By Gina Malone
Last spring, Nina Veteto—artist, plant lover and environmental educator—found herself talking about wildflowers with a group of women who, although they visited the Smokies each year for the wildflowers, were unable to identify many of the plants they saw. “I was a little surprised that these enthusiastic, annual visitors didn’t already know the names of the flowers,” Veteto says, “but I told them the names and we went on about our way.” A seed had been planted in her mind, however. Guides were sometimes cumbersome and digital apps were often inaccurate. “That got me thinking about creating something wearable and easy to carry,” she says. “My goal is to help people make a deeper connection to the natural world, and I believe that knowing the names of the flowers is the place to start.”
In 2021, Veteto started Blue Ridge Botanic after leaving her job teaching. “It was a way for me to explore my love of art and plants,” she says. She started an Instagram and began sharing a series she calls “Secret Stories of the Wildflowers.” When the posts became popular and several went viral, she was invited to lead guided hikes in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After her encounter with the wildflower lovers who could not name the plants, Veteto took action.
“I set about drawing all the flowers and creating the guide and then introduced it to my online community this past fall,” she says. “I sold out of the original 1,500 and have since ordered more.” Her “guide” is a colorful bandana with her own drawings of flowers: the Field Guide Bandana to Appalachian Wildflowers. “It was hard to narrow down the choices, but I ultimately decided on 40 wildflowers,” she says. “Most are old familiars, but there are a few rare ones mixed in as well.”
Veteto, who grew up on the coast, developed a fascination with plants and flowers as a young child. Her favorite book was Wildflowers of the Smokies. “I carried it around with me wherever I went,” she says. “I recently got to meet one of the authors at the Wildflower Pilgrimage. I had my old 1970s copy with me and he signed it for me. I was so excited, and a little starstruck. It’s also funny to think that now I’ve created a wildflower guide of my own—that was literally inspired in the Smokies. It’s kind of a full-circle moment.”
Hikes affording spectacular wildflower experiences abound in this region. “I think the most important thing is to slow down and try to get curious about the things you see on your hikes,” Veteto says. “It’s so easy to ‘go on a hike’ and blow past all the special plants and flowers growing trailside.”
She recommends in-and-out hikes. “If you pay attention, you’ll see things on the hike out that you didn’t see on the way in. It’s like a totally different hike—which is just amazing.”
The bandanas are available in three colors—sky blue, spruce green and classic navy—at Asheville Botanical Garden, Blue Ridge Hiking Company, Provisions, Biltmore, Thyme in the Garden, Newfound Artisan and on BlueRidgeBotanic.com. “My favorite part is gift wrapping each order,” Veteto says. “I like to include extras like stickers or wildflower poems. I think it’s one of the best parts of being a small business owner—to surprise and delight customers.”
Learn more at BlueRidgeBotanic.com. A portion of bandana sales is donated to help support Conserving Carolina and United Plant Savers, organizations that engage in wildflower restoration efforts.
