Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Blog

Jul 9th, 2021

Pollinating Figs: the Inside Story — Fig Wasps

A fig is a flower turned inside out. That soft pod of sticky summer sweetness is not a fruit at all. “It’s actually an inflorescence – an inverted cluster of […]

Jul 6th, 2021

Birdfeeders: Take Down Your Feeders

UPDATE 12.31.21 The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources has retracted the temporary ban on feeding activities, so people can resume normal activity. However, they are recommending frequent (i.e. at least […]

Jun 17th, 2021

Planting for Pollinators

Something serendipitous happens when a bee or a beetle, a bird, a bat or a butterfly rummages through the bright bloom of a flower in search of food. Lured by […]

Jun 15th, 2021

Native Bees, Bumble Bees & Honey Bees

Bees, bees, bees! Recently there’s been a lot of talk about saving the honeybees. Many articles explain the importance of honey bees as pollinators, and their declining numbers due to […]

May 27th, 2021

Unicia Buster:
Human Cecropia

My love of moths continues as I channeled the spirit of the Hyalophora cecropia Linnaeus or Cecropia moth, the largest native North American moth for my latest work of art. […]

May 5th, 2021

Overcoming Obstacles: The Kroger Community Kitchen Garden

Everyone should be able to enjoy fresh fruit and vegetables. The Kroger Community Kitchen Garden at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden helps make that possible by growing and harvesting produce and […]

Apr 30th, 2021

Frog Blog: Frogs in the Conservatory

Have you ever walked through the Conservatory and heard melodic chirping or deep croaks that sounded like the grunts of a monkey? You might be surprised to know that those […]

Apr 28th, 2021

Elizabeth Fogel: Designing for Tomorrow

Senior Horticulturist Elizabeth Fogel studied the latest theories for sustainable and regenerative landscapes by visiting 10 eco-focused botanical gardens over the past two years. Her cross-country travel and hands-on research […]

Apr 25th, 2021

Building Biodiversity

Landscaping in Layers Nature loves a layer. She cements courses of sediment into solid stone. She laminates an annual succession of circles into living trees. She layers an onion in […]

Apr 19th, 2021

English Ivy: A “Dirty Dozen” Plant

Have you ever looked along a highway and observed all the trees covered in vegetation from trunk to branches? It was most likely English ivy (Hedera helix), the final of […]

Apr 15th, 2021

Garden Shop: Local Business & Farm Favorites

I can’t think of a better way to spend a cool spring morning than with a cup of hot tea, celebrating the sun with the tulips. We chat about the […]

Apr 12th, 2021

Japanese Honeysuckle: A “Dirty Dozen” Plant

Our Dirty Dozen plant of the week is Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica). This ornamental vine is still widely available in the horticultural trade, even though it has invaded all of the […]

Apr 9th, 2021

Feed the Birds with Native Plants

Whether you enjoy bird watching or you like to feed the birds, native plants are a great way to attract them to your yard! Should We Use Bird Feeders? So […]

Apr 7th, 2021

Save a Monarch, Plant Milkweed

Milkweed might need some rebranding. It’s unfortunate that “weed” is part of its name when this plant does so much good. Asclepias is the botanical name for a genus of […]

Apr 5th, 2021

Elaeagnus: A “Dirty Dozen” Plant

For this week’s Dirty Dozen plant, we have a triple threat: autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata), Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia) and thorny olive (Elaeagnus pungens). All three Elaeagnus species are invasive, […]