Grab your work gloves, wheelbarrow, and pitchfork. And don’t forget your sunscreen and water. It’s time, once again, to spread mulch! A light top-dressing will help spruce up the landscape as spring bursts forth. Or perhaps this tradition isn’t for you? If the annual rite of transporting, lifting and spreading a load of mulch […]
Read MoreIt’s a magical feeling to be in a room surrounded by hundreds of captivating butterflies. This year we are taking the M&T Bank Butterflies LIVE! exhibition a step further with the installation of sound in connection with Sound Art Richmond. A Northward Migration uses sound to explore the migration routes of butterflies, especially monarchs and will give you an […]
Read MoreAre you ready for this year’s Spring PlantFest plant sale? The greenhouse is chock full of plants that are ready and eager for spring and Spring PlantFest is a Richmond tradition. Plants for each year’s sale are chosen by a selection committee, which brings you Garden favorites (including lots of natives) and trendy new plants […]
Read MoreFor fifteen years, Kevin Box ’s sculptures have been commissioned, collected, and displayed in prestigious art museums and private galleries around the world. Each sculpture is incredibly unique, beginning as a paper-inspired design that Box immortalizes through the lost-wax casting process. Though the Santa Fe sculptor welcomes the international acclaim, he also yearns to extend […]
Read MoreThe leadership team at Lewis Ginter is as varied as you think it might be, given all the diverse things the Garden does to connect people through plants for the benefit of RVA. I am privileged to serve alongside remarkable individuals who support and inspire our teams in thoughtful and passionate ways. One has shepherded […]
Read MoreWhen spring arrives at the garden, the phones start ringing with calls from hopeful visitors asking when the tulips are expected to bloom this year. We try our best to make predictions, asking horticulturists for their most informed estimations and watching patiently as the early varieties start to open up in small numbers. And then […]
Read MoreThe average last frost date is an exhilarating milestone in any gardener’s year — it means that all of those winter day-dreams of bright zinnias and juicy cucumbers, fresh herbs and crunchy corn, summer squash and cheerful sunflowers will soon come to fruition. And though our recent snowy days may make it hard to believe, […]
Read MoreIn April 1776, Thomas Jefferson noted “a bluish colored, funnel-formed flower in lowgrounds in bloom,” in one of the earliest entries of his garden book. Jefferson certainly wasn’t the first person to become enthralled by the unusual beauty of Mertensia virginica and he wasn’t the last either. Mertensia virginica, more commonly called Virginia Bluebells have captured […]
Read MoreUsing Beneficial Bugs Here at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, we rely heavily on beneficial insects and sustainable practices, especially in our 11,000 square-foot Conservatory. Since the Conservatory is a tropical climate, we know that we will always have some insects that enjoy feeding on plants there. When it becomes problematic, we introduce beneficial insects to […]
Read MoreAlthough they’ve only known each other for two days, 16-year-olds Honoka Sato and Olivia Appelrouth have become fast friends. Sato, a Japanese exchange student from Municipal Urawa High School (Saitama, Japan) and Appelrouth, her host student, and a sophomore at Clover Hill High School, say they have learned much from each other already. Appelrouth explains […]
Read MoreAbout a decade ago, Brie Arthur won a Yard of the Year award for her home landscape. That’s not unusual since she’s a professional horticulturist. What was surprising was the design. Apparently, her North Carolina homeowners’ association hadn’t noticed her “foodscaping” — planting various vegetables and herbs planted in plain sight, alongside ornamental shrubs and […]
Read MoreSocial workers are unique: we operate from the knowledge that a person’s overall well-being depends greatly on the conditions of his or her environment. The impact of nature and experiences out-of-doors are often under-valued in my field and many others. Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden— where nurturing the mind, body, and spirit is a constant, enduring […]
Read MoreIt was maybe two weeks ago when a couple of visitors stopped by the Admissions desk on their way out of the Garden to show us all pictures they had taken of the first couple of daffodils they saw blooming. Sitting behind the desk on that late winter day, a wave of excitement rushed over […]
Read MoreDuring this year’s Winter Symposium and CVNLA short course, we dug deeper into what it means to garden with purpose and passion through perennial gardens. Perennials offer a different gardening experience than annuals because they come back year after year and require less maintenance. The New Perennial Movement focuses on establishing a link with nature through […]
Read MoreQ & A with Botanical Illustrator Lara Call Gastinger Lara Call Gastinger is a botanical artist and illustrator from Charlottesville, VA. Gastinger is the lead illustrator for the Flora of Virginia project. She has over 50,000 followers on Instagram where she posts samples from her own nature journal. Gastinger’s art focuses on the minute details […]
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