Horticultural Inspiration: The Woody Plant Conference

I was excited to attend the Woody Plant Conference at the Scott Arboretum at Swarthmore College, however I had no idea I would be so deeply inspired by the talks. People in the horticulture department at N.C. State told about the excellent collection at the Scott Arboretum and my experience surpassed any expectations.

There is something about being around a group of passionate horticulture people. Todd Lasseigne reminded me of the rich family of plantspeople in Raleigh with his impassioned presentation about overused plants, tried-and-true plant and plants that are worth knowing. Andrew Bunting, the curator at the Scott Arboretum, introduced us to some really exciting interspecific magnolias, and Chanticleer Horticulturists Dan Benarcik and Jonathan Wright reintroduced the crowd to hydrangeas, both beloved favorites and those most gardeners haven't met. I don't know of anyone who wasn't salivating over those plants. Four words: Magnolia macrophylla grandiflora hybrid.

On top of the excellent presentations, I got to see an old classmate who was working for Andrew and a woman I was an intern with at Duke Gardens. Horticulture really is a small world. A wonderfully small world.

This post is to friends, new and old, human and plant alike.

I am the Tangerine Man

Thank you, John Cleese. Now....

I am the Tangerine Man

(To the tune of I am the Walrus by The Beatles)

As Mad-libbed by Tessa Young, Eva Colberg, Tom Clark and Amanda Wilkins

Generated by Mad:)Takes

Sitting on a pie, waiting for the airbag to come,
Corporation ballet shoe, stupid lumpy Tuesday,
Man, you been a shrimpy shopping cart, you let your hip bone grow long.

I am the avocadoman, they are the avocadomen,
I am the lemur! Goo goo [ga] doink!

Mister City, jockey sauteing, pretty equine mechanics in a row,
See how they fly, like Lucy in the record, see how they blow-torch,
I`m opera singing, I`m opera singing,
I`m opera singing, I`m opera singing.

Yellow matter bridge, dripping from a squeemish dog`s cheek,
Crabalocker fishwife, buddy priestess,
Boy, you been a shrimpy lily-pad, you let your underpants down.

I am the chiliman, they are the chilimen,
I am the goat! Boo boo [ba] joob!

Giggling in an peeved garden, waiting for the door,
If the door don`t come, you get a tan from gobbling in the peeved rain.

I am the tangerineman, they are the tangerinemen,
I am the cat! Galumph galumph [guh] gah! Galumph galumph, galumph galumph [guh] gah!

The Polly Hill Crew, including Jaime Morin (behind the camera here and previous collections management intern!), goofing-off in the gardens in front of the horticulture office after a long day at the 2014 Woody Plant Conference.

So, if you are completely lost, great! Cabin Fever and exhaustion make for fun Mad Libs.

All joking aside, randomness and whimsy abounded this weekend as the Polly Hill Interns and Tom Clark headed south to the Woody Plant Conference at the Scott Arboretum at Swarthmore College, on Friday, July 18.

Although our main objective was the conference, we took our time and made many side-trips to famous public gardens and a couple of private gardens. Below are some of the highlights of the craziness at the five botanical gardens we visited this weekend. Tune in soon for a complete post about what really happened!

Photography Yoga with Eva Colberg and Tessa Young at the New York Botanical Garden.

Eva really getting into being a human yard stick with this Magnolia macrophylla at the Scott Arboretum.

I just had to check out how easy it is to slide between this lip and column of this Stanhopea orchid at Longwood Garden. What an amazing flower architecture: a large, pendulous, cream-colored flower with purple leopard spots that emerges from the bottom of the plant in hopes to tape its pollen to the back of some enormous bee or bird.
Who makes this stuff up? Not me.

This unidentified man could be found lurking behind many a shrub looking for tags.
This sighting occurred in a Cyrilla racemosa at the Morris Arboretum.

What is going on in the background with that man and the megaphones....?
We were definitely Out on a Limb with this one.

Tessa found her spirit animals in the lions at the Morris Arboretum's Japanese Hill and Water Garden. She couldn't help but smile creepily back.

Honestly, it was a fantastical trip that did more than I could have ever imagined with my concept and appreciation of horticulture and the field of public horticulture. We met some truly amazing people and got a taste of some of the finest gardens in the country. My head is still swimming with ideas and I'm still digesting everything I experienced. I can tell the future has changed.

A view towards the Gravel Garden at Chanticleer.