plant

Azalea bonsai
Photo courtesy of Harold Johnson

By Kaitlin Henderson

Bonsai plants are known around the world -- many people have seen the tiny plants in shallow pots, though most of us know little about their origin or care. If you're curious to learn more about the history and traditions of bonsai, as well as how to grow one yourself, consider taking Duke Gardens' "Create Your Own Bonsai Plant" workshop on March 14 with Harold Johnson, of the Triangle Bonsai Society.

Johnson has been working with bonsai since he and his wife bought one at a market more than 20 years ago. Unfortunately, at that time he didn't know how to properly care for the plant, and it died. Soon after, he found a class on bonsai, and he has been hooked ever since.

Bonsai involves both artistic creation and horticultural practice, and Johnson says he enjoys both sides: "the opportunity to tell a story with the design of my bonsai" as well as "the science and art of keeping the tree alive and thriving." Plus, he says, the act of practicing bonsai is just as rewarding as the plants themselves: "Working with bonsai transports me to a quiet, peaceful place, a contrast with my usual go, go pace."

What exactly defines a bonsai is hard to put into words, Johnson says, but he has some clear ideas. Firstly, it's not simply creating miniature trees. Bonsai plants are designed to create a feeling within you when you look at them. What that feeling is depends on the artist's intentions. Johnson provides the contrasting examples of a tree that is "full, pleasant, no abrupt changes in outline and soothing as you contemplate it" with that one that has "extremes in shape, sparse foliage, sharp angles of the trunk and branches and leaves you with a desire to do something for the tree." Both can be bonsai.

Bonsai can tell stories, as well. Bonsai artists can "show surface roots to indicate age of the tree" or "have the apex of the tree as a sharp, dead, white point to have the viewer see a tree with damage from lightning or other forces of nature."

Bonsai is more than just artistry, though. It's an art form practiced through a living plant, so people working with bonsai need to have a firm grasp of horticulture. When creating a bonsai, you need to know how the plant will respond to pruning and what it needs to thrive. The environment of a shallow pot is much different from a landscape or even a typical container, and the needs of the plant are different as well. "A dead, artistically designed tree in a bonsai container is not a bonsai," Johnson points out, it's just a dead plant.

Junipers are the most common plant used for bonsai, but Johnson stressed that virtually any shrub or tree can become beautiful bonsai in the hands of a bonsai artist. These include pine, maple, elm, azalea, crab apple, holly and bald cypress, to name a few.

In Johnson's workshop, he'll share his knowledge of the history and traditions of bonsai and help participants develop their own artistic and horticultural techniques to create unique, personal bonsai. Those participating in the class will receive their own juniper tree and all the other materials needed to start a bonsai. Under Johnson's guidance, participants will begin transforming this plant into a bonsai by designing, pruning, wiring and planting it. Students will leave with the knowledge of how to continue their bonsai creations over the coming years.

BONSAI: Create your own bonsai plant will take place Saturday, March 14, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. For more information or to register, call 919-668-1707 or email gardenseducation@duke.edu. 

Kaitlin Henderson is a graduate student in Duke's Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program.

Tango & Swing weekend: dances & workshops

Chris & Holly Owens

Duke Gardens' new Health & Wellness Series continues this weekend, Feb. 8 & 9, with a fun-packed schedule of dances and beginner workshops.

TANGO

On Friday, Feb. 8, we'll host an Argentine tango milonga (dance) in the Doris Duke Center's Kirby Horton Hall (with a gorgeous hardwood floor that's perfect for dancing). Jason Laughlin and Cecilia Pagani, of Tangophilia, will teach a beginner lesson from 7-8 p.m., which is included in the price of admission. You need not show up with a partner. Everyone will rotate partners (except those who prefer not to), so you will get to know others at the event very quickly.

The dance will run from 8-11 p.m. This is Argentine tango, not the choreographed American tango you may have seen on "Dancing with the Stars." Argentine tango is a gorgeous dance to experience or even just to watch. Check out the video below to see the dance style you can expect at Friday's dance. Argentine tango can be danced in close embrace or open embrace. Beginners generally dance in open embrace.

SWING 

On Saturday, Feb. 9, we'll start the day earlier with some dance workshops with Chris Owens & Holly Beeson Owens, of What a Shuffle and the Eastern Balboa Championships. We'll start with a beginner Balboa workshop from 2-3 p.m. Then Chris & Holly will build on that beginner class with a beginner 2 workshop from 3-4 p.m. From 6-7 p.m. they'll offer a beginner Charleston workshop.

Then you can stay for the evening swing dance, which runs from 8-11 p.m., after a 7-8 p.m. beginner East Coast Swing lesson with Chris & Holly that's included with the dance admission. DJs Chris Owens & Ray Crampton will spin tunes through the evening.

TICKET INFO + MORE

Please see our swing dance web page for more info about workshop fees, dance tickets and other details, including a discount on advance tickets for Duke staff & students and members of Duke Gardens, CDC & TSDS. More info on the tango milonga is here. We'd love for you spread the word about these events via our Facebook page, too.

VIDEOS 

Below are some videos to give you an sense of the dances and what to expect. The first is Chris & Holly previewing the Balboa workshops. The second is a demonstration of some Charleston moves. The third is Jason and Cecilia dancing tango. And the last one is an East Coast Swing demo.

Duke Students+Alumni: Win An iPad!

Do you spend a lot of time in Duke Gardens? Is it your favorite place to study, stroll, volunteer, meditate, learn about plants, take photos or hang out with friends?

We'd love to hear about your interactions with Duke Gardens, either as a current or past Duke student. Specifically, how has Duke Gardens enriched your student experience?

We're having a contest to make it fun, and giving away an iPad to make it exciting. It's easy, and it's only for Duke students and alumni. Just share your thoughts about what has made Duke Gardens special or important to you as a student.

We're not looking for perfectly crafted essays, just heartfelt sentiments, compiled in whatever form feels right for you. So please don't hesitate. We love hearing about people's emotional connections with the Gardens.

What have you got to lose? And if you need some inspiration, or a quiet place to write, head to the Gardens. It's here for you.

PRIZES: The first prize winner will receive an iPad. But we'll also draw some names randomly to receive Duke Gardens greeting cards and other fun prizes.

DEADLINE: Please email your responses to dukegardensessay@yahoo.com by Oct. 1. deadline extended to Oct. 31. Please include your full name and graduation year.

WINNERS: Congratulations to iPad winner  Lindsay Higgins, and to runners-up Ryan Bird and Tiffany Chen. We were so touched by the many wonderful accounts that people shared of how Duke Gardens enhanced their student experiences. Thanks again to all who responded.

Photo: Terrace Gardens in fall. By Robert Ayers. 

Disclaimer: We will be sharing this contest on Facebook, but this is a Duke Gardens contest and not affiliated with Facebook in any way.

Tour the Duke Herbarium

Passiflora specimen, courtesy of Duke Herbarium

By Kathleen M. Pryer

Just what makes an oak an oak or a pine a pine? Until recently, it was based upon what we could see about a plant. For centuries, botanists and plant collectors have searched for plants in remote and isolated jungles, in urban waste lots and along railroad tracks, in order to document the diversity and distribution of the earth's flora.

The dried plant specimens are stored and studied in herbaria, which can be thought of as a library of plant life. As we lose natural habitats across the world, herbaria provide a record of plant life, and they serve as a repository of precious genetic information. Herbaria hold the tools for our understanding of the plant world.

Each herbarium specimen is key to understanding plant relationships, geographic distributions and economic usefulness. More recently, genetic and molecular studies using herbarium specimens have allowed us to see plants at an entirely different level. This refinement in our understanding of how plants may be related is a dramatic story in the botanical world.

Some early herbaria were established in Europe in the early 1600s, a time of great exploration. New plants were being found at such a rate that botanical gardens could not keep pace by growing living examples of every new species found. Representatives of many known (and even undescribed) species of plants can be found in herbaria today, carefully mounted on sheets of archival quality paper, labeled with important collection information about them, and stored on shelves in cabinets in climate-controlled rooms.

All in all, the quiet herbarium holds a fascinating story. At the Duke University Herbarium you can see 800,000 diverse specimens of algae, fungi, lichens, mosses and vascular plants. These include samples of rare passionflowers discovered in the 1970s by Duke scientists working in Costa Rica, grasses from the 1890s Biltmore Estate, and Amborella, a small shrub found only on the island of New Caledonia in the South Pacific.

Duke Gardens is offering a tour of the Duke Herbarium on March 4 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. You will have the opportunity to see the collection, hear from a botanist who studies and manages it and learn about the amazing work being done across the globe. For information or to register, please call 668-1707 or e-mail slsmith@duke.edu.

Sarah P. Duke Gardens creates and nurtures an environment in the heart of Duke University for learning, inspiration and enjoyment through excellence in horticulture. The Gardens is at 420 Anderson St.

Kathleen M. Pryer is director of the Duke Herbarium and an associate professor of biology at Duke. This column first ran in the Durham Herald-Sun on Feb. 19.

For more Duke Gardens classes and special events, please see this previous post.

Adiantum specimen, courtesy of Duke Herbarium