Things to do / Travel Guide
The southern Appalachian Mountains is a region filled with botanical gardens and arboretums of all different sizes. Some are just side-of-the-road affairs, while others are spectacular and large sites. Most take advantage of the mountainous and hilly terrain, fashioning whole ecosystems out of the rough material.
Western Virginia Gardens
The sites in Western Virginia emphasize wildflower meadows and indigenous plants. For the wildflowers you can visit May-October, with peak viewing in June and July.
- A pleasant privately-owned botanical garden is that located on the property of Valley of Virginia Antiques. Aside from the vast stores of antiques and collectibles, the owners have created and tended extensive wildflower meadows and nature trails. There's a water-lily pond in the center, with dogwoods, redbud, and other low trees and shrubs surrounding it. Valley of Virginia Antiques is in Fairfield, located between Staunton and Lexington, accessible from either I-164 or I-81.
- The Edith J. Carrier Arboretum, belonging to James Madison University in Harrisonburg, was designed for students of the university, as well as visitors in the area. There's a carefully-overseen Hickory-Oak forest, a brilliant-green fern valley, an April Daffodil Walk with over 50 varieties of daffodils, the ancient species of trees called the maidenhair, and other gardens of various rare and indigenous shrubs, flowers, dogwoods, and more. There are also azalea plantings and an herb garden.
- The State Arboretum of Virginia, in the northern Shenandoah Valley, contains over 8,000 trees or shrubs. Of all the world's species of pines, over half can be found in the arboretum, plus there is a substantial gingko tree grove, an herb garden, and other memorial gardens.
- For a fantastic herb garden go to Buffalo Springs Herb Garden, south of Staunton on I-81. Events occur at the farm throughout the warmer months, and an agrarian labyrinth is also featured.
Regarding the herbs, there's a fragrance garden, a celestial garden, a Mediterranean garden, a medicinal garden, and a lavender garden.
Western North Carolina Gardens
The North Carolina Arboretum, belonging to the University of North Carolina in Asheville, got its start in 1986 after years of preparation, and it's still being developed. There's lots to show for all the work: A Bonsai collection with more than 100 samples, an azalea repository, a stream garden, and many landscape gardens designed to teach artists and laymen the tricks of the trade.
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