In 1960, long before plants like Oconee Bells and Indian Pink bloomed along Reed Creek, the land that is now the Asheville Botanical Garden (ABG) was a pasture tangled with weeds, poison ivy and discarded trash. To most, the neglected land was an eyesore. But local resident Bruce Shinn saw something there.
For years, Shinn and a small circle of plant lovers had been rescuing native wildflowers from bulldozers as postwar development reshaped WNC. As their private gardens filled up, they imagined a public space devoted entirely to the native plants of the Southern Appalachians.
“In those days, most gardeners were focused on highly ornamental gardens with roses, tulips and other very visually stunning plants,” says Kaita Collier, executive director of the ABG. “Focusing on natives was quite a radical mission at the time.”…