Gardening With Confidence™

Dr. Ted Bilderback, a horticultural science professor, has been named director of the J.C. Raulston Arboretum. He has served as interim director since 2009.

In the early days of the Raulston Arboretum, Bilderback worked closely with the late Dr. J.C. Raulston, for whom the arboretum is named, and his students planted many of the older arboretum specimens and the older holly border.

Bilderback joined the horticultural science faculty in 1977. From 1987 to 2009 he was a North Carolina Cooperative Extension nursery specialist. He continues to serve as an educational adviser to the North Carolina Nursery and Landscape Association. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Emporia State University and a doctorate from Kansas State University.

Bilderback’s research led to the development of cost effective and environmentally conscious cultural practices for growing nursery plants. Using distance education courses, workshops and publications, his extension programs introduced new technologies to the nursery.

The Raulston Arboretum, located on Beryl Road, is a working research, extension and teaching garden dedicated to evaluating, selecting and displaying plant material from around the world.

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Like Page.

Each week, Helen host’s a garden talk WebTalkRadio.net show called Gardening With Confidence™.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

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Luncheon organizers were Amelia Lane (on left), Beth Jimenez (middle), and  Charlotte Presley (not pictured.)

This dynamo team was helped by Jean Mitchell, Viv finkelstein, Harriet Bellerjeau (right.)

Are you wondering where the cool kids sat at lunch?

After lunch, Harriet Bellerjeau thanked and honored the volunteers with a very special thank you to the JCRA Staffers.  The most talented Suzanne Edney made a gift given to each JCRA staff member.  Here is Beth Jimenez  presenting the gift.

Suzanne’s verse says it all:

A good time was had by all!  I’m already looking forward to next year.

Wondering where the cool kids sat at lunch?

At every table!  All JCRA staffers and volunteers and COOL KIDS!

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

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Enjoy the season you’re in.  Join the fun this Sunday, February 7, 2010 starting at 1:00 PM with a lecture followed by a tour of the JC Raulston Arboretum.  Winter interest can be found throughout the arboretum; journey to the Winter Garden, and find even more.

Camellias, a favorite of Southern gardeners, are best known for their attractive flowers that appear when not much else is flowering in the garden. Discover the advantages and methods of landscaping with the many species and thousands of varieties of camellias available in North Carolina. Matt Hunter will share his knowledge and experience in the maintenance and use camellias and will answer your camellia questions.

In addition to the regularly scheduled A Walk in the Winter Garden tours, tour guides will be ready to lead tours when the FOA Lecture concludes.

Location: Ruby C. McSwain Education Center, JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University, 4415 Beryl Road, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Price Info: Free

The JC Raulston Arboretum Winter Garden is maintained by thee Raleigh Garden Club

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The JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University

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Seasonal Celebrations

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Friends Hosting Friends!

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Anytime in 2009

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Hmmm, host a garden party and when your guests ask, “What can I bring” just tell\’a0 them to write a check to the JC Raulston Arboretum. What a great idea.\’a0 This can happen anywhere, anytime!

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We started this last year and called it a Summer Solstice Celebration.\’a0 Problem was, how could we go to a party and have one at the same time?\’a0 Plus, there were others who wanted to open their garden in winter or spring or a holiday, or\’85you get the idea.

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So, for 2009 we will host parties anytime!\’a0 You pick the date, we will all celebrate!\’a0 We will gather friends to host a party – many parties – across the state to celebrate the JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University.\’a0 This celebration is to raise money for the Arboretum.

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The party concept is the same, it can be any party of the host\’92s choosing \’96 it could be for cocktails, tapas, pizza, or more\’85it could be burgers, chicken, fish, and so\’92 mores\’85 it could be cloth napkins, silver, and china galore\’85 your home, your garden, your style, your taste\’85you set the time, menu, d\’e9cor and pace.

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Each host will ask their friends for a donation to attend.\’a0 This set amount is up to the host.\’a0\’a0 These parties will be in cottage gardens, patio gardens, rose gardens, and future gardens – each venue unique to the friend hosting the event, thus each donation unique to those attending!\’a0 Invite your book club, garden club, neighbors, or choir!\’a0 Maybe even your doctor, dentist, or secret desire!\’a0 Delight with friends and host an event.

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The JC Raulston Arboretum will provide invitations to the host.\’a0 The host underwrites the party receiving a gift-in-kind tax deduction.\’a0 The guest receives a tax deduction for their donation.\’a0 The money raised will go to the JC Raulston Master Plan.
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JC Raulston Arboretum

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Call Anne Porter today to sign up to host a party at 919-513-3463 or e-mail her at Anne_Porter@ncsu.edu or Helen Yoest at Helen@GardeningWithConfidence.com

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Volunteers are the backbone to any nonprofit arboretum, the JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University, in Raleigh, NC is no different.\’a0 There are many individuals and groups of individuals who participate in various aspects to support the JCRA; maintaining the gardens is one of them.\
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The Raleigh Garden Club, has maintained the Winter Garden for more than 2 years.\’a0 Last year, the RGC also added the maintenance of the Viburnum Garden.\
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Each month, anywhere from 5 to 15 volunteers meet to prune, plant, transplant, weed, mulch,\’a0 map, and connect.\’a0 Yes, connect.\’a0 We, as individuals, are involved in other activities within the Club, but as a group, we all look forward to this time to spend together in the garden.\’a0 We discuss our gardens, especially our winter gardens, the various garden tools we prefer and why, our kids and parents.\’a0 It is so cathartic that we forget we are actually working.\
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This is our third January working in the Winter Garden and we are still in awe at all that grows there.\’a0 The JCRA Winter Garden is the best area example of what we can grow in our zone 7b gardens; this garden will show you and inspire you.\’a0 Each year, we are still amazed with what we see – the colors, contrasts, textures, barks, berries, foliage, cones, and FLOWERS.\
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Even though it was a very cold winter day, we happily met so that we could prepare the Winter Garden for the upcoming tour.\’a0 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.\’a0 This year’s speaker will be Mark Weathington, assistant director and curator of collections.\’a0 Mark is a fantastic speaker and this event is always well attended and anticipated.\
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Here is a sneak peak of some of what you would see.\
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Raleigh Garden Club \
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JC Raulston Arboretum\
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We hope to see you at the Arb!\

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Mark Weathington has a great job; one many of us can only dream about.  As assistant director and curator of collections of the JC Raulston Arboretum, he gets to go around the world building international relationships and plant hunting.

Tony Avent accompanied Mark on his latest plant hunting adventure…or was it the other way around?\’a0 In any case, two\’a0southern boys went to Asia.

Mark presented his adventures to many at a recent Friends of the Arboretum Lecture. I was unable to attend, as were some others, so Mark graciously told his tales again to a group of JCRA Volunteers via a brown bag lunch seminar.

The first part of Mark’s talk was about his 3 week trip to China. The purpose of this trip was about getting to know China’s plants and her people.  The group he travel with were from a class at NC State.

The second part of his talk was about his 3 week adventure with Tony Avent in Taiwan.  Tony has posted his travel log on his website\’a0 www.plantdelights.com/Tony/Taiwan.php. Mark promises to write his soon.

An engaging and knowledgable\’a0speaker, Mark made us\’a0feel we as if we were with him on his journeys. I’ve never been disappointed to hear him speak; today was no different.  Below is a his slide list.

He stated he brought back about 300 plants from Taiwan. Describing the process of caring for the plants prior to returning home and to legally get the plants out of Taiwan and into the USA sounded daunting, but that’s part of being a plant hunter.  If it were easy, we would all be doing it – maybe.

I would love to go plant hunting one day.  I love to travel and have been to more countries 0than states. If I could choose,  the first country would be Japan.  I’ve never been and it is near the top of my list.   Depending on the day, it is\’a0at the top.

I went to China in 1993…it sounded like a lot has changed, ‘cept maybe the air pollution.

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I am posting a couple different stories.\’a0 The Event- the lines, the line up, the free for all, the bounty.\’a0 To put the reader in the event, I have also chronicled my friend Adrienne in her journey.\’a0 Thanks Adrienne for being such a good sport about it.\’a0 Oh, and Gloria is in there because when I reviewed the photos,\’a0a sequence of her presented itself!\

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The line\
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From the line to their first position\
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Position before the start – they must be behind the white line.\’a0 There is a faint white line there…their toes must be covering it.\
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The Free for All\
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Helen in the empty field\’a0\
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Good thing he had\’a0a moon roof – see tree coming out the top\
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\’a0The Adrienne Chronicles\
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Adrienne is in the pinkish sweatshirt, in the center.\’a0 Here she waits in line.\
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Here’s Adrienne in the lineup.\’a0 I’m wondering if she is re-thinking her strategy.\’a0\’a0 Gloria is standing next to Adrienne.\’a0 It would appear Gloria is confident in there strategy.\
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There goes Adrienne -sprinting to the next position.\
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This is serious stuff\
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If I thought of it, I may have staged this shot…but I didn’t.\’a0 This really happened and they both got to the pot at the same time.\’a0 Adrienne graciously gave in to Ging – a friend of ours.\’a0 On the left, is Charlie Kidder, a friend and fellow JCRA board member.\
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The Bounty!\’a0 Adrienne went home happy.\
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Strategy\
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Here we have\’a0a post\’a0event gathering to compare notes.\’a0\’a0The\’a0smile of Jayme’s face says success to me.\’a0 Their palms reveal their mapping strategies.\’a0 Each had the details of their individual priority mapped on their hand as to where to be at each round.\’a0 Jayme and her husband Phil Abbott will open their garden for the Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour also benefiting the JCRA in September 2009.\’a0 I’m sure she will be happy to show you the plants she got.\
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The game plan\
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Plan B\
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Gloria\
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Here’s Gloria\
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Now you see her…\
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There she goes…sprinting the 3 feet to the first pick\
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Now you don’t see her…but look closely, there she is picking up her plant.\
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1 second from beginning to end.\
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Here’s Gloria with her friend Ruth – both are volunteers\’a0maintaining the Winter Garden with others from the Raleigh Garden Club.\
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The Carriers\
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The results are in another great year for the Raleigh and beyond Garden Conservancy’s Open Days tour also benefiting the JC Raulston Arboretum. We had great weather and great gardens\the perfect combination. But we also had 2 noon games – one at State and the other at UNC. What sport is it this time of year? I can never remember nor do I care ‘cept for the fact that it competes with my tour and generally getting people excited about being outside in the garden.

Mark your calendars for September 19/20, 2009. We have a great line up. As much as I bash sporting events, save gardening, I somehow fall back on sporting cliches to describe a situation\’85go figure.\’a0 6 Great gardens have agreed to open. 2 in Wake Forest, 2 inside the Beltline Raleigh, and 2 in Cary! More coming.

Peggy Walters, landscape photographer will be taking media shots of the gardens. We will post them to whet your appetite.

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™
Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.
Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

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