Ron Smith 1, Senior Content Director

April 2, 2013

21 Slides

The Dallas Arboretum, featuring  “Dallas Blooms” just before Easter, was a haven of serenity and color as my wife and I strolled through the meandering paths decorated with multi-colored tulips in full bloom, white and purple wisteria cascading over arbors. Pansies, azaleas, coreopsis, dianthus and way more annual and perennial flowering plants than I can name, greeted us around every turn.  A few rose buds were just beginning to open. Whitish-pink cherry blossoms, a few dogwoods and redbuds still outshone the greening hardwoods in the park. Grassed areas were as emerald –hued as Augusta National at Masters time.

It was hard to imagine that just a few streets over Dallas proper was bustling with last minute shoppers on the Saturday before Easter Sunday. The arboretum is located at 8525 Garland Road, Dallas, and offers a visual feast year-round, but it’s at its Sunday best in springtime.

About the Author(s)

Ron Smith 1

Senior Content Director, Farm Press/Farm Progress

Ron Smith has spent more than 40 years covering Sunbelt agriculture. Ron began his career in agricultural journalism as an Experiment Station and Extension editor at Clemson University, where he earned a Masters Degree in English in 1975. He served as associate editor for Southeast Farm Press from 1978 through 1989. In 1990, Smith helped launch Southern Turf Management Magazine and served as editor. He also helped launch two other regional Turf and Landscape publications and launched and edited Florida Grove and Vegetable Management for the Farm Press Group. Within two years of launch, the turf magazines were well-respected, award-winning publications. Ron has received numerous awards for writing and photography in both agriculture and landscape journalism. He is past president of The Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association and was chosen as the first media representative to the University of Georgia College of Agriculture Advisory Board. He was named Communicator of the Year for the Metropolitan Atlanta Agricultural Communicators Association. More recently, he was awarded the Norman Borlaug Lifetime Achievement Award by the Texas Plant Protection Association. Smith also worked in public relations, specializing in media relations for agricultural companies. Ron lives with his wife Pat in Johnson City, Tenn. They have two grown children, Stacey and Nick, and three grandsons, Aaron, Hunter and Walker.

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