Explore garden possibilities for our region
Michigan native Suzanne Wilkerson is a great American gardener. Her more than 25 year career in gardening began at her grandparents farm in Michigan at age 10, she continued her education far from home in New Jersey and North Carolina, where she has become one of America’s award winning Landscape Design Installation experts.
Suzanne Wilkerson
As a 3rd generation Michigander, Suzanne graduated from FIT/SUNY and moved to New York City in 1983 where she meandered off her garden path for a career in Textiles and then onto High Tech at Oracle Corporation and Banking at Wachovia/Wells Fargo. Although she remained a passionate home gardener she did not pursue her formal gardening education and licensing until moving to North Carolina in 2005. She became a Master Gardener Volunteer in Union County in 2007.
Her passion expanded in the world of gardening when she retired from High Tech and started Ambiance Garden Design in 2013. AGD is a NC Licensed/Bonded company that has over 600 customers in the greater Charlotte area and offers design/install, ornamental maintenance services, and landscape consulting. Ambiance Garden Design has flourished as Winner of Best of Houzz 2017, 2018, 2020 & 2021, and recently featured in Charlotte Magazine. Suzanne hosted the Southern Lawn & Garden Radio Show Line 1150 WAVO from 2017-2018. Although she has built gardens for high profile residents and institutions like Sushi Guru, and Village of St Andrews, her approach is very simple: First, figure out the problems that need fixed (views, noise, privacy, drainage etc.) and then work with the residents of the space to co-create amazing natural spaces outdoors for a seamless connection. From traditional to modern, residential to institutional, all of the gardens are built for entertaining and enjoying the outdoors through good design, investment quality approach and materials, and knowledge of plants.
The next chapter is unfolding in Charlotte with new offerings of private garden parties in some of the estate gardens that she has been working on. Some amazing projects are ongoing such as roof tops in the city of Charlotte, Terrace Gardens at Metropolitan, and a Destination garden at Cloister Honey.
More info about Suzanne and Ambiance Garden Design here.
Design It Once, Love It for Life:
The Fundamentals of Creating a Beautiful, Sustainable Garden/Landscape
Whether you’re gardening on a small patio, a suburban lot, or several acres, successful landscapes begin with thoughtful design. In this engaging presentation, Suzanne Wilkerson, founder of Ambiance Garden Design, LLC Licensed Landscape Designer will share the essential principles that transform outdoor spaces into beautiful, sustainable gardens that become more rewarding with each passing year. Attendees will learn how to evaluate their site, create a cohesive design framework, select plants with purpose, avoid common design mistakes, and build landscapes that support pollinators, conserve resources, and reflect their personal style. Through real-world examples from the Southern Piedmont, participants will gain practical tools to create gardens they will truly love for a lifetime.
We are planning an in-person event. In the event of inclement weather or other situations out of our control, we will move to a virtual platform.
Paula Gross
Paula Gross, educator and botanist, has spent her career connecting plants and people through formal and informal education - from adults of all ages to college students to preschoolers. She is the co-author of The Southeast Native Plant Primer and former Associate Director of the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens. Her message of hope for the individual and the planet is in the profound understanding that we are Nature, not separate from it. This is what inspires her to write, teach, and consult on a wide range of botanical and horticultural topics.
At Home Among the Trees
Native trees are life-giving, life-supporting, and life-long. Whether you have one tree or a hundred in your landscape, they are well-worth getting to know better. How can we be good partners when selecting, planting, pruning, considering removing, and understanding their eco-services? Let’s take a fresh look at trees (and tree-like shrubs) and come away more confident and in awe of the trees that make our gardens home.
Debbie Roos
Since 1999 Debbie Roos has been the Sustainable Agriculture Agent for the Chatham County Center of North Carolina Cooperative Extension. Debbie is passionate about pollinator conservation and created a demonstration Pollinator Paradise Garden and developed resources to teach others about the importance of bees and other pollinators to our agriculture ecosystem. In 2019, Debbie received the Governor’s Conservation Achievement Award as the Wildlife Conservationist of the Year from the North Carolina Wildlife Federation.
Visit her pollinator website at go.ncsu.edu/pollinator-garden.
Plant Natives to Create a Pollinator Paradise
Join Debbie Roos, the creator and maintainer of Chatham County Cooperative Extension’s Pollinator Paradise Demonstration Garden and learn how to create your own pollinator paradise, even in less than perfect conditions. Debbie will focus on native workhorse plants that thrive in a variety of conditions and provide resources for pollinators and other wildlife from early spring through late fall. Get ready for beautiful, inspiring photography.
Shannon Currey
Shannon Currey is a horticultural educator with Izel Native Plants. She’s worked in the nursery trade since 2006, developing expertise in grasses and sedges and expanding her knowledge into native perennials. Shannon has written for national publications and traveled the country speaking to professional organizations, community groups, and at public gardens. She currently serves on the North Carolina Plant Conservation Program Scientific Committee, holds advisory roles with several organizations, and served on the Board of the Perennial Plant Association. Shannon lives in Durham, North Carolina and loves exploring gardens and native flora everywhere she goes.
More info about Izel Native Plants here
Native Perennials for the Shady Side
Shady spaces in the landscape often get the mulch treatment or are planted with problematic spreaders like liriope or English ivy. Fortunately, there are a variety of native, herbaceous perennials that offer a powerful combination of visual appeal and ecological function. While few plants grow in the dense shade underneath evergreens, shade-tolerant species have developed strategies that allow them to do well in less than full-sun conditions. This session addresses the nature of shade and some of the physiological adaptations that shade-tolerant plants employ. Focusing on regionally native species and their cultivars, we’ll take a close look at a selection of perennials, grasses, and sedges to understand why they’re particularly helpful. We’ll also touch on soft landings, a strategy that uses diverse native plantings to add ecological function and support for wildlife underneath trees.