The Carolinas Dahlia Society's annual show was held at the Haywood County Extension office in Waynesville, North Carolina. The free show was open to the public Saturday afternoon and we went to see all the different dahlia flowers that were being judged. It was a beautiful with various colors, sizes, and varieties of dahlias on hand.
What do you do with an old decommissioned bridge that is scheduled to be demolished? Well if you are the people of Lake Lure you make a garden out of it. The Lake Lure Flowering Bridge was dedicated on October 13, 2013 and has been enchanting visitors ever since. The 155-foot span is open 24 hours a day and every day of the year.
We really don't need an excuse for a road trip but the Bloom with a View event at the North Carolina Arboretum sounded interesting to us. After a short drive to Asheville, we were greeted by thousands of beautiful blooms in various planters. Color was everywhere! It truly was an enjoyable trip. This will probably be a yearly trip for us as it is that impressive.
We stopped by the North Carolina Arboretum for the Western North Carolina Orchid Society's 22nd Annual Orchid Festival. There were all kinds of shapes and colors of orchids to be seen. Various orchid related items and plants were also available for purchase. It was a very nice show and one we will attend again in the future.
Do you like dahlias? At the end of summer, the dahlia gardens at the Haywood Community College, in Clyde, North Carolina, are in full bloom. There are two dahlia gardens on campus where you can find all sizes, shapes, and colors of dahlias. The gardens tend to be a bit muddy, if it has rained recently, so don't wear your good shoes. The end of August and the beginning of September are probably the best times to visit.
Our Summer doesn't officially begin until we make a trip to Blue Ridge Daylilies in Alexander, North Carolina. This is one of my favorite gardens to visit each year and it is just a short trip from Asheville. You can also purchase many of the daylilies that are grown there. Don't miss it when the flowers are in full bloom.
We took a short trip over to Wildcat Ridge Farm to visit their Peony Gardens. It's a nice garden near the Pigeon River. The garden is small, but it is pretty. If you visit, be sure to have a high clearance visit as the driveway is gravel and it is rutted.
Road Trip! We piled into the Jeep and made or way to Corryton, Tennessee for the Oakes Daylilies' daylily festival. Oakes Daylilies' show garden is nice but you had better plan on doing some other activities while in the area since it is rather small. Plants were available for purchase and there were enough varieties to be interesting. We order many daylilies from Oakes for around the garage so it was nice to see were they are grown.
When the daylilies are blooming, there is no better place to be than Blue Ridge Daylilies. Blue Ridge Daylilies in Alexander, North Carolina is just a short trip north from Asheville. The garden is bursting with color in late June and early July each year. You can stroll the grounds enjoying the flowers and you can even purchase many of the plants as well.
