by Hadley Cheris
It’s finally fall y’all! Fall is a great time to get back outside in your home garden, after many of us take a break due to the heat and dryness of this past summer. The cooler temps allow for easier transplanting and are perfect for planting trees and shrubs that are water hogs in spring and summer. At Tryon Palace, we are celebrating the seasonal change with those much-expected mums in the Latham Garden to celebrate with the whole of New Bern for Mumfest as well as salvias, milkweed and asters aplenty.
Inspiring yourself to get back in the garden is made easy with our Tryon Palace Fall Plant Sale, Friday and Saturday, October 11 & 12 from 9am-5pm. We’ll have our tried-and-true herb and winter annual varieties, as well as ENC adapted shrubs and trees! There will be TONS of Tryon Palace grown perennial varieties that you can’t find anywhere else so come early to get your favorites. Our garden staff will be available to answer questions and help guide you on the best options for your yard. My top perennials this year are Silphium perfoliatum or Cup Plant, a tall yellow native attracting bees to its blooms and providing water for birds in cupped leaves, and Gaura lindhiemeri or Whirling Butterflies, a white or pink blooming native with long narrow bloom spikes that dance in the breeze and attracts lots of pollinators!
Don’t forget- the gardens will also be free all weekend, October 11-13, so put us on your schedule for some outdoor time! The Wilderness Garden offers a lovely spot to enjoy a nice breeze and plentiful shade for those remaining warmer days while overlooking the South Lawn. My favorite gardens during the fall are the Hawk’s Allee pollinator prairie, full of Black Eyed Susans, White Cloud Muhly grass and pink Rose of Sharons, and the Kitchen Garden- bursting with the bounty of end of summer flowers, fruits and heirloom vegetables!
We hope to see you soon- Happy gardening!
Hadley Cheris, Tryon Palace Director of Facilities and Gardens