Saturday, August 15, 2015

North Carolina Arboretum's Bonsai Exhibition Garden



I was fortunate to visit the NC Arboretum in Asheville last weekend.  The Bonsai Exhibition Garden is one of their most visited permanent exhibits.  The Garden is very well conceived - the mixture of stone and wood complement the bonsai very well.  One of the more unique compositions is named Appalachian Cove, which is a mixture of native trees planted in an old wooden box.  It's the bonsai version of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  It included a very refined hollow-trunk American Hornbeam, which had unbelievable leaf reduction.  It almost looked like an elm.  I also thought the mixed planting of American Beech and Eastern Hemlock was a unique effort.  It would be interesting to know more of the history surrounding these trees, including all of the pot makers.  Enjoy the tour!