April 30, 2015
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May 2015
UPDATE FROM AL HIGHT
It’s a beautiful time of year at the Arboretum and across
southeastern North Carolina. As the azaleas and dogwoods give up
the spotlight to the classic blooms of roses and the brilliant hues of
freshly-minted Japanese maple foliage, the gardens are alive and
constantly changing. Visit often, bring your family and friends and
please encourage them to become a member of the Friends of the
Arboretum.
Each winter brings its own challenges. This past one saw lots of work on the
Northeast Interceptor sewer line along Oleander Drive with the typical barricades,
flagging and heavy equipment. Thankfully, that work is completed. In the very near
future we will begin the project to close the parking lot entrance nearest to Greenville
Loop Road and make the second
entrance where only right turns in and
out can be made. This was specified
in the project that stalled in 2008 to
improve public safety. Entering via the
Bradley Drive entrance is the safest
move.
The severe pruning of the ‘Chindo ‘
viburnums covering the back of the
(Continued, page 2)
Hello FOA members!
Thank you for your renewals
since our last newsletter.
Your response has been
wonderful and helps us to
continue our good works for
our beautiful Arboretum! We
set up a membership table
for the Master Gardener
Plant Sale, and were happy
to have 50 new signups!
Check your membership card
for your renewal date - your
prompt renewal is
appreciated. We have lots
of interesting plans in the
works and thanks again for
your support.
--Kathy Gaskill
NHC Arboretum, 6206 oleander drive, Wilmington, NC 28403
910-798-7660
ARBORETUM NEW SLETTER
(AL HIGHT, cont.)
buildings is related to the changes in the main entrance. We now have irrigation available throughout those beds, so they can
be developed. The Chindos will be kept around 10 feet to block the ugly view and provide a nice, evergreen backdrop for the
new plantings so those entering and exiting via Bradley Drive have plenty to see and enjoy.
You may have noticed the changes in the vegetable garden. Bill Carapezza, who works with the Carpenter’s group as
well as helping us on the grounds, has added several new raised beds. Susan Brown and her team have added new varieties
for trial. We’ll add more fruit trees and grapevines and more raised beds as the year unfolds. While demonstrating great
methods for growing vegetables and fruits in a rather challenging climate is its primary function, the harvest goes to the Good
Sheperd Center.
Our “Plant Nerd Corner” will soon be a reality. The area adjacent to the circular concrete walkway near the vegetable
garden will be home to new and unusual things we have collected mostly through the generosity of Dr. Mark Weathington,
Director of the J.C. Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh. This marks the beginning of our “working arboretum” where we trial
new plants and help get the superstars into the nursery trade.
Art in the Arboretum 2015
2015 Art in the Arboretum planning is well underway. The Artists Committee has put the finishing touches on the
Artists Prospectus and we will be ready to begin registering this year’s artists later this summer.
Larry Sackett is busily working on a new automated registration process for the artists. This system will track artist
inventories from registration through final sale. Presently the system is being modified to
accommodate the smaller items that are sold at the show.
Art in the Arboretum’s Facebook page has recently been updated and we are beginning to add
posts and news updates. If you have not yet joined this site please do so, and share it with your
friends on Facebook. Your help to publicize this event is our best advertising.
The donor, silent auction and raffle committees are still looking for volunteers. We are in need of
help to receive and log-in silent auction donations as they are received at the Arboretum. It is
encouraged that all FOA members talk to businesses that you frequent about helping to support
this event with a cash, service or gift donation. Donation forms are available at the Arboretum
office. Remember, all of the money raised during the event and the members party helps to
support the Arboretum’s projects and programs. To discuss volunteer opportunities, ways to become a donor, or to provide
an item for the raffle or silent auction please contact Ken Carter at 440-785-8397, [email protected]. The next
committee meeting will be at 10:30 May 14 in the Arboretum’s Training Room.
--Ken Carter
Your continued support of 2014’s donors is appreciated.
• L&L Tent and Party Rentals
• Cambridge Village of Wilmington
• First Citizen’s Bank
• Marine Warehouse Center
• The Retirement Resource Group
• Big South Auction and Cape Fear Jewelry and Antiques
• Bayshore Estates – Bill Cameron & Alexander Koonce
• Addis Construction and Home Builders
• Kindred Spirit Event Planning
• Carolina Closets
• Red Bank Wine
• Fermental
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SAI L I NG
ARBORETUM
NEW SLETTER
A Garden to Honor Military
The Arboretum is constructing a memorial garden to
honor the five branches of the military: the Army, Navy,
Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. To be called the
Contemplation Garden, it will be dedicated to Bronze Star
winner and former County Extension Agent Durwood
Baggett, 92, who fought in the Battle of the Bulge in the
winter of 1944-45. During his tenure with County
Extension, he founded the Plant Clinic hot line.
The Contemplation Garden will feature a paved labyrinth,
seating area, and a bubbling fountain to be designed by
well-known pottery artist Ben Owen III. A walkway will be
built around the garden. Work on the memorial garden
has begun, with irrigation installed and stones laid for the
labyrinth (photo above).
The Friends of the Arboretum are raising money for the
construction and maintenance of the garden. The goal is
to raise $25,000. Sponsorships are available, with names of
companies, organizations, and individuals to be recognized
at the time of the garden’s dedication, planned for early
summer 2015.
To get a copy of the sponsorship levels and benefits,
contact Larry Sackett at [email protected].
Artist’s rendering of
Contemplation Garden
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ARBORETUM NEW SLETTER
A Message from
FOA President
Friends of the Arboretum are tasked
with raising funds for the gardens and
programs of the New Hanover County
Arboretum. We have been busy this year
doing some strategic planning, working on
marketing and advertising efforts, and
launching a donor campaign. Be sure to
see information (on Page 3) regarding the
Contemplation Garden to be installed this
year. This garden will honor the five
branches of the military. You or someone
you know may be interested in supporting
this effort. Work began early in the year on
our largest event, Art in the Arboretum,
which will be the first weekend in October.
The funds we’ve raised over the years
have been used for many of the changes
you’ve seen in the garden in recent years.
Director Al Hight, staff, and a lot of
volunteers have provided the great majority
of the labor. Al is still pondering his request
from us this year. Annually, we also
contribute to the maintenance of the
grounds. We’re proud of our beautiful
display garden and all that Cooperative
Extension offers our community. Thank
you for supporting us with your
membership dues. If anyone has time to
contribute, we can always use people
experienced or interested in events,
membership, marketing, the gift shop and
weddings. Please contact any of the officers
if you would like to be involved. As always,
your support is greatly appreciated. Thank
you for being a Friend.
--Alice Canup
Alice Canup, President
910-228-5581
Ken Carter, Vice President 440-785-8397
Cammy Bain, Secretary 910-233-1544
Betty Arlart, Treasurer 910-297-9167
Busy in the Ability Garden
There are lots of exciting things going on in the Ability Garden. We
have begun to sell plants in locally made pots through the Arboretum Gift
Shop and will continually add seasonal containers and new plants. As
things in our greenhouse flourish, we are displaying the finer specimens in
Hutaff and the Main Office, and the fuchsia Schlumbergera was
spectacular in April.
We have begun making strides in the Youth Enrichment Zone as we
gather community support for a garden at Portia Hines Park. As part of our work in the YEZ, DC Virgo students recently created
Earth Boxes with the help of Master Gardener David Brenner. The kids
will be taking their boxes home to grow tomatoes and cucumbers over the
summer. During the school’s spring break a wall cistern was installed
through the hard work of our own Sabrina Woofter and a Whole Foods
grant; now we are able to plant Virgo’s courtyard garden with the
students. We thank the Landfall Foundation for supporting our current
work at DC Virgo. Another exciting project is the “Dye Garden” developing at
DREAMS to give us the opportunity to create art activities using
materials from the garden. With spring’s warming weather, groups of all ages and abilities are
scheduling trips to visit the Arboretum and participate in the Ability
Garden.
The Ability Garden Committee needs new members. If you are
interested in serving, please contact Heather Kelejian at 910-798-7682
or [email protected]. Happy spring planting!
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SAI L I NG
ARBORETUM
NEWSLETTER
Master Gardeners Grow, Grow, Grow
From top: David Brenner leads a
training session; abundant tomatoes
in the greenhouse; and salad greens
planted in the vegetable garden.
Since February, the propagation
team, led by Master Gardener
volunteers David Brenner and Andy
Marhevsky, has grown some 8,000
vegetable plants and 4,000 flowers
from seeds or cuttings for the
Arboretum.
The vegetables are being planted
in the vegetable demonstration garden,
which is carefully tended twice a week
by a separate team of Master
Gardeners. Food from the garden is
donated to Good Shepherd Center.
The flowers will be planted in the
Arboretum gardens, given to the
Ability Garden, and donated to
community gardens.
“Our intent is to grow a big variety
of vegetables, improve the display
garden, and expand the education
impact of propagation and growing
vegetables,” said David. In addition,
the Arboretum will spend less money
purchasing flowers and plants.
The plantings were developed in
the greenhouse donated by the Master
Gardener Association in 2013.
Andy recruited Master Gardeners
to operate the greenhouse. He also
manages volunteer schedules. David is
the technical lead and developed a
detailed manual of basic propagation
techniques. He conducted a series of
classes about propagation for the new
team.
Susan Brown, extension agent/
consumer horticulture, said part of the
plant propagation project is to identify
varieties of tomatoes that are more
heat- and disease-tolerant. The team
also is experimenting with “companion
planting” such as growing radishes
next to carrots, or broccoli next to
beets, to determine if these plants can
benefit each other.
“It’s a good education opportunity
for people to visit the Arboretum and
see what can be grown here,” Susan
said. A pollinator garden for butterflies
and bees was installed next to the
vegetable gardens last November, she
said.
Kudos to a Carpenter!
O’Jay Niles, shown at right with one of the plaques he helps
create, is the Master Carpenter in the Arboretum's carpenter
shop. He is 88 years old, and lives in Pine Valley. He and his
son Steve have been members of the Arboretum Carpenters for
15 years. OJ designs and oversees all of our office furniture construction
and makes the hardwood backers for all the Arboretum's awards.
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SAI L I NG
ARBORETUM
NEW SLETTER
4-H: Join the Club and Join the Fun
Spring and summer are the busiest
seasons for members of the 4-H
program. Beginning with spring break
camps, the rest of the school year flies
by as kids prepare their presentations
for County Activity Day and parents
figure out how many camps they can
get their kids into.
Public speaking trumps even the
fear of death for many of us, but 4-H
helps children overcome the sweaty
palms and cold feet with its
demonstration and presentation
competition. On Saturday, May 2,
New Hanover County 4-H hosted a
presentation competition during which
close to 40 kids gave a 5- to 12-minute
presentation or demonstration. The
top two from each age group/category
will advance to the district level in June. Those who make it to the district level
have an even more powerful incentive
than just becoming better public
speakers: scholarship money. Awards
for Gold Winners in some categories
range from $50 to $500, plus an
invitation to attend the state
competition at North Carolina State
University in Raleigh.
We are preparing for a bustling
summer with two days camp at the
Arboretum, one residential camp at
Betsy Jeff Penn 4-H Center, plus NC 4H Congress and Citizenship Focus in
Raleigh. We’ll kick things off with
more than 100 4-H teens gathering in
our state capitol for Citizenship Focus
on June 15-17. We are recruiting two
teens to represent New Hanover
County 4-H who will attend citizenship
workshops, meet our legislative
representatives and more!
Next up are our day camps – one for
kids age 5-8 and another for kids age
9-12. The 4-H slogan is “Learn By
Doing” and you can bet that’s what
we’ll do at camp! 4-H camp is all
about being active, meeting new
friends, and learning something new.
At Experience 4-H Camp for 5-8 year
olds, campers will dive into the exciting
world of 4-H. Two afternoons at the
Arboretum will be spent exploring 4-H
through science, healthy living, and
citizenship. Kids will learn how to have
an impact in their community, discover
the culture of the world around them,
conduct science experiments, and
make homemade healthy snacks.
On July 28-30 we’ll host a 4-H Science
Camp for 9-12 year olds to step into
the life of a scientist and interact with the
folks who use science to make the
Arboretum a beautiful place to learn.
We’ll mix learning with fun while
exploring ENERGY through plants, wind,
water, biofuels, electricity and robotics.
Some of the highlights include building a
working lamp you can take home, a field
trip, and creating a robot to save the
beach.
To close out the summer, 4-Hers will be
heading to Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Center
August 2-7. Beginning with a cookout on
Sunday afternoon, and culminating with
fond farewells and hugs on Friday
morning, a week of camp can be the
highlight of a child’s summer. Camp is
packed with fun activities including
horseback riding, canoeing, swimming,
crafts, and archery.
--Leslie Dill, 4-H Youth Development
Agent
6
SAI L I NG
ARBORETUM
NEW SLETTER
Programs
For the Planet
The regional Backyard Naturalist
Program runs until June 6. For the sake
of biodiversity, this inaugural, 12-week
collaboration with Brunswick Extension
and the NC Coastal Reserve aims
to inspire a diverse group of knowledgeseeking individuals to learn
about their urban ecosystem and take
actions to make it more robust. The
program will run again next year. There will be identical composting
workshops held at the Arboretum June
12th and August 21st, 8:30 a.m. to
12:30 p.m.; FREE for K-12 teachers,
$10 for all others. Stop by the
Arboretum front desk or call
910-798-7660 to register. Efforts continue with workshops and
presentations on landscaping for habitat
and water quality. These include such
topics as: rain gardens, rainwater
harvesting, and pond improvements.
Contact [email protected] if
you have a group of people interested in
learning about these topics. Attention, shoppers! Try the 10 Percent Solution
Love to shop? Then you might
enjoy helping others with their
shopping.
The Gift Shop is looking for a
few good volunteers, to help
sell wonderful products like:
Local honey
Jewelry and note cards
made by local artists
Autographed books by
Barbara Sullivan -- Garden
Perennials for the South
If you can find a few hours a
month to help at the Gift
Shop, please contact Roben
Jarrett, rjarrett @ nhcgov.com.
Now that the weather is warming it is a great time to put in your summer
plants. As you make plans for your garden, please remember that one of the
great benefits of being a Friend of the Arboretum member is the 10%
discount you receive from our sponsors. Just present your active
membership card when you make your purchase. We encourage members
to support these sponsors:
A Proper Garden
Marshall Gardens
Akers Tree Service
Armstrong’s Amish Furniture
Boone’s Landscaping
Coastal Glass Tinting
Mikes Mulch and Stone
Mulch and More
The Arboretum Gift Shop
Progressive Gardens
Connolly Tree Preservation
Farmers Supply Company
Fiore Fine Flowers
Fitness Tree Services, Inc.
Shelton Herb Farm
Sophia V. West Florist, Inc.
Stone Garden
Superior Sod and Palms
Five Oaks Nursery
Island Florals
Lloyds Nursery and Landscaping
The Transplanted Garden
Tinga Nursery, Inc.
Wild Bird and Garden
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