Several years ago, the Garden’s executive director Frank Robinson suggested we consider allowing leashed pets into the Garden on special Flowers After 5 evenings. We teamed up with the SPCA and “dog nights at the Garden” have proven to be extremely popular.

Yesterday in a staff meeting, the question was asked “do we ever have any problems with the dogs?” The answer was no—the pet owners are so appreciative of the opportunity to walk their dogs here that they take great pains to make sure their pets are well-behaved and don’t leave behind any “gifts.”

Our next “dog night” (also know as Fidos After 5) is tomorrow—Thursday, August 9 from 5 - 9 p.m. Since it’s going to be so hot, we’re going to have sprinklers for the dogs to run through and plenty of dishes of water strategically located around the Garden.

Pet owners are always interested in knowing the plants that can be harmful to their pets, so here’s a quick list:

Autumn crocus
Azalea
Bulbs of hyacinth and narcissus family
Calla lily
Cardinal flower
Castor bean
Hydrangea
Laurel
Lily-of-the-valley
Mushrooms
Oleander
Rhododendron
Rhubarb
Tobacco
Wisteria
Yew

Dangers also lurk inside the home, including some house plants and decoratives. A sampling of potential hazards includes:

Amaryllis
Bird-of-paradise
Caladium
Cactus
Dieffenbachia
Easter lily
Mistletoe
Philodendron
Schefflera

It seems as if many garden lovers are also pet lovers. Is this the case with you as well?

Beth Monroe is public relations director at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.

Re: Comment from Donna Finnegan

Donna, thank you so much for your comment! We’re so glad your family had a good time on July 12. Donna, thanks to the feedback we’ve received, we have increased the number of tables we are setting up for these events. We are also trying to communicate to people that they can purchase items in the Cafe (wraps, salads, etc.) to eat in the Garden on these evenings. And what a fun idea about treats for the dogs! We’ll have to consider that in our planning for next year. We hope you’ll join us again on September 13!

My husband and I and our two dogs very much enjoyed the gardens on July 12th.  Everyone’s dog was well behaved and we enjoyed strolling about with our wine tastings. 
You missed an opportunity to sell us some food to go with it.  Since we cannot go inside to dine, we would have appreciated more tables for sitting out with the pooches and boxed meals (a wrap and a salad, chips) for purchase.  Oh and a treat or boxed bowl for the dogs!

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