Duke Gardens Plant/Craft fest preview no. 3

Horticulturist Jason "Plant Boy" Holmes has been crazy busy getting ready for the sale. Here's a peek.

Readying bargain plants.

Assorted Heuchera.

Hanging baskets.

Clematis and other vines.

Tradescantia 'Sweet Kate.'

Wisteria frutescens 'Amethyst Falls."

Hosta 'Orange Marmalade."

Pricing dwarf English boxwood.

Duke Gardens Plant & Craft Festival Preview No. 2

Here's a list of our guest vendors, plus some teaser photos from Mermaid Photography. The festival is Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. More previews to come!

Arts, Inc.: pots, paintings, greeting cards.
Artwood Jewelry: Wood inlay jewelry, cedar benches & yard art. http://www.artwood.etsy.com
Bela Imports: terra cotta pottery, linens and soap dishes. http://www.belaimports.com
Cape Fear Pottery: pottery. http://www.capefearpottery.com
Cure Nursery: native trees and shrubs. http://www.curenursery.com
Frank Hyman's Garden: assorted plants. http://www.frankhyman.com
Karen Dillard Birdhouses: garden stakes, birdhouses from recycled materials.
Matthew Arnsberger: cedar benches.
Mermaid Photography: nature photography, prints, cards, magnets. http://www.MermaidPhotography.Spaces.live.com.
Niche Gardens: native plants, perennials and shrubs. http://www.nichegardens.com
Paws Here Creatables: handmade soaps and body products, sachets.
Pepper's Pottery: pottery.
Powder Mill Pottery: functional and whimsical pottery.
S&J Greens: carnivorous plants. http://www.sandjgreens.com
Shagreen Nursery: perennials. http://www.shagreennursery.com
Vicky's Greenhouse and Garden: bedding & vegetable plants.

Duke Gardens: Musical Toast to the Terraces

A toast to the 70th anniversary of the dedication of the Terrace Garden.

The weather was perfect, the air smelled of wisteria, and the music by Harmonia Terza was sweet -- particularly to these little boys' ears.....





Thanks to David Stein for capturing a taste of the Toast with his flipcam and posting it to youtube.

See it here.

Duke Gardens Plant/ Craft Fest: sneak preview

Here are some of the crafts made for the sale by the Garden Guild: baby hats, teabag-fold greeting cards, painted gourds and upcycled CD coasters featuring Garden images.

The sale is Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Look for more preview photos this week.

Warming the Wisteria

By Alice Le Duc

director of education

Each year as the March weather starts to show signs of spring, the staff at Sarah P. Duke Gardens watches the wisteria on the pergola with a careful eye on the night temperatures.

As the flower buds swell and start to expand with those warm days, the night temperatures become critical. Everyone anticipates the beauty of the wisteria-covered pergola in early April.

When I joined the Gardens staff in 2000, everyone told me how beautiful the pergola and wisteria were in spring. Little did I know that it would be April 2003 before I would see the display! Late March frosts damaged the buds my first two years here.

In 2004, the wisteria was again in danger of freezing. So the horticultural staff decided to fool Mother Nature. They set heaters in the pergola, providing enough warmth to prevent damage to the young buds. What a spectacular year that was.

Now the staff monitors the weather each year. With luck and the help of heaters, we try to present the beauty of spring with a lush wisteria-covered pergola.