Raleigh area Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour, also Benefiting the JC Raulston Arboretum
Saturday, September 19, 2009 from 9 – 5
Sunday, September 20, 2009 from noon – 5
Lead Garden
JCRA
4415 Beryl Road
Raleigh
RALEIGH
Rose Cottage
Rose Cottage is an intimate city garden located in Raleigh’s downtown historic district. The gardens arose out of an old graveled parking lot. This once barren spot has been transformed into a lush and tranquil oasis of color and fragrance. It abounds with a large variety of plants. The garden setting include perennial beds, a parterre filled with a annuals, a pergola draped in wisteria, a woodland garden, raised vegetable beds, a secret garden and a compost operation. The latest addition is a garden cottage, as charming as it is useful.
Jim and Sharon Bright
115 N. Bloodworth Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
Helen’s Haven
Low Boxwood hedges are used to create a formal atmosphere to complement the formal architecture of this Georgian Colonial style home. Within these hedges are informal plantings of perennials and annuals to attract butterflies, birds and bees. Helen’s Haven is a certified wildlife habitat and a certified Monarch Watch Station. Using waterwise design principles and watered with harvested rain, this organic garden demonstrates good environmental practices resulting in a colorful, lush garden. Enjoy a leisurely stroll through the gardens watching the butterflies alight and seeing enough birds to delight.
Helen Yoest
3412 Yelverton Circle
Raleigh, NC 27612
Paisley Garden
Avid do-it-yourselfers, Julia and Alfredo’s one acre garden reflects their passion for plant collections displayed in a paisley pattern of color and whim that is still evolving. In the heart of the garden is a stone-bordered pond with a stream and waterfall. Gentle paths meander through woodlands and sunny spaces. A vine-covered arbor provides a restful sitting area. In the front garden, a new vegetable garden greets visitors. A propagation greenhouse, shed, potting bench, and compost bins are located in the garden nursery.
Julia Kornegay and Alfredo Escobar
37 Leinden Lane
Raleigh, NC 27606
CARY
The Thompson Garden
The beauty of this suburban garden begins at street side where a path beckons you to enter and share in this preview of the abundant plantings that follow. The front garden is a delight of shrubs and perennials showcasing a spectacular thread leaf Japanese maple. Upon entering the brick walkway at the arbor you view a gently sloping garden with curved borders and pathways outlined with recycled concrete. These recycled concrete borders and retaining walls are consistent throughout the garden. Beds are richly planted with perennials, featuring a mix of native and specialty plants including tropicals, all in perfect harmony. A small pond can be found along the network of twisting trails that lead through the woods to a community lake. Each area of this garden will elicit a sense of discovery and serendipity in plants, woods and water.
Kathleen and Walt Thompson
119 Ravenna Way
Cary, NC 27513
WAKE FOREST
Entwined
Phil Abbot & Jayme Bednarczyk
1025 Traders Trail
Wake Forest, NC 27587
Falls Revival
An historic valley provides the setting for this garden, overlooking a hillside cemetery, a quaint little church, and a cluster of old millhouses. Mature trees, remnant vineyards and orchards, heirloom shrubs, and a casual cottage style all help to anchor this garden in that nostalgic world. A backyard nursery, boasting a wide range of exotic and unusual plants, adds an unusual twist; here is a collector’s garden with traditional roots but with a fresh eye for the new and different, fending for itself against modern-day environmental pressures.
Martin and Bottoms
12150 Falls of Neuse Road
Wake Forest, NC 27587
THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY’S
OPEN DAYS PROGRAM
11 OLD POSTAL ROAD • P.O. BOX 219 • COLD SPRING, NEW YORK 10516 • 845-265-5384/5392 F
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 3, 2009
Garden Conservancy Tour Highlights Some of Raleigh Area’s Best Private Gardens
and Showcases JC Raulston Arboretum
COLD SPRING, N.Y.: The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days Program returns to Raleigh, North Carolina this autumn, featuring six private gardens to visit on Saturday, September 19 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and Sunday, September 20 (12 p.m. to 5 p.m.). This years’ tour also included a Cary Garden and two gardens in Wake Forest.
Gardens participating on these two dates feature European influences, gardening for nature, traditional styles, sustainable garden ideas, kitchen gardens, as well as, “Southern-style” plantings and plant collections with a nursery.
A portion of the proceeds from the weekend will benefit the JC Raulston Arboretum, a working research and teaching garden of North Carolina State University. Visitors may start their tour at the Arboretum at 4415 Beryl Road in Raleigh or go directly to the individual garden of choice. Discount tickets may be purchased in advance or entrance to the gardens can be ‘pay as you go’ with a fee of just $5.00 per garden, collected at each garden entrance.
Call 1-888-842-2442 or visit www.opendaysprogram.org for more information. For local ticket information, please contact Ann Porter JC Raulston Arboretum at Anne_Porter@ncsu.edu 1- 919-513-3826. Open Days are rain or shine and no reservations are required.
For detailed driving directions and vivid garden descriptions of the Raleigh gardens, you may refer to the 2009 Open Days Directory. The national edition includes garden listings in 23 states and costs $21.95, including shipping. Call the Garden Conservancy toll-free at 1-888-842-2442 to order with a Visa or MasterCard, or send a check or money order to: the Garden Conservancy, P.O. Box 219, Cold Spring, NY, 10516.
The 2009 Open Days Program is sponsored by W. Atlee Burpee & Co., America’s most trusted name in gardening for 125 years, providing seeds, plants, gardening supplies and accessories for the home gardener. The Open Days Program is also pleased to have Garden Design magazine as its National Media Sponsor.
The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days Program has been opening the gates to America’s best private gardens since 1995. The Open Days Program is America’s only national private garden-visiting program, and is made possible by the work of hundreds of volunteers nationwide. Your $5 admission fee per garden supports the expansion of the Open Days Program around the country and helps build awareness of the Garden Conservancy’s work of preserving exceptional American gardens such as Montrose in Hillsborough, the Elizabeth Lawrence garden in Charlotte, North Carolina and Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, CA. Visit the Garden Conservancy and its Open Days Program online at http://www.opendaysprogram.org.
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Roy Dicks, author of 
Here is a photo of Roy and I. I don’t look nearly as graceful as Julia. The wind is blowing and I feel like a dressed-in-black version of the flying nun ready to take flight at any moment. Look closely, I am actually; Roy is holding me down!
Volunteers are the backbone to any nonprofit arboretum, the JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University, in Raleigh, NC is no different. There are many individuals and groups of individuals who participate in various aspects to support the JCRA; maintaining the gardens is one of them.
The Raleigh Garden Club, has maintained the Winter Garden for more than 2 years. Last year, the RGC also added the maintenance of the Viburnum Garden.
Even though it was a very cold winter day, we happily met so that we could prepare the Winter Garden for the upcoming tour. On February 15, 2009 starting at 1:00, the JCRA will host a free lecture and tour of the Winter Garden plus a plant sale. This year’s speaker will be Mark Weathington, assistant director and curator of collections. Mark is a fantastic speaker and this event is always well attended and anticipated.
