Raulston Blooms!

A Garden Festival for All Ages


  • Saturday, April 2, 2016 – 9:00 am4:00 pm

What is it? Fun for the whole family! Learn, shop for your garden, get great ideas, and enjoy gourmet treats at Raulston Blooms! We 're rolling out the red carpet for members, home gardeners, families, and children by offering a day that's packed with garden and nature activities, shopping, and outdoor fun.

Enjoy

  • Spring Plant Sale
  • 16th Annual Birdhouse Competition
  • Gardening talks
      • Brie Arthur “Foodscaping 101”
      • Bryce Lane “Birds, Butterflies, and Blooms: Gardening to Attract Wildlife”
  • Children and Family Fun
  • Arts and Crafts Vendors
  • Food trucks including Pho Nomenal Dumpling Truck, Food Network's "The Great Food Truck Race" winner
  • NC State's Howling Cow ice cream
  • Thousands of plants in our world-famous gardens
Raulston Blooms!
Gardening Talks

Gardening Talks

Get great ideas for their home landscape from the experts. Bryce Lane, NC State University lecturer, will teach us how to garden to attract wildlife with an inspiring and fun talk, "Birds, Butterflies, and Blooms" Learn how to design a fabulous front foundation for your home using a mix of ornamental and edible plants with Brie Arthur, Growing a Greener World, at "Foodscaping 101."

Spring Plant Sale

Spring Plant Sale

Gardeners love buying hard to find plants selected by JCRA staffers especially for our climate. Members save 10%.

Members-only Preview Sale

Members can shop early on Friday, April 10 from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

Not a member? Join today.

Annual Birdhouse Competition

Birdhouse Competition

The 16th Annual Birdhouse Competition, which draws entries in categories from age six to adult, is inspiring, fanciful, and fun! It's a perennial hit with everyone from serious bird watchers and nature photographers to school classes and scouts.

Children and Family

Children and Family

For children there will be exciting games and activities, garden crafts, and hands-on science experiences.

Artists and Vendors

Artists and Vendors

Shop for one-of-a-kind gifts and items from North Carolina artisans and vendors.

Food

Food

Gourmet treats will be available for purchase from food trucks, plus NC State's famous Howling Cow ice cream will be served.

Schedule of Events

9:00 am
All Activities Open (includes JCRA Plant Sale and 16th Annual Birdhouse Competition)
Food trucks open (close at 3:00 pm)
WPTF's The Weekend Gardener (ends 11:00 am)
10:00 am
Face and henna painting (closes at 3:00 pm)
Build a home for the garden's pollinators (closes at 3:00 pm)
10:30 am
"Foodscaping 101" with Brie Arthur
Meet the bugs (closes at 2:30 pm)
11:30 am
"Hot Plants for Cool Gardens" with Mark Weathington
Tree climbing demonstration with NC State horticulture students
12:00 pm
Parade of children's nature masks
1:30 pm
"Birds, Butterflies, and Blooms: Gardening to Attract Wildlife" with Bryce Lane
4:00 pm
All activities conclude

Educational Presentations

Brie Arthur

Brie Arthur, Correspondent, Growing a Greener World

"Foodscaping 101"
10:30 am

Brie has fine-tuned her signature design technique of Foodscaping, a landscape practice that embraces beauty and utility in its function.  Working within public school systems, retirement communities and suburban developments, Brie is the changing the way green spaces are designed and utilized.  

Encouraging everyone to "think outside of the box," Brie explains why pairing edibles in a traditional ornamental landscape is functional, convenient and attractive. Edible meadows, high impact seasonal displays and woody ornamentals are featured in ways to create a purposeful landscapes that are HOA approved.

Follow and participate through social media driven initiatives: #BullockGarden #CrazyGrainLady #EdibleEntry #FoundationFoodscape

Banner Greenhouses has provided a wonderful selection of tomatoes for sale at Raulston Blooms! A 2nd generation, family owned, ornamental flower grower. Banner Greenhouses is nestled in the foothills of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Be sure to check out the grafted tomatoes.

Mark Weathington

Mark Weathington, Director, JC Raulston Arboretum

"Hot Plants for Cool Gardens"
11:30 am

What are some of the best landscape plants from the brand new releases to proven performer? Find out here! All plants discussed will be available at the JCRA Plant Sale during Raulston Blooms!

Bryce Lane

Bryce Lane, Emeritus Lecturer, NC State University

"Birds, Butterflies, and Blooms: Gardening to Attract Wildlife"
1:30 pm

Today's gardeners desire landscapes that are not just appealing, but also contribute to the environment in positive ways. Landscapes that attract and serve wildlife (birds, insects pollinators, butterflies, frogs, etc.) add significant value to the outdoor garden spaces we create. Your own backyard garden can become an enriched environment where plants and animals contribute to the overall ecology of the landscape, and provide hours of enjoyment for gardeners alike. Come find out how to create outdoor spaces that attract and support wildlife!

Bryce will share is favorites with you at Raulston Blooms!

Educational Displays and Demonstrations

Relay Foods
Sweet Pea Urban Gardens
Live chickens with Tour D'Coop
Live insects with NC State's Entomology Club
Plant clinic with Wake County Extension Master Gardeners
Bluebird display with Bill Satterwhite, Bluebirders of Wake County and North Carolina Bluebird Society
Bee care with Bayer Crop Science
North Carolina Bat Working Group

Artists

Rimshotz Gallery

michael-salemi.squarespace.com
Striking a balance between classic design, shape and texture,  Michael Salemi turns ikebana, dried-flower vases, bowls and boxes in very non-standard shapes. This unique pieces are a result of his interest in finding news ways to help the wood speak.

Kiki's Rewind Designs

kikisrewinddesigns.com
Unique textile creations made from Vintage and reclaimed materials. Christine Ramsey’s designs include upcycled tool aprons, fabric hats, collage bags and scarves--all are made one at a time, designed and stitched by the artist at her dining room table in Apex, NC.

Relay Foods

www.relayfoods.com/
Relay Foods is your healthy, responsibly-sourced online grocery store.

Dillardville Recycled Art

www.facebook.com/Dillardville-Recycled-Art-126566910688496/?rc=p
Karen Dillard, produces one of a kind pieces of art using repurposed materials.

The ZEN Succulent

thezensucculent.com
Each ZEN Succulent terrarium is created solely by hand featuring natural and preserved plants and sea life. The ZEN Succulent's design process is completely organic though gathering all terrarium components in hand and dropping them on their craft table. Where the items fall dictates the direction of the design, making each terrarium one of kind. Try your hand at our "Do-It-Yourself" tillandsia air plant bar where you can make your own custom terrarium.

Gretchen Quinn Pottery

www.gretchenquinn.com/
Functional ceramics—hand built and wheel thrown. Gretchen enjoys playing with textures and colors against simple, clean shapes. The pieces are meant to seamlessly blend into everyday life.

Artisanal Jewelry by Kate Wiegand

squareup.com/market/artisans_atelier
Unique handmade jewelry with a contemporary twist that's perfect for a casual yet sophisticated style. Incorporating high quality semi-precious gemstones and findings, Kate aspires to create jewelry that will become treasured for yours to come. Each piece is handcrafted in Raleigh, NC.

Zendustria Studios

zendustria.com/
Paintings, photography, prints and fine art cards. Zendustria creates with the idea of combining a "zen" or common sense approach to a wide variety of design ideals—graphic design, industrial design, sculpture, painting, interior design—all with a user-centered, ergonomic approach, but rooted in the finest traditions of art history.

Soap Hut

www.soap-hut.com
A member of the Handcrafted Soap and Cosmetic Guild and a multi-vendor store in Garner, North Carolina, the Soap Hut specializes in small batch soaps. You'll never know what you'll find at the Soap Hut—hand-painted garden art or recycled birdfeeders, birdhouses, garden stakes, mandalas and the like.

Food Vendors

Buzzy Bakes

buzzybakes.com
Buzzybakes is a mobile bakery and coffee bar offering premium coffee and delicious homemade baked goods.

Bulkogi Truck

bulkogikrnbbq.com
Passionate about food, feeding the hungry and loving the people. Experience a new kind of Korean BBQ that fuses traditional Korean flavors with other ethnic flavors that redefines what Korean BBQ can be. The best quality ingredients with love and care can be felt in every bite.

Pho Nomenal Dumpling Truck

www.phonomenaldumplings.com/
2015 Winners of the Food Network's The Great Food Truck Race. A pho and dumpling truck roaming around the Triangle since 2014!

Raulston Blooms! Sponsors

Thank you to all our dedicated sponsors. Without each of you, we could not carry out our mission, providing a free garden and helping grow a greener world.

Platinum Sponsors

Bayer Advanced
Pender Nursery

Gold Sponsors

Atlantic Avenue Orchid & Garden
A. E. Finley Foundation
Hoffman Nursery
North Carolina Nursery & Landscape Association
Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company

Bobby G. Wilder

Silver Sponsors

Anonymous

Doug & Peggy Abrams

Irma & Haddon Clark

Cynthia Cromwell

Sec. Elaine Marshall and Tommy Bunn

The NC Agricultural Foundation

Walt & Kathleen Thompson

Worthington Farms

Johnny & Jackie Wynne

Smedes & Rosemary York

Bronze Sponsors

Sylvia Blankenship

Gail & Dean Bunce

Duke Energy

Rufus & Linda Edmisten

Fair Products

Eileen Goldgeier

Russ & Malissa Kilpatrick

LanArc

Outfall Farms

Plant Delights Nursery

Sampson Nursery

Surface

Rodney Swink & Juanita Shearer-Swink

Tom & Amira Ranney

Anthea Tate

Dennis & Georgina Werner

Bill & Libby Wilder, Jr.

 

Charles Kidder & Jane Wilhoite

 

Withespoon Rose Culture

Plant Sale Donors

The JC Raulston Arboretum would like to thank the following growers and individuals for donating plants for the plant sale at Raulston Blooms!

Baucom's Nursery Co.
Bennett's Creek Nursery
Buchholz & Buchholz Nursery
Cam Too Camellia Nursery
Currin's Nursery
David and Brienne Arthur
Dawes Arboretum
Greenleaf Nursery Co., North Carolina Division
Hawksridge Farms
Iseli Nursery
Johnson Nursery Corp.
Lazy S's Farm Nursery
McMahan's Nursery
Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center, NC State University
Oakmont Nursery
Old Courthouse Nursery
Panoramic Farm
Pender Nursery
Piedmont Carolina Nursery
Pine Knot Farms
Plant Delights Nursery
Plantworks Nursery
Pleasant Run Nursery
Powell Gardens
Sampson Nursery
Sandy's Plants
Specialty Ornamentals
Tarheel Native Trees
Terra Nova Nurseries
Walters Gardens
Wilkerson Mill Gardens
Williford's Nursery

Cost
Free for members, $5.00 for nonmembers, $10.00 per family. Admission includes admission to the 16th Annual Birdhouse Competition and JCRA Plant Sale, too. Admission fees support the JC Raulston Arboretum’s general fund within the NC Agricultural Foundation, Inc. (Tax ID 56-604930).
Registration
Pay at door.
Location
JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State University, 4415 Beryl Road, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Directions
Need directions? Click here.
Parking
Free parking is available along Beryl Road and in the Brickhaven Building's parking lot.
Questions
Please call (919) 515-3132 for more information about this event.