David_Weatherly's Blog

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I’m sad to realize that the closest most people get to nature these days is by watching it on TV. In this busy high tech world, how many of us take the time to, as they say, “smell the roses?” Think about it; when was the last time you stopped and took a close look at the beauty around you? I mean real close.

Springtime here in the Piedmont is chocked full of color. Area yards display well manicured green lawns and a brilliant array of blooms. While all that might catch our eye, an equally vibrant show can be found beyond all the landscaping. In fact, landscaping and development may be destroying some of nature’s most beautiful offerings.

In the early 1960’s Emily H. Allen noticed something in the woods behind her house. It was a small wild orchid.

The chance encounter with the specimen eventually set her on a mission to collect and preserve rare and not so rare wild flowers. In the years since, she’s filled the woods behind her Winston-Salem home with around five hundred different species. Some are quite delicate and hard to spot like the blooms on wild ginger, below.

Others are quite bold in their display like this Trillium.

Some have comical names like “Dutchman’s Britches.” It’s easy to see where the name came from.

Still others look like they came straight from a Doctor Suess book.

A chorus of birds sing the songs of spring and accompany our walk through her back yard where we glimpse what the woodlands here can offer. Her collection has become quite a treasure. Realizing this a few years ago, Mrs. Allen and her family decided to donate an easement to the Piedmont Land Conservancy. The PLC would establish an endowment to forever maintain her collection and guarantee it’s enjoyment by future generations. It all started when she took the time to stop and take a closer look at the world around her. So when you log off that computer, turn off the TV and head out the door, stop and smell the roses, or at least give them more than a passing glance.

Click here to see the "Roy's Folks" segment about Emily Allen.