Moore Farms Botanical Garden is a

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

located in

Lake City, South Carolina Lake City is a city in Florence County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 6,675 at the 2010 census. Located in central South Carolina, it is south of Florence and included as part of the Florence Metropolitan Statistical Area. Hist ...

in the

Pee Dee The Pee Dee is a region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of South Carolina. It lies along the lower watershed of the Pee Dee River, which was named after the Pee Dee, a Native American tribe that historically inhabited the region. His ...

region. Founded in 2002, the garden consists of of cultivated gardens and pastoral fields. It also serves as a center for research, education, and community outreach.

History

Moore Farms Botanical Garden was founded in 2002 by benefactor and South Carolina native

Darla Moore Darla Dee Moore (born August 1, 1954) is an American investor and philanthropist. She is the former president and a partner of the private investment firm Rainwater Inc. and was married to Richard Rainwater, who founded the firm. Early life and e ...

on her family's farm in Lake City, SC. The garden's location is nestled within existing

farmlands Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...

consisting of

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

soybeans The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses. Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu and ...

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

, and formerly

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

, and pine plantations mostly of ''

Pinus taeda ''Pinus taeda'', commonly known as loblolly pine, is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from East Texas to Florida, and north to southern New Jersey. The wood industry classifies the species as a southern yellow pine. ...

'', or loblolly pine. The garden's central landmark is the

firetower A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain or ...

, which soars to a height of and was purchased during an auction in

Olanta, South Carolina Olanta is a town in Florence County, South Carolina, Florence County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 563 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, down from 613 in 2000. It is part of the Florence, South Carolina, Florence F ...

in 2004. 3 years later, construction was completed on the Firetower Center, which serves as the garden's visitors center, and houses offices, education, and event space.

Geography & climate

Due to its location in the inner

Atlantic coastal plain The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...

, the topography of the garden is flat, with a low elevation and little change in relief. As is characteristic for the Southeastern United States, the garden has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Cfa''), with hot, humid summers and relatively mild winters. The region is classified as USDA

Hardiness Zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...

8a.

Visitation

The garden is not open to the public on a daily basis. Moore Farms Botanical Garden can be visited by request through a guided tour, open garden days, and during one of the many seasonal events.

Plant collections

Collections management

Plant records are maintained through an internally designed Filemaker Pro database. The database, including a plant inventory and observational and horticultural notes dating back to the garden's founding, is accessible to the public via the Moore Farms Botanical Garden’s website. Voucher specimens from plants accessioned at the garden are housed at the A.C. Moore Herbarium (USCH) at the University of South Carolina.

South Carolina natives

The garden engages in

plant collecting Plant collecting is the acquisition of plant specimens for the purposes of research, cultivation, or as a hobby. Plant specimens may be kept alive, but are more commonly dried and pressed to preserve the quality of the specimen. Plant collecting i ...

throughout the state with the goal of building a diverse assemblage of South Carolina native plants from several localities, including several rare or little known species. Plants are collected with the goal of

germplasm preservation Germplasm are living genetic resources such as seeds or tissues that are maintained for the purpose of animal and plant breeding, preservation, and other research uses. These resources may take the form of seed collections stored in seed banks, ...

or horticultural introduction. The coastal plain ecosystem is the primary focus of the collection, though the

piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

regions of the state are represented as well. Examples include ''

Helianthus angustifolius ''Helianthus angustifolius'' is a species of Helianthus, sunflower known by the common name narrowleaf sunflower or swamp sunflower. It is native to the south-central and eastern United States, found in all the coastal states from Texas to Long I ...

'', ''

Symphyotrichum georgianum ''Symphyotrichum georgianum'' (formerly ''Aster georgianus'') is a rare species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae, the aster family. Its common name is Georgia aster. It is native to the southeastern United States where it is known from Ala ...

'', and ''

Macbridea caroliniana ''Macbridea caroliniana'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common names Carolina birds-in-a-nest and Carolina bogmint. It one of only two species in the genus '' Macbridea'', and though distributed over a wider rang ...

''.

Southern heritage plants

A collection considering of plants historically cultivated in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

and considered part of its distinct imagery, including ''

Camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controversy ...

'', ''

Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the center ...

'', ''

Crinum ''Crinum'' is a genus of about 180 species of perennial plants that have large showy flowers on leafless stems, and develop from bulbs. They are found in seasonally moist areas, including marshes, swamps, depressions and along the sides of strea ...

'', ''

Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

'', ''Quercus virginiana'' (Southern Live Oak), and ''

Narcissus Narcissus may refer to: Biology * ''Narcissus'' (plant), a genus containing daffodils and others People * Narcissus (mythology), Greek mythological character * Narcissus (wrestler) (2nd century), assassin of the Roman emperor Commodus * Tiberiu ...

'' (particularly the 'Jonquils', or those in Division 7 of the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

classification of the group, derived from and showing characteristics of ''Narcissus'' Sect. ''Jonquilla'' and/or ''Narcissus'' Sect. ''Apodanthi'').

''Magnolia grandiflora'' cultivars

Both a plant native to the southeast and one long cultivated there for its ornamental value, ''Magnolia grandiflora'' (Southern Magnolia) is a high priority plant for collection at Moore Farms Botanical Garden. Currently, 68 different

cultivars A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...

and an additional 17 unnamed hybrids of the species are represented.

''Taxodium'' cultivars

In 2017, Moore Farms Botanical Garden completed the planting of its

Taxodium ''Taxodium'' is a genus of one to three species (depending on taxonomic opinion) of extremely flood-tolerant conifers in the cypress family, Cupressaceae. The generic name is derived from the Latin word ''taxus'', meaning " yew", and the Greek ...

collection. Boasting approximately 61

varieties Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

, and hybrids consisting of the three recognized species, ''

Taxodium ascendens ''Taxodium ascendens'', also known as pond cypress, is a deciduous conifer of the genus ''Taxodium'', native to North America. Many botanists treat it as a variety of bald cypress, ''Taxodium distichum'' (as ''T. distichum'' var. ''imbricatum'') ...

'', ''

Taxodium distichum ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide r ...

'', and ''

Taxodium mucronatum ''Taxodium mucronatum'', commonly known as Montezuma bald cypress, Montezuma cypress, or ahuehuete, is a species of ''Taxodium'' that is primarily native to Mexico and Guatemala, with a few populations in the southwestern United States. Ahuehuet ...

''.

Garden areas

Moore Farms Botanical Garden has a diverse assemblage of garden areas ranging from formal to naturalistic in appearance. The garden areas are designed with an appreciation for the pastoral history of the Pee Dee Region, with signature views of extensive agricultural fields common from various vantage points throughout the garden.

Firetower & gardens

The Firetower Garden is named for its central landmark, a

fire lookout tower A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain or ...

which was purchased on auction and moved to the garden in 2004. Though no longer utilized for fire spotting, the tower serves as a trellis for specimens of ''Taxodium distichum'' 'Emerald Falls', trained to climb by staff horticulturists. A bog garden abutting the fire tower collects several species of Pitcher plant (''

Sarracenia ''Sarracenia'' ( or ) is a genus comprising 8 to 11 species of North American pitcher plants, commonly called trumpet pitchers. The genus belongs to the family Sarraceniaceae, which also contain the closely allied genera '' Darlingtonia'' and ...

''). The Firetower Center houses offices and education classes, and serves to welcome visitors. Other plants of note in the Firetower Garden include ''Chamaerops humilis'' var. ''cerifera'' and ''Albizia julibrissin'' 'Summer Chocolate'.

Pine Bay

A former plantation for ''Pinus taeda'' (Loblolly Pine), the Pine Bay is the most naturalistic area of the garden and serves to exhibit over 400 taxa of South Carolina native flora including '' Amorpha georgiana'', ''

Erythrina herbacea ''Erythrina herbacea'', commonly known as the coral bean, Cherokee bean, Mamou plant in South Louisiana, red cardinal or cardinal spear, is a flowering shrub or small tree found throughout the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico; ...

'', and ''Salix humilis'' var. ''tristis''.

Formal Garden

The Formal Garden includes several

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate a road from adjoini ...

s of ''Ilex vomitoria'' (Yaupon) and less commonly hedged species such as ''

Laurus nobilis ''Laurus nobilis'' is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glabrous (smooth) leaves. It is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region and is used as bay leaf for seasoning in cooking. I ...

''. The formal garden is bordered by the Vegetable and Cut Flower gardens. This region of the garden also exhibits several specimens by local South Carolina topiary artist

Pearl Fryar Pearl Fryar (born December 4, 1939) is an American topiary artist living in Bishopville, South Carolina. Biography Pearl Fryar was born on December 4, 1939 in Clinton, North Carolina to a sharecropper family. In the late 1950s, he attended ...

. Several ''

'' selections (including 'Summer Nocturne' and 'Rose Parade') are also cultivated within this region.

Spring House & Pond Gardens

The characteristic structure of this area is the

Spring House A spring house, or springhouse, is a small building, usually of a single room, constructed over a spring. While the original purpose of a springhouse was to keep the spring water clean by excluding fallen leaves, animals, etc., the enclosing stru ...

, constructed with timber from a neighboring county, Bamboo (''Phyllostachys sp.'') grown onsite, and topped by a reed grass thatched roof. Nearby ponds collect several aquatic and marginal species including ''

Scirpus californicus ''Schoeneoplectus californicus'' is a species of sedge known by the common names California bulrush, southern bulrush and giant bulrush. It is also sometimes called "tule", but the closely related ''Schoenoplectus acutus'' is the species most oft ...

'', ''

Eryngium aquaticum ''Eryngium aquaticum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae known by the common name rattlesnakemaster,Glyptostrobus pensilis ''Glyptostrobus pensilis'', known in Chinese as 水松 (Shuǐ sōng), and also Chinese swamp cypress, is an endangered conifer, and the sole living species in the genus ''Glyptostrobus''. Description It is a medium-sized to large tree, reaching ...

''.

Green roof & living wall

The maintenance building holds a intensive

green roof A green roof or living roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. It may also include additional layers such as a root barrier and drainage ...

utilized both as a landscape, and as a research plot. The roof has a 4:12 pitch and is designed as a multi-layered system consisting of plants, of an engineered lightweight soil, a soil retention system, root barrier, drainage mat, and waterproofing membrane. The roof is irrigated by spray emitters and above surface drip systems. The irrigation system draws water from an underground cistern, with the intent that captured stormwater exclusively is utilized to water the plants. Plants providing ornamental interest in all four seasons are represented on the roof, with some of the dominant plantings including ''

Tulipa clusiana ''Tulipa clusiana'', the lady tulip, is an Asian species of tulip native to Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and the western Himalayas. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental and is reportedly naturalized in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Tun ...

'', ''

Yucca gloriosa ''Yucca gloriosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to the southeastern United States. Growing to , it is an evergreen shrub. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental for its architectural qualities, and has repo ...

'', ''

Commelina erecta ''Commelina erecta'', commonly known as the white mouth dayflower, slender dayflower, or widow's tears, is a perennial herb native throughout the Americas, Africa and western Asia. It is considered to be the most variable species of ''Commelina'' ...

'', ''

Asclepias curassavica ''Asclepias curassavica'', commonly known as tropical milkweed, is a flowering plant species of the milkweed genus, ''Asclepias''. It is native to the American tropics and has a pantropical distribution as an introduced species. Other common nam ...

'', and ''

Eschscholzia californica ''Eschscholzia californica'', the California poppy, golden poppy, California sunlight or cup of gold, is a species of flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae, native to the United States and Mexico. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant f ...

''. The green roof was installed in 2011. A custom, in-house designed living wall was installed on the maintenance building in 2013.

Production facilities

Moore Farms Botanical Garden grows many of the plants for collection onsite, with an annual production of 30,000 plants. The production facility was constructed in 2006. Current plans involve expansion of the nursery and construction of additional greenhouses, one for vegetable production as well as installation of a

trial garden A trial garden is a type of garden grown specifically for the purpose of testing and evaluating plants. Universities, plant breeders, and garden-industry companies frequently have trial gardens, as do many private and public botanical gardens and p ...

for expanded research.

Outreach

Moore Farms Botanical Garden is frequently involved in outreach and improvement projects in Lake City, and is often utilized as a site for events in support of these causes.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Moore Farms Botanical Garden

The University of South Carolina Herbarium (USCH)
Botanical gardens in South Carolina 2002 establishments in South Carolina

History

Geography & climate

Visitation

Plant collections

Collections management

South Carolina natives

Southern heritage plants

''Magnolia grandiflora'' cultivars

''Taxodium'' cultivars

Garden areas

Firetower & gardens

Pine Bay

Formal Garden

Spring House & Pond Gardens

Green roof & living wall

Production facilities

Outreach

See also

References

External links