NC Arboretum
We had a few cloudy, even rainy, days in Asheville. But our good friends Hope and Dave came for a visit, and the sun came out! It was a perfect day to explore the North Carolina Arboretum.
The Arboretum was off the Blue Ridge Parkway just south of Asheville, inside the Pisgah National Forest. Although Hope and Dave live in nearby Greenville, SC, it was the first visit to the Arboretum for all of us!
The Formal Gardens were beautifully manicured and enhanced by the Blue Ridge Mountains as their backdrop. A bronze statue honored Frederick Law Olmsted, the famed American landscape architect who designed New York City’s Central Park. The nearby Biltmore Estate was Olmsted’s final project. His plans for the Biltmore included a comprehensive research arboretum; it was never achieved, but it did inspire the NC Arboretum.
The Bonsai Exhibition Garden was a bit disappointing, as most of the trees were still dormant for the cold weather and had no foliage. One of the nicest specimens was still being unloaded. I enjoyed examining the bent, gnarled trunks. There were a few displays explaining the history of bonsai and an overview of how they are made. I wish there had been signage to indicate the variety and estimated age of each tree.
The Plants of Promise Garden had gentle slopes with winding paths and a nice variety of native trees and wildflowers.
The Natural Garden Trail was shady and soft underfoot. There was a lovely grove of native azaleas just past their peak bloom, and a pretty pond ready for use as an outdoor classroom.
When Western North Carolina was devastated by Hurricane Helene in October 2024, the NC Arboretum lost about 10,000 trees. It reopened just one month later, and its gardens and trails offered refuge and healing to the community. We were all impressed at how well-designed and well-maintained it was, and plan to return in the future.
