North Carolina Aboretum

The North Carolina Aboretum is a 434-acre natural treasure with 65 acres of cultivated gardens and 10 miles of hiking and biking trails.  There's a lot to do here, including indoor and outdoor exhibits that cultivate connections between people and plants.  It's free to visit, but there is an $8 parking charge.  If you go on the first Tuesday of  the month, the parking fee is waived (good deal!).  It was positively beautiful; I enjoyed the hiking trails and all the unique plants and gardens.

This is the elaborate Visitors' Center

It is beautiful inside the Visitors' Center!

It was a chilly morning -- there was still some frost on the ground

Amazing grounds!

There are many bird feeders all over the place. 
This one had 2 sweet little birds on it.

This is a Paperbark Maple
(it looks similar to a Gumbo Limbo tree)

NOT A BAD VIEW FROM THIS RESTING SPOT!

Plenty of trails to hike

I LOVE these plants!!
They are called Hooded Pitcher Plants

They look like they are smiling!

Lamb's Ear

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden has one of the finest, most unique bonsai collections in the United States.  There was such a beautiful variety! 

Bonsai first appeared in China over a thousand years ago as an art of growing dwarfed, ornamentally shaped trees or shrubs in small shallow containers.  They were introduced to Japan and became a symbol of prestige displayed indoors on special occasions.  Since the late 20th Century, bonsai has evolved to reflect the variety of countries, cultures and conditions in which it is now practiced.  Oh, blah, blah, blah, bottom line is bonsai are teeny weenie little plants!!

This one looks dead!

These were inside the greenhouse

There are a lot of art pieces all over the Aboretum