A new state-of-the-art greenhouse on Toxaway Mountain in Transylvania County will carry a namefabled in the world of horticulture. Thanks to a $500,000 grant from the Gerard B. Lambert Foundation, the greenhouse will be named in honor of the late Rachel “Bunny” Mellon.
According to a news release, Southern Highlands Reserve, a nonprofit native plant garden and leader in red spruce restoration, broke ground on the new facility last week and announced the new partner supporting conservation efforts for the high elevation spruce-fir forests of the Southern Appalachian Mountains.
Known for her artistry in the world of horticulture, Mellon’s design techniques celebrate quiet spaces and honor the mystery of nature by finding perfection in its wild ways, the release said. With an eye for simplicity and elegance, Mellon created gardens — including the White House Rose Garden, at the request of Jacqueline Kennedy — to keep the beauty and natural growth of plants center stage, without hint of the helping human hand.
She established the Gerard B. Lambert Foundation in 1976 to honor her father, whose business acumen contributed to the success of the Gillette Safety Razor Company as well as Listerine mouthwash, which Lambert’s father invented in 1879.
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