Arboretum Announces ‘Powerhouse Plants' 2010 Summer Exhibition   

Chanhassen, MN (Feb 24, 2010) - This year's Minnesota Landscape Arboretum summer exhibition puts the spotlight on Powerhouse Plants - energy to fuel your body, life and imagination.

Opening June 5, Powerhouse Plants takes on a whimsical air with its "Not Your Garden-Variety Superheroes" imagery.   Presenting sponsor of the exhibition is Xcel Energy.

"Powerhouse Plants will expand awareness of how plants bring energy to every aspect of our day-to-day living," said Mary Meyer, Interim Arboretum Director. "Visitors will be inspired to appreciate plants as locally grown foods, bio-energy crops and fuel for the imagination."

Look for the superheroes in the gardens as Powerhouse Plants showcases vegetable plots and locally grown produce, bio-energy crops and energy vignettes, art in the gardens and more. Follow the superhero adventures on the website at www.arboretum.umn.edu.  Here are details on the exhibition which continues through Oct. 10.     

INCREDIBLE EDIBLES

Discover a delicious bounty of ideas on how to eat fresh and grow your own. The Incredible Edibles exhibit will tap the talents and ingenuity of top Twin Cities chefs, Arboretum staff and do-it-yourself backyard gardeners.  In a Chef's Row garden, 10 local chefs will share their favorite crops and recipes for enjoying summer's rich bounty.  A series of backyard-scale vegetable gardens will show designs easily replicated at home, for an abundant harvest in a small space. Other plantings will show designs easily replicated at home, for an abundant harvest in a small space.  Other plantings will show varieties that let you put a rainbow on your plate, for great eating and good health. Gardening experts will weigh in with tips and advice for growing your own garden and increasing yield, while also offering prototypes on how to intermingle veggies with flowers and shrubs.

AMAZING ART

Visitors can feast their eyes on five juried artworks offering unique perspectives on the link between people and plants.  Here are details on these thought-provoking, creative and whimsical designs and their creators.

Field to Table by Moira Bateman of Minneapolis.   A celebration of the "growing" developments surrounding the local harvest in our community - i.e., organic and sustainable farming methods, farmers' markets, Community Supported Agriculture programs and more.  Collaborator is Hog's Back Farm.                

Solar Cultivator by Barr Engineering Landscape Ecology Team of Minneapolis.  This design - an interactive seasonal sundial - demonstrates the remarkable relationship between sun angle, seasonal change and human ingenuity.

Magical Mystery Treasure Hunt by Georgia Kandiko of Excelsior.  Embark on a mystery tour inspired by the Powerhouse Plants theme:  Someone is sabotaging gardens at the Arboretum.  A gardening crew is investigating.  Discover clues at each crime scene. 

Waves of (Multifunctional) Grain by Arlene Birt and Adam Jonas of Minneapolis.  Visitors will wander through a "meadow" of wheat and discover striking sculptural benches created from straw, a wheat waste material!  Informational graphics depict the cycle of wheat and the versatility of this plant.

 Homegrown by Nathan Anderson, Avocado Green, Minneapolis.  A simple building façade transforms into a "vertical garden" - a cascade of color, smell and texture, presenting the familiar in a brand-new light and inspiring a fresh look at the power of plants. 

BIO-ENERGIZED!

Experience energy from the ground up in this lively, fun series of vignettes and demonstration plantings of energy crops. Can we harvest the power of green and growing renewable energy?  See how people are tackling the puzzle of possibilities.

Powerhouse Plants gears up immediately following the Big Build by Patrick Dougherty artist residency May 3-22, when the acclaimed environmental artist will create a large-scale outdoor sculpture from willow branches - demonstrating another facet of "powerhouse plants."  The sculpture will remain throughout the summer and up to an entire year. 

Visit  Powerhouse Plants at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum this summer and discover energy to fuel your body, life and imagination! 

Supporting sponsors for Powerhouse Plants are: American Lung Association of Minnesota, Minnesota Corn Growers Association and Minnesota Soybean Growers Association.

The End

The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, the largest public garden in the Upper Midwest and a premier northern arboretum, is part of the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Minnesota and developed as a community and national resource for horticultural and environmental information, research, and public education. It is open year-round (except for Thanksgiving and Christmas) and is located 9 miles west of I-494 on Highway 5 in Chanhassen.

 The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity employer and educator.