An unapologetic plant geek shares advice and opinions on gardening, the contrived and the natural landscape, as well as occasional topics from the other side of the gate.

September 22, 2013

Busman's Holiday - Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

     Earlier this month I was able to take a bus trip to Richmond with many people I work with at the Norfolk Botanical Garden. There were also several members from the board of directors along, and our mission was to visit Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and Maymont Park. Our group had representatives from each department, not just gardeners, and our goal was to get ideas, to see how the two other entities were run, and to meet our counterparts. We were treated most graciously and had a great and full day.

     This was my third trip to Lewis Ginter, but my first time looking at it through the eyes of a public garden employee. A guest's first experience with Ginter happens at the impressive Robins Visitor's Center (named for the pharmaceutical family that brought you flea collars, Chap Stick and the Dalkon Shield). Once through the building there is a series of courtyards and gardens flanked by the education and library complex and that lead to the conservatory, yet more impressive structures.
Robins Visitor Center

Fountain Garden and Conservatory

     As one would expect, the conservatory contains many tropical plants and a large orchid collection, but it also has a seasonal display wing, and on our visit there was a tropical butterfly exhibit.
Butterflies Live (4)

Butterflies Live (2)

Butterflies Live (5)

     View from the Rose Garden
Rose Garden

     Flager Pavillion and Perennial Garden
Grove (Betula nigra)

Flagler Pavillion

Flagler Perennial Garden

    Red Abyssinian Banana (Ensete maurelii) and 'Rustic Orange' Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides) in the Children's Garden
Ensete maurelii and Solenostemon scutellarioides 'Rustic Orange'

The Children's Garden

     Giant Dutchman's Pipe (Aristolochia gigantea)
Aristolochia gigantea

     From my previous visits to Ginter, I knew to look forward to their collection of Sarracenia (pitcher plants). The first picture is S. alata and some type of wasp, who I thought was busy looking to make an easy meal from some struggling, less careful insect, or maybe it was also drawn in by whatever attracted the other creatures .
Hunting (Sarracenia alata)

     S. leucophylla
Sarracenia leucophylla (1)

Sarracenia leucophylla (2)

     S. flava
Sarracenia flava

     S. purpurea
Sarracenia purpurea

     The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is possible because of a long ago gift from Grace Arents, a Richmond philanthropist. Her home, Bloemendaal House, still stands and is surrounded by a lovely garden. The building was originally a bicycle club built in the late 1800's by her uncle Lewis Ginter. Miss Arents admired her uncle greatly and stipulated that the botanical garden should bear his name.
Grace Arents Garden (6)

Grace Arents Garden (4)

Grace Arents Garden (5)

Grace Arents Garden (7)

Bloemendaal House (1)

     After being humbled by the state of Lewis Ginter's buildings compared to where I work, I expected to leave feeling inadequate, but I didn't. Their gardens are beautiful, but no more so than the ones I work in, and of the two I rather be envious of their bricks, mortar, steel and glass than their gardens.

(Though most of the pictures in my Lewis Ginter set are in this post, you can see the complete collection here.)

29 comments:

  1. What a lovely garden, and you got some great pictures of it! Thanks for sharing them.

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  2. My garden club enjoyed the beauty of the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden this summer. It is a lovely place and all of it can be enjoyed in a relatively short amount of time. Your pictures are stunning and you captured the best poses of the flowers. Are you saving the Maymont pictures for a later post? Thanks for sharing your talents.

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    1. Vikki, I did mean to mention at the end of the post that Maymont will be next, but it slipped my mind. I also like how Ginter is laid out.

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  3. Thanks for visiting Les. We really enjoyed hosting you and the rest of the Norfolk Botanical Gardens staff. Our staff learned so much from your staff as well! Wonderful Photos! Can't wait to follow you on Flickr. #WinWin

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    1. Jonah, thank you for taking the time to respond. I hope that we will have a chance to reciprocate at some point in the future, though it will be hard to top how the Ginter crew treated us. If you or anyone at the garden need any of the photos I took on our visit, just let me know. I will be glad to share.

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  4. Les, the butterflies are gorgeous and S. leucophylla is stunning.
    I'm happy you are proud of your botanical garden. It's heartwarming to know you take such pride in your work. No doubt is't much deserved.

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    1. Chav, thank you for the kind words. If you every find yourself in the Norfolk area, please visit the garden and let me know if you can.

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    2. I've never been to Virginia, and living on the opposite coast doesn't allow frequent visits. I promise if I ever did make the trip, your botanical garden will be my number one reason for going. Thank you for the invitation!

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  5. What is the gold/chartreuse plant next to the gomphrena? It looks ike a stinging nettle with a gorgeous color. BTW, I look forward to your blog so much; it's so great for me since I recently moved back here after 30 years in FL and realized how very little I know about this plant zone.

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    1. First of all, welcome back to Va. The plant next to the gomphrena is a coleus, one that can take some sun. If I had to guess it is probably 'Wasabi'.

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  6. Les,
    I will be back at Lewis Ginter next week judging the Garden Club of VA Rose Show. It will be my fourth trip there and it is always a delight. I'm excited to hear the butterflies are on display again! What a treat! I'll get to do a follow-up Dirt Diaries (www.thedirtdiaries.com) posting on high class blooms and high flyers!

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    1. I hope you got a chance to wonder the gardens when you were not judging. I am looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.

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  7. This botanical garden looks like a place that I would love to visit if I ever got off the nursery. I would like to visit yours too. I do think I have seen enough butterflies since it seems that every botanical garden has a display these days. Good for getting people, to notice and appreciate insects more.

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    1. We have a butterfly house where I work as well, but we only show native butterflies.

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  8. I love old style conservatories and the gardens were nice too. It must be encouraging to find them no better than yours.

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    1. I do wish we had one of those. Their orchid collection was displayed in one wing and it was very nice.

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  9. wow those pitcher plants are like jewels!

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  10. Les: Recently met a friend from Switzerland in Baltimore (I'm from NC). We traveled down and up the Chesapeake Bay weaving through the back roads of the Eastern and Western shoreline. It was a wonderful experience . My friend LOVED the tidewater area. But one the best days was a visit to your Norfolk Botanical Gardens. We spent the whole day there and although I've been to the Ginter Gardens, I have a special place in my heart for Norfolk Botanical Gardens. Thank you for sharing your experiences. Now that I've discovered your two blogs, I'm sending a link to my friend in Switzerland. She'll love them.

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    1. I am really glad you enjoyed the botanical gardens, both sides of the bay and my blogs. Thank you for taking the time to comment.

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  12. I bet this visit to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden was a great inspiration. The pitcher plants are incredible!

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    1. I could have spent much more time with the pitcher plants, but we had to rush onward.

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  13. That dutchmans pipe is cool.

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  14. Such imposing buildings, I actually felt much more comfortable once I hit the wonderful shot of the bench under the trees! Glad you are not suffering from too much envy.

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  15. The buildings were not that imposing in person, and fit into the garden nicely. I was just suffering a pang of jealousy.

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  16. The only thing Lewis Genter has on the NBG's is their pitcher plants and the conservatory. Their pitcher plants inspired me to build my own mini bog in my front yard in Norfolk and its doing wonderfully. Pitcher plants are super easy to grow if done right (venus fly traps too). What Lewis Genter really needs is a proper rock garden. Their lack of Agaves really hurts them in my book. Although really, i love both places

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