BOBBY WARD A scholar of plants and plantspeople

BOBBY WARD IS ONE of the most respected names in the world of horticulture.

- SCOTT BEUERLEIN

Bobby Ward pauses by a Magnolia platypetala at the J.C. Raulston Arboretumfounded by and named for one of the avid plantspeople that Ward has profiled in his writings on the human connection with plants and gardens.

A retired environmental scientist with a PhD in botany from North Carolina State University and a past president of the North American Rock Garden Society, he has authored four must-read books relating to our shared fascination with plants.

SCOTT BEUERLEIN: There are so many interesting things we will talk about, but first can you tell me a little about your background? What led to your love of plants and your career?

BOBBY WARD: I grew up on a 120-acre farm in the Coastal Plain of eastern North Carolina. The soil was sandy (one of the ancient beaches back in geological times) and we grew cotton, peanuts, corn, wheat and soybeans. My mother had a flower garden, which I would help her with each year—simple plantings of gladiolus, canna, phlox, snapdragons, daffodils and zinnias. When I was in elementary school, I sold garden seeds from a seed company, riding my bike, selling to neighbors at something like 20 cents a pack and I got a nickel for my efforts.

When I went to undergraduate at East Carolina College, I didn't know what I would major in. I thought perhaps it would be zoology, because I was also interested in the snakes, frogs and tadpoles and turtles from the fishpond on the farm. But the first semester in college, I took a botany course from a wonderful, "old-school" teacher and I became mesmerized by the material she was presenting. I soon was hired as her laboratory assistant, helping other students in plant identification, looking at plant tissues through a microscope and setting up equipment for each class. After that experience, I became hooked on the idea of living and working in the world of botany and gardening.