Zooscaping

Most people who visit the zoo come to see the animals. But the next time you are at the zoo, take a minute to look at the plants. Yes, the plants. At many zoos, the plants are a big part of the zoo. For example, at the North Carolina Zoo, there are 3,345 plant species on display – 10 times more species than there are of the animals. There are 38,385 actual plants – roughly 11 plants for every species. Propagating all those plants and keeping them happy and healthy is the job of Curator of Horticulture Virginia (Gin) Wall and her staff.

Curator of Horticulture Gin Wall shows us around one of the zoo's greenhouses.

Why is the zoo spending so much time on plants? Because, just like there are endangered animals, there are endangered plants too, like the Helianthus Schweinitzii, a smallish plant that looks like a sunflower. It's endangered because humans are destroying its habitat.

At the zoo, plants grow along pathways, in raised beds and in special planting areas. They are also a big part of the spaces where animals live. By looking at the new elephant's habitat, you can see how the whole process works. There are about seven acres of land inside the elephant's enclosure. The zoo would like to have the area look like African grasslands. The problem is, African grasses spread really fast. They are too invasive to plant in the United States. So the zoo needs to pick plants that look like the plants in Africa, and these also need to be plants that the elephants will like.

Photo Courtesy North Carolina Zoo Plants adorning one of the many pathways at the zoo

On the audience side, the zoo wants to have an area that looks like a Miambo woodland, creating a woodland edge between the forest and the grasslands. To create this whole woodland/grassland environment, the people working in the horticulture area at the zoo will pick plants that look right, taste right, match the zoo's climate, and won't be toxic to animals or people. Once the plants are chosen, then it's time to acquire the plants, propagate them in nurseries, plant them in the exhibit and give them time to settle in. Sometimes it doesn't work out as planned. Take for example the grizzly bear exhibit. The zoo spent a lot of time and money acquiring, propagating and establishing the plants. Then the bears arrived and, in two weeks, they had destroyed everything. When something like that happens, everyone goes back to the drawing board and tries again.