Planting a new perennial bed

A visit to the Fall Plant Sale at the Botanical Gardens at Asheville, a wonderful 50+ year old garden devoted to native plants resulted in more than a number of purchases.

The bare edge next to our house in the mountains gained Heuchera, Viola pedata, and Rudbeckia 'Henry Eiler.'

One of the gardeners was pretty darn happy digging and planting.

We had secured an approved design for adding perennials to an open, full sun expanse (our small mountain house is in an historic district), but weren't actually intending to buy so many plants. They were quite irresistible.


We added a nice mix of perennials in the front as well as next to the house and along the side yard (blueberries!)

This photo doesn't show how nice-looking the new bed actually is.

The sale, supporting the Gardens, features various local native plant nurseries (both retail and wholesale), local garden clubs, and the Gardens itself.

We snagged birdsfoot violet, Celadine poppy, an Appalachian carex, a great small Helianthus angustifolia selection, a Carolina Hemlock, and Rudbeckia 'Henry Eilers' (a nice selection of a lovely curled petaled Arkansas species that I first saw last fall at Terra Nova nursery in Portland, Oregon). An excellent small selection of Joe Pye weed ('Baby Joe'), a sweet prostrate aromatic aster Aster oblongifolius 'October Skies', and a new selection of another Arkansas native (Vernonia lettermannii) also jumped into the back of the car. A return trip found me getting blueberries for the edge between us and the next door apartment, as well.

We even got several more Sedums for the sedum planting next to the front walk.

Our gardening assistant enjoyed the activity. It was a good day.