Text & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden When you have 42 cherry tomato plants it takes a lot of hands, and often, to effectively harvest the ripening fruit. Our variety in the Lewis Ginter Community Kitchen Garden is Jasper (Solanum lycopersicum), a disease -resistant F1 hybrid grown in […]
Read Moreby Sue Key, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, Volunteer Garden Guide …..That the small blue flowering tree on the side of the Healing Garden opposite the Fountain Garden is called a chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus)? This aromatic shrubby tree can also be seen blooming in the Flagler Garden, as well as in Richmond along Broad Street, […]
Read MorePhotos & text by Jonah Holland, PR & Marketing Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden I always thought that the blackberry lily, Belamcanda chinensis, got its name from the blackberry colored-specks on the flower petals. But one day I was strolling through the Asian Valley and as I walked by the blackberry lilies, I saw what looked like a blackberry […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Common buckwheat is sometimes used as a “honey crop,” because bees love it, especially in September when other nectar sources are dwindling. Have you ever heard of a “smother crop”? Buckwheat is a good competitor to weeds because it germinates rapidly, and […]
Read MoreBy Caitlin Puffenberger, PR & Marketing Intern, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Recognize this fruit? It’s a pomegranate from a tree that’s been with the Garden for more than a decade! Horticulturalist Shannon Smith says, it was originally bought as a bonsai for a beverage-themed container garden, but has since been moved to its current location in […]
Read Moreby Lynn Kirk, Public Relations Writer, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, reprinted with permission from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Photos Don Williamson Photography A cunning carnivore with an inescapable death trap silently waits for prey in some southeastern wetlands. Its exotic markings and distinctive beauty are enhanced by sugary secretions and sometimes enticing odors that lure unsuspecting victims to […]
Read Moreby Lynn Kirk, Public Relations Writer, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, reprinted with permission from the Richmond Times-Dispatch Twisting, turning, twining and twirling – vines navigate the landscape in creative ways. While some cover and camouflage horizontal surfaces, others scale vertical walls, trellises and fences. Their handsome foliage provides visual interest as it forms living screens, softens hardscapes, reduces […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden This week we harvested 204 lbs. of turnips, zucchini, red potatoes, beets, celery, and cherry tomatoes from the Community Kitchen Garden for FeedMore. 2013 year-to-date produce donated: 1,273 lbs. Also this week the Lewis Ginter Youth Volunteer Program (YVP), led by the […]
Read Moreby Grace Chapman, Director of Horticulture, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden A couple of weeks ago, the Horticulture staff from Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden went on a wonderful field trip to Norie Burnet’s moss garden, Eden Woods. After finding that her 4-acre wooded lot in Bon Air was too shady to grow grass, Norie decided to nurture […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden In June the Lewis Ginter Community Kitchen Garden received a great push forward into the 2013 growing season. Twenty-two Genworth Financial associates contributed a combined total of 73 hours of gardening labor during one beautiful late spring morning. The array of tasks […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden This week we delivered 236 lbs. of produce of red potatoes, zucchini, gherkins and celery to FeedMore from the Community Kitchen Garden. The celery was a trial, since the Virginia Cooperative Extension does not recommend celery for central Virginia. Although overall the […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Our yellow onion bulbs didn’t get very large in the Lewis Ginter Community Kitchen Garden, but the flower heads were dramatically beautiful during June. The tall flower stalks were amazingly sturdy, and cuttings have lasted for days in a bucket of water. […]
Read Moreby Jonah Holland, PR & Marketing Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden It probably seems like I say each bloom here at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is my favorite. And it is true, for each season, each month, each moment, I do have a favorite flower. The sacred lotus is one that I look forward to each […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Today staff and volunteers in the Community Kitchen Garden harvested 32 lbs. of rainbow chard and 10 lbs. of beets and delivered it to FeedMore’s kitchen. That makes 40 lbs. of Swiss chard this week! Year to date produce donations: 282 lbs.
Read Moreby Grace Chapman, Director of Horticulture, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Last week, the hydrangea collection at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden was used for a research project by Dr. Henry Schreiber, Professor of Chemistry, Virginia Military Institute. Dr. Schreiber is testing the color intensity of hydrangea sepals in different locations, to see if climate affects them. In […]
Read Moreby Lynn Kirk, Public Relations Writer, photos by Janet Woody, Librarian, & Rich Waiton, volunteer, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, reprinted with permission from the Richmond Times-Dispatch Virginians love hydrangeas, in part because hydrangeas love Virginia. Several species of this woody ornamental thrive in our zone 7, adorning the summer landscape with voluptuous flowers and breathtaking beauty. […]
Read MoreText & photo by Laurel Matthew, Greenhouse Horticulturalist/Orchid Grower, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden “When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for a moment.” – Georgia O’Keeffe This gorgeous corsage orchid, Cattleya tenebrosa (formerly Laelia tenebrosa), has just been put on display in the Conservatory. This species is native to […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden There’s just something extra special about the color palette with fresh vegetables — fresh as in minutes after harvest, and in this case chilled to preserve the freshness. This week Lewis Ginter Community Kitchen Garden staff delivered 102 lbs. of beets and […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden This week we made our first 2013 delivery of fresh produce from the Community Kitchen Garden to FeedMore, 50 lbs. of romaine lettuce, 2 lbs. of parsley, and 2 lbs. of cilantro. The lettuce has a nice backstory: the seed was obtained from the Thomas Jefferson […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Earlier this month, we had our first visit from local Kroger associates to the Lewis Ginter Community Kitchen Garden. Led by Shawn Embrose, the team mulched pathways, weeded, tested soaker hoses and planted tomatoes and eggplant. The Community Kitchen Garden is […]
Read Moreby Jonah Holland, PR & Marketing Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Back in March, we told you about award-winning illustrator Tyler Rhodes and his artistic orchid evolution project. Tyler was here each Saturday during Orchids Galore! to engage children (and interested adults) in a interactive drawing game while they visited. We drew quite a few orchids! The […]
Read Moreby Jonah Holland, PR & Marketing Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Photos by Garden Volunteer Don Williamson Photography If you are coming to visit Butterflies LIVE! make sure you stop to enjoy the Conservatory too! Check out these fabulous lobster claw flowers (Heliconias) blooms! You’ll find them in the East Wing of the Conservatory along with […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden The Community Kitchen Garden enjoyed a productive visit from 20 volunteers from Capital One’s Merchant Disputes department. Led by Wilma Rooney, the team accomplished a great deal of labor for the Garden, despite the surprisingly sweltering heat for early May. During the past two […]
Read MoreText & photos by Brian Vick, Community Kitchen Garden Coordinator, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden This is for Claire and Peggy, bog plant experts at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. The pitcher plant (Sarracenia purpurea) flowers have been harvested for drying. A shot from the rear, equally beautiful as the frontal view. The puffy center shields the anthers. […]
Read Moreby Jay Austin, Horticulturist, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Have you ever wondered where all these new Echinacea culitivars came from? With all the new red, orange, and yellow varieties out there now you may find yourself wondering, “Where do all these colors come from? I thought all Echinacea was purple!” Well, you would be 88.9 percent correct. […]
Read More