Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens 2012 End of Year Annuals Report 2012 was a good but challenging year for the annuals program at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. I’m sure this is a recurring theme amongst nearly all gardens in the eastern half of the United States. Despite the prolonged heat of summer, attendance at the zoo remained strong, and we are again on the verge of record attendance for the year. We will likely end the year with approximately 1.4 million visitors. All annuals were labeled and greatly admired by our guests. Many were the constant subject of photographs. Numerous Master Gardener groups, plant societies, green industry, and other folks enjoyed tours and educational events at the zoo. The International Plant Propagators Society held an Area Meeting on grounds. We also hosted a tour and meeting of the Indiana Nursery and Landscape Association. Zoo staff went on the road to deliver programs at many educational events and other green industry gatherings throughout the region and as far as Wisconsin and New York. The weather, again, was a topic of endless interest, starting with a nearly total lack of anything resembling winter. So the Fall of 2011 steamrolled right through the winter months, eventually causing our Zoo Blooms April floral display and all 100,000 tulips to peak in March. Then, temperatures rose to summer-like levels for several weeks and forced the spring succession of bloom into high gear. What would normally be months of different species going in and out of bloom was compressed into three or four weeks, which, although highly unusual, was amazingly beautiful. Forsythia blooming with Amelanchier. Crabapples and cherries in full flower side by side. The late frosts, which any horticulturist could have predicted, did indeed arrive in late April, but fortunately only for a few nights and did not do a lot of damage. Tempting though it was to plant the annual beds early, we stuck with our usual annual regimen, and things proceeded smoothly. Much higher than normal temperatures, however, began in May and plagued us throughout the summer. We had countless days above 90F, and several above 100F, but it was drought that affected us the most. Rainfall was far below normal throughout the heat of May through August, forcing us to water much more than usual. Despite these challenges, we persevered and the Zoo’s annual beds looked nice. Sadly, all of our common impatiens suffered from downy mildew and were rendered aesthetically unusable. We held our second annual Plant Trials Day, hosting such speakers as Jimmy Turner, Chris Hansen, Dr. Richard Olsen, Kerry Meyer, Brian Williams, Steve Foltz, and Scott Beuerlein. Over 230 people were in attendance, and the day was a great success. Plant Trials Day 2013 is in the works and looks to be equally exciting.
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Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens 2012 End of Year Annuals Report
2012 was a good but challenging year for the annuals program at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical
Garden. I’m sure this is a recurring theme amongst nearly all gardens in the eastern half of the
United States.
Despite the prolonged heat of summer, attendance at the zoo remained strong, and we are again
on the verge of record attendance for the year. We will likely end the year with approximately
1.4 million visitors.
All annuals were labeled and greatly admired by our guests. Many were the constant subject of
photographs. Numerous Master Gardener groups, plant societies, green industry, and other folks
enjoyed tours and educational events at the zoo. The International Plant Propagators Society held
an Area Meeting on grounds. We also hosted a tour and meeting of the Indiana Nursery and
Landscape Association. Zoo staff went on the road to deliver programs at many educational
events and other green industry gatherings throughout the region and as far as Wisconsin and
New York.
The weather, again, was a topic of endless interest, starting with a nearly total lack of anything
resembling winter. So the Fall of 2011 steamrolled right through the winter months, eventually
causing our Zoo Blooms April floral display and all 100,000 tulips to peak in March. Then,
temperatures rose to summer-like levels for several weeks and forced the spring succession of
bloom into high gear. What would normally be months of different species going in and out of
bloom was compressed into three or four weeks, which, although highly unusual, was amazingly
beautiful. Forsythia blooming with Amelanchier. Crabapples and cherries in full flower side by
side. The late frosts, which any horticulturist could have predicted, did indeed arrive in late
April, but fortunately only for a few nights and did not do a lot of damage.
Tempting though it was to plant the annual beds early, we stuck with our usual annual regimen,
and things proceeded smoothly. Much higher than normal temperatures, however, began in May
and plagued us throughout the summer. We had countless days above 90F, and several above
100F, but it was drought that affected us the most. Rainfall was far below normal throughout the
heat of May through August, forcing us to water much more than usual.
Despite these challenges, we persevered and the Zoo’s annual beds looked nice. Sadly, all of our
common impatiens suffered from downy mildew and were rendered aesthetically unusable.
We held our second annual Plant Trials Day, hosting such speakers as Jimmy Turner, Chris
Hansen, Dr. Richard Olsen, Kerry Meyer, Brian Williams, Steve Foltz, and Scott Beuerlein.
Over 230 people were in attendance, and the day was a great success. Plant Trials Day 2013 is in
the works and looks to be equally exciting.
Perennial and grass trials are ongoing. We have learned that we’ll be hosting the 2014 Eastern
Region Meeting for the Perennial Plant Association, so we’re working to improve our perennial
collection. Our bamboo collection continues to grow and we’re beginning to get word out on the
many ways to use (and not use) bamboo. Our tree and shrub collection rivals many arboreta, and
our Native Plant Program, in conjunction with CREW, is working wonders in conservation,
propagation, and promotion of native plants. In addition to our third annual Plant Trials Day, we
will be holding our second annual Sustainable Landscapes Day in February and a Native Plants
Symposium in November.
The included photos are for you to use however you see fit. If you would like photos of other
plants, we may well have them. Just ask. If you’d like any photos in larger file sizes, let me
know.
We continue to build on our successes. Each year gets a little bit bigger and better. Ideas never
stop coming. We always seem to have a little more space to grow new plants. We are working
hard to develop better ways to evaluate and demonstrate plants, and then get the word out to
sponsors, the industry, and the public. We are so grateful for our supporters! We could not do it
without you.
Steve Foltz Scott Beuerlein Kyra McKinnny
Director of Horticulture Plant Trials Annuals and Nursery