News & Updates
SHR Founders Win Garden Club of America National Medal
The Garden Club of America has awarded Southern Highlands Reserve founders Betty and Robert Balentine its highest honor for their work to preserve the unique...
Letter from the Executive Director
Dear Friends, January always brings a flurry of promise, of hope, and often a pressure to reform or improve upon our performance in the previous year. But today as I...
Letter from the Executive Director
Dear Friends, I began writing this letter to you on the autumn equinox, Sunday, September 22, looking forward to a new season at Southern Highlands Reserve. Little did...
Champion of Conservation
Every year since 2021, Garden & Gun Magazine honors 10 Champions of Conservation. These are “scientists, advocates, and groundbreakers” doing their part to save the...
Storm Stories from SHR
Storm water mitigation in action last winter Gardener Kody Stanley stayed on site at Southern Highlands Reserve with his young family while Hurricane Helene...
The Aftermath of Hurricane Helene
A Report from Southern Highlands Reserve Hurricane Helene brought unprecedented devastation to the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains, and the aftermath of this natural...
Gardener’s Corner — Fall 2024
With Kelly Holdbrooks Fall carries similar energy felt in spring, creating a sense of urgency. As conditions change in the environment, we humans shift just like the...
Gardener’s Corner — Summer 2024
With Director of Horticulture Eric Kimbrel Just as gardening is an action, gardens are dynamic. Planting designs evolve over time. This spring and early summer, we...
Notes from the Field: Red Spruce
The air is misty and quiet, with only birdsong and sunlight filtering through the canopy. The ground is spongy with a thick mat of spruce needles falling year after...