From June 1 through September, local artwork of all kinds, from lifelike to playful and imaginative, will be featured in a display throughout the Baker Hall Visitor Center and the adjoining Education Hallway. Outside in the Enchanted Forest, we’re featuring dozens of larger-than-life-sized mushroom sculptures ranging from the realistic to the whimsical, all created by local artists and our staff. Throughout the outdoor exhibit is signage highlighting all sorts of fascinating mushroom facts.

Wondering why we chose mushrooms for our summer exhibit? Well, mushrooms are really cool.  They spark curiosity with their incredible array of sizes, shapes and colors. There’s also an air of mystery to them — what are they really up to? One day your lawn is pristine, and the next, it’s hosting a mushroom festival.

So what exactly is a mushroom? Let’s delve into a little science to unravel the mystery. A mushroom is the fruiting body or reproductive structure of a fungus that’s growing in soil or other substrates (like wood or compost). When the weather is just right, a fungus will produce a mushroom above ground to spread its microscopic spores (analogous to seeds) and start the next generation. Not all fungi, however, produce mushrooms.

Though it’s mushrooms that grab our attention, the real action is happening underground in the soil or inside that old stump at the edge of the woods. That’s where the mycelium — a massive network of filaments — is working its magic, decomposing organic matter and absorbing nutrients. This intricate web also connects to trees and plants, enabling each to share nutrients and information. This symbiotic exchange, called a mycorrhizal relationship, helps maintain a healthy ecosystem.

Some mushrooms have an incredible superpower: They can clean up the environment. Through a process called myco-remediation, certain fungi can break down and neutralize contaminants like petroleum, heavy metals and even certain types of plastics. In some cases, the mushrooms emerge free of contaminants. This cleanup method holds great promise for our future.

Mushrooms also shine in the kitchen. They’re packed with nutrients and umami flavor, making them a favorite in many dishes. Cooking mushrooms breaks down their tough cell walls, making their nutrients easier to absorb. But remember: “Never munch on a hunch!” Always thoroughly identify any wild mushrooms before you eat them.

In medicine, mushrooms are remarkable. Various species contain compounds like polysaccharides and triterpenoids, which are known for their antioxidant, antibacterial and neuroprotective properties. Certain species of mushrooms are even being studied for their therapeutic potential in cancer treatments.

Curious to learn more? Visit our “Funky Fungi” exhibit, a fun and educational dive into one of nature’s curious creations. Plus, save the date for our first Mushroom Festival, on Sept. 8.

Wild Green Yonder is a regular feature of Norfolk Botanical Garden, where Theresa Augustin is vice president of education. Send any gardening questions you may have to askaplantquestion@nbgs.org.

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IF YOU GO

What: “Funky Fungi: Nature’s Curious Creations”

When: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily through September

Where: 6700 Azalea Garden Road, Norfolk

Tickets: Included with admission

Details: norfolkbotanicalgarden.org/funky-fungi/

LOOKING AHEAD

Sept. 8: The first mushroom festival at Norfolk Botanical Garden

We’re concentrating on three areas:

* Better land stewardship

* Waste reduction

* Energy conservation

Most folks align the act of gardening with being beneficial for the environment, especially if you plant native plants, go easy on the chemicals and opt for more environmentally friendly solutions to pest and disease issues. However, we must be cognizant of how our actions impact the wider environment. At the botanical garden, practicing the best horticultural techniques and reducing our chemical footprint are standard procedures. We are also focusing on water-wise gardening, teaching people to grow their own food, planting more native plants to support our local ecosystem, managing invasive plants and expanding regenerative processes like composting. Our composting program includes kitchen scraps from offices and our café. Composting is a natural regenerative process that puts nutrients back into the soil. Just collecting your fruit and vegetable scraps can divert a significant amount of waste from ending up in a landfill. This past May, we collected nearly 400 pounds of scraps from our café. We’ll use this future compost to naturally enrich our gardens.

Speaking of reducing waste entering our landfills, we banned the sale and use of bottled water and single-use plastics on our campus. According to National Geographic, about 8 million tons of plastic waste escapes into the oceans every year. These plastics can take hundreds of years to break down, and the resulting micro-particles cause their own set of environmental issues. By encouraging guests to refill their own bottles at water stations around campus, we have diverted well over 200,000 plastic water bottles from entering local landfills. With only an estimated 9% of plastic being recycled, it was obvious that we needed to switch all our vending machine offerings to aluminum cans and/or glass bottles.

An underappreciated global benefit associated with the reduction and ultimate elimination of single-use plastics is energy savings. Producing bottled water takes more than 2,000 times the energy needed to produce tap water. By now, everyone should be aware that increasing greenhouse gases emitted by energy use has contributed to global warming and climate change. Making the switch to green energy solutions is a step toward slowing the impacts of a changing climate. In 2018, the botanical garden added its first solar array featuring 120 solar panels generating 53,651 kilowatt hours of energy to power our propagation greenhouse. The garden is also powered by 100% renewable energy through the Dominion Energy Green Power Program.

Individual choice is a powerful tool. As Rachel Carson wrote in “Silent Spring,” “The human race is challenged more than ever before to demonstrate our mastery, not over nature but of ourselves.” Imagine if half or even a third of the global population — that’s 7.8 billion people — saw themselves as part of nature and not just in charge of nature. What a massive difference that could make in bettering our world.

Theresa Augustin is director of environmental engagement and outreach at Norfolk Botanical Garden.

Art exhibit

Norfolk Botanical Garden is hosting the art exhibition “Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea” through Oct. 31. Art is one of the most compelling (and fun!) ways to evoke thought, engage curiosity and raise awareness. Learn more about “Washed Ashore” here: https://norfolkbotanicalgarden.org/washed-ashore-2021/

Learn more about the garden’s environmental stewardship here: www.nbgGreen.org

April is the month for azaleas!

Daffodil, dogwood and azalea blooms signal that spring has arrived and summer is around the bend. Azaleas are ubiquitous around town, especially in older established neighborhoods. And, almost anyone can recognize an azalea, even if he or she is not a “plant person.” One of the best places to see a spectacular showing this spring is at Norfolk Botanical Garden.

The garden got its start as a premier spring destination in 1938 as a Works Progress Administration project. Frederic Heutte, Norfolk’s first superintendent of parks and forestry, was so impressed by the magnificent azaleas in Charleston, S.C., that he wanted to create the same kind of tourist destination in Norfolk. A respected horticulturist, Heutte knew Norfolk’s climate and naturally acidic soils made it the ideal location to grow the evergreen Asian azaleas he saw in Charleston. Some 4,000 were planted.

Azaleas were such a signature plant that the garden was once known as the Norfolk Azalea Gardens, and the city of Norfolk created the International Azalea Festival to honor the countries of NATO. Today, the garden has expanded to 175 acres of year-round beauty and boasts an azalea collection worthy of international recognition.

Take a stroll around Mirror Lake and the Enchanted Forest to experience a breathtaking show of colorful azaleas, many from those original plantings. These woodland gardens are at their peak and resemble an azalea fairyland.

One of the first evergreen azaleas to bloom is Rhododendron simsii “Vittatum,” featuring three color combinations on the same shrub: white blooms striped with purplish red, all-white blooms and all-purplish-red blooms.

Next to bloom are the Kurume hybrids, such as orange-red “Flame,” purplish-red “Hinode Giri” and “Hinomayo,” white “Snow” and coral pink “Kirin” (aka “Coral Bells”).

Southern Indian hybrids, such as lilac-pink “Formosa” and the white purplish-pink with dark blotch “George Lindley Tabor,” closely follow the Kurume hybrids.

Our 84 Satsuki hybrids carry the spring show into May and are featured in the Rhododendron Glade, Enchanted Forest and Mirror Lake.

Virginia is home to six species of native azaleas with three species native to the coastal plain (our neck of the woods). Our native azaleas are deciduous – they lose their leaves in winter – and feature honeysuckle-shaped flowers that are often fragrant. Many native species can tolerate sunnier locations and become more floriferous with increased sun exposure.

One of my favorites is Rhododendron atlanticum, the dwarf coastal azalea. The fragrance is sweet and reminds me of cotton candy. One of the best areas to experience the subtle and alluring beauty of our native azaleas is near the base of Cobblestone Bridge across from Shady Woods.

In the home landscape, evergreen and native azaleas are excellent additions to well-drained woodland gardens. Evergreen azaleas prefer dappled shade and become stressed with too much direct sunlight. Like all spring-flowering shrubs, the best time to prune is immediately after flowering. Wait too long, and you’ll prune off the buds for next year’s bloom. Native azaleas have an open, airy habit and require no pruning.

Interested in the cultural care of azaleas? Check out our azalea pruning class on Tuesday. You also can learn all about azaleas on our-free-with-admission guided azalea tours. Join us May 21 for the celebration of our WPA legacy.

For details, see Garden events list above, or go to www.norfolkbotanical garden.org.

Garden Events

Azalea pruning with senior horticulturist Tom Houser 9:30-11:30 a.m. Tuesday.This class will cover azalea selection, planting and pruning. Walking required. $10 ($25 for nonmembers).

Azalea Celebration Walks Take a guided tour through our internationally recognized azalea collection. Meet in Baker Hall Visitor Center at 9:45 a.m. Walks will last approximately an hour and a half. Walking required. Free with garden admission!

— In Enchanted Forest, Monday and April 18

— In Mirror Lake, Tuesday and April 19

— At Encore Azaleas and Shady Woods, Wednesday and April 20

WPA Heritage Celebration 11 a.m. May 21. Join us in the Works Progress Administration Memorial Garden. Free admission until noon.

Theresa Augustin is curator of natural areas at Norfolk Botanical Garden.