Cherokee
Indian
Garden
Speaking of Gardens . . .
It seems strange to the lover of
natural beauty that more travelers do
not stop for an hour or so to enjoy the
Botanical Garden created by the
Cherokee Historical Association in a
mountain dell adjoining the Ocona-
luftcc Village and Unto These Hills
parking lot.
A goodly portion of them visit the
play Unto These Hills, the Museum
of the Cherokee Indian, and the
Oconaluftce Village. But compara¬
tively few stop for a quiet walk along
the cool paths of the garden.
The Botanical Garden has had little
advertising. Nothing is sold there, not
even a ticket to admit you. for ad¬
mission is included in your ticket to
Oconaluftce Village, or you may even
enter free.
The tanbark paths wind gently up¬
ward through rhododendron thickets in
bloom in early June with clusters of
shell-pink or purple flowers. Moun¬
tain laurel with its dainty flowers is
there, too. Cool streams trickle over
stones covered with moss and liver¬
worts between moist banks where club
mosses and ferns dip their fronds in
the little pools. The soothing murmur
of running water blends with the call
of birds.
Nowhere has nature been violated,
for every plant grows in a spot which
is well suited to its particular needs
and where the nature lover would ex¬
pect to find it. In fact many of the
plants were growing just where they
arc now before the garden was
dreamed of. for care has been taken
to disturb the natural growth as little
as possible and to put new species
and replacements in their natural
habitat.
Moisture loving plants such as dog-
THE STATE. August 4. 1962
Little visited, little-known Cherokee Indion botonicol gorden is ono ot the most unusual in the Stofe.
Motive shrubs and flowers offer
о
succession of blooms.
den. There is a succession of blooms
from the time the garden is opened to
the public on May 15 until it is closed
in the late fall.
The mountains and valleys around
Cherokee are rich in flowering trees
and shrubs and many of them are
growing in the garden. The service
tree or shad-bush, which puts out its
fringe-like pinkish-white flowers be¬
fore any tree is in leaf, is there. As
the season progresses the silver-bell
tree, dogwood, sassafras, maples,
haws, viburnum, tulip tree, cucumber
tree, sourwood and others bloom —
each beautiful in its season. Under
the tall forest trees are the flame and
swamp azaleas, the mountain laurel,
the rhododendrons and the huckle¬
berry. Last of all is the witch hazel
which puts out its golden blooms in
the fall when other blooms have come
and gone.
As nature winds up her growing sea¬
son, the berries such as those of the
mountain ash. the various sumachs and
the dogwood vie with the autumn
leaves to make the garden glorious.
Toward the far end of the acreage
which forms the garden, where the
situation is sunny, there arc banks of
cultivated garden flowers; and still fur¬
ther along the upper trail is the Chero¬
kee garden in which arc growing vege¬
tables. herbs, and flowers especially
dear to the Cherokccs. The plot is
(Continued on page 36 )
hobble, bloodroot. jewel weed, squir¬
rel corn, dutchman's breeches, den-
taria, hcpatica, trout lily, trillium, and
bergamont are growing in the low
places and along the streams. On the
sunny slopes arc the various asters,
the everlastings, purple iron weed,
lavender queen of the meadow, yel¬
low fringed orchis, wild white hydran¬
gea. pink flowering raspberry, sun¬
flowers and goldenrods. Under the
pines arc moccasin flowers and pip-
sisewa. There are dozens of plants
commonly called weeds which lend
charm and interest to the gar-
Irdion com and other favorite •egetoblct of the
Cherokee ore gro«n in the vegetoble lection of
the gorden. Specimen» are lobclcd.
