Tony Avent is an American Horticulturist and Plantsman. He and partner, Anita Avent, own Plant Delights Nursery and established Juniper Level Botanic Garden in Raleigh, North Carolina. In addition, he is a well-known plant explorer, author and public speaker.
Tony grew up with a passion for plants. Instead of playing games, he wandered the woods and fields near his home studying wildflowers. At eight years old, his parents built a greenhouse for him. There he grew and propagated plants and sold them as a hobby.
Tony Avent attended North Carolina State University and graduated in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Horticultural Science. He studied under the well renowned horticulturist J.C. Raulston. J. C. Raulston, instilled in him the quest for the newest and best garden plants from around the world.
After college, he married Michelle Morgan Avent (1957-2012) and worked for the North Carolina State Fairgrounds in Raleigh as its Landscape Director. He worked there for 16 years from 1978 to 1994. In addition he worked as a volunteer curator of the Shade Garden at the J.C. Raulston Arboretum from 1985 to 1994. He also worked as a weekly garden columnist for Raleigh's News and Observer newspaper from 1987 to 1998. He established Plant Delights Nursery and Juniper Level Botanic Gardens in 1988 and by 1994 the business had expanded enough for him to resign his state job and become a full-time nurseryman.
In addition to running the nursery, Tony Avent is a plant breeder who is best known for his Hosta breeding program, but is actively breeding other genera as well. In addition, Tony Avent travels the world on plant hunting expeditions to search for new, rare, and unusual plants. He is also an avid plant collector with a large collection of rare variegated Agave. He is a prolific writer as well, having authored a book (So You Want to Start a Nursery - 2003, Timber Press) and dozens of newspaper articles, magazine articles, and web articles. He is currently a contributing editor to Horticulture Magazine and Walter Magazine. In addition, every year he travels the country giving dozens of lectures on gardening topics. He also teaches several day-long classes per year at Plant Delights Nursery on subjects such as plant propagation and soils.
Avent is married to childhood friend and Raleigh native Anita Avent, a B.S. and MBA graduate of Meredith College. Anita Avent is a Mindfulness and Nonduality philosopher and teacher as well as a Board Certified Holistic Health Practitioner. She established the Center for Mindfulness and Nonduality at Juniper Level Botanic Gardens in 2013. She is a former health insurance administrator, regulator, and director with Cigna, the State of North Carolina and a Preceptor and Faculty Associate at the Department of Health Policy and Administration at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was also an independent business strategist and health care industry consultant appointed by Governor James B. Hunt, Jr. in 1996 to serve as a Rules Review Commissioner on the State of North Carolina Rules Review Commission.
Tony Avent has breeding and evaluation programs for dozens of genera. He started breeding Hosta in 1984 and has been expanding his palette ever since. His plant breeding efforts focus on the following plant groups.
Aroids
Crinum
Cyclamen
Epimedium
Helleborus
Hosta
Polygonatum
Trillium
Zephyranthes
Inspired by the late J.C. Raulston, Tony Avent has made over 66 plant expeditions since 1993 and has traveled extensively around the world in search of new, rare and unusual plants.
1994 - Mexico
1996 - China (Yunnan)
1997 - Korea
1998 - Georgia (and again in 2000)
1998 - Texas (and again in 2000, 2003, 2004)
1998 - North Carolina (2x in 1998, 8x in 1999, 2000, 2001, 5x in 2002, 2x in 2003, 2x in 2004, 2006)
1999 - Louisiana (and again in 2003, 2004)
1999 - Michigan
1999 - Oklahoma
2000 - Bermuda
2000 - Virginia (and again in 2001)
2001 - Florida (and again in 2003, 2007, 2010)
2002 - Argentina
2002 - Hawaii
2002 - Idaho
2002 - South Carolina (and again in 2005, 2007, 2010)
2003 - Arizona (and again in 2004,2005, 2008)
2004 - Netherlands/Belgium
2004 - Massachusetts
2004 - Southern California
2005 - South Africa
2005 - Thailand and North Vietnam
2006 - Alabama
2006 - South Dakota
2008 - Taiwan
2010 - Crete
2012 - The Balkans
Awards and Honors
American Horticultural Society Outstanding Commercial Award - Individual - 2002
D.H. Copeland /North Carolina Association of Nurserymen Award - 2002
Robert Balentine Horticulture Award/ Southeastern Flower Show - 2001
Marcel Le Piniec Award - North American Rock Garden Society - 1999
Nursery Innovator of the Month Award - GM Pro Magazine - 1998
Outstanding Alumni Award/ NCSU Dept. of Horticultural Science - 1997
NC Nurserymen Award for Landscape/Beautification of NC State Fairgrounds - 1990
Outstanding Journalism Award - Men's Garden Club of America - 1986, 1987, 1988
Outstanding Senior, NCSU Dept. of Horticulture - 1978
Traditional Media
"Baptisia"- The Plantsman Magazine, UK - Fall 2006
"Baptisia, the Redneck Lupines" - Horticulture Magazine - June 2002
"Bizarre Plants Only a Mother Could Love" - American Nurseryman Magazine Jan 1997
"Confessions of a Crazed Hosta Hybridizer" - American Hosta Society Journal 1989
"Crape Murder, the Unkind Cut" - News and Observer - Spring 2008
"Favorite New and Underused Perennials" - NM PRO Magazine Spring 2000
"Fragrant Hostas for the Southeast" - Carolina Gardner Magazine - March 1999
"Hardy Cacti for the Southeast" - Carolina Gardener Magazine - Fall 1994
"Hardy Gesneriads - Exploring a Test Market" - Gesneriad Society Journal - April 2006
"Hosta Breeders and Other Strangers" - American Hosta Society Journal 1992
"Hostas for the Rock Garden" - The Trillium Newsletter Fall 1992
"Hostas for Warm Climates" - Betrock Publications 1998
"Leaves that Light up the Garden" - Fine Gardening Magazine Fall 1992
"Plant Delights Nursery Profile" - American Hosta Society Journal 1994
"Blue Hostas" - Fine Gardening November 1999
"Plant Exploration in China" - The Trillium Newsletter Spring 1997
"Plant Exploration in Korea" - American Hosta Society Journal Spring 1998
"Plant Exploration in Mexico" - The Trillium Newsletter Spring 1995
"Propagating and Selling Hosta" - NM PRO Magazine 1993
"Roots, The Good, Bad, and the Ugly" - American Hosta Society Journal 1989
"Running Hot and Cold/Plant Hardiness" - American Hosta Society Journal 1994
"Selling and Sailing" - Nursery Manager Pro Magazine February 2000
"Soil Preparation Part I" - American Hosta Society Journal Spring 1993
"Soil Preparation Part II" - American Hosta Society Journal Fall 1993
"Strange but True" - American Nurseryman Magazine May 1, 1997
"The Curse of the Green Meatball" - Horticulture Magazine March/April 2004
"The Trademark Myth" - NM Pro Magazine November 1999
"The Twilight Zones" - Exploring the Mysteries of Plant Hardiness - Carolina Gardener Magazine Nov 2002
"Trillium Tracking" - The Trillium Newsletter Summer 1998
"Who Needs Privacy" - Fine Gardening Magazine Fall 1991
Books/Chapters Written by Tony Avent:
Bizarre Botanicals (Foreword) by Larry Mellichamp, 2010
My Favorite Plant (one chapter) compiled by Jamaica Kincaid 1998
So You Want to Start a Nursery - Timber Press (July 2003)
Web Articles Written or Co-written by Tony Avent
Arisaema, Arisaema, Arisaema (Cobra Lily, Jack in the Pulpit)
Bananas - Apeeling Plants for the Garden (Winter Hardy Ornamentals)
Buddleia - The Butterfly Bush
Canna, Canna, Canna
Cold Hardy Palms for Temperate Gardens
Cold Hardy Palm Survival Report
Colocasias - Cool Elephant Ears for the Garden
Crape Murder - The Unkind Cut
Curcuma Hidden Cone Gingers
Cyclamen for the Garden
Cypripedium Orchids - Does the Lady Slipper Fit Your Garden?
Dear Deer, We're Closed for Dinner
Echinacea Explosion - The Coneflower Chronicles
Fuel Sources for your Hummer (Hummingbird Plants for Your Garden)
Hardy Terrestrial Orchids
Hedychium - Ginger Lilies for the Garden
Hellebores, Hellebores, Hellebores
Hosta, Hosta, Hosta
Hostas for Warm Climates
Paul Aden Hosta Introductions/Breeding
Plant Hardiness and Mapping Out a Strategy
Pulmonaria, Pulmonaria, Pulmonaria - Lungworts for the Garden
Salvia, Perennial Sages for the Garden
Ringing the Coral Bells - The Heuchera and xHeucherella Story
Sarracenia - The North American Pitcher Plant
Tiarella - A Crown in the Garden
Trademarks in Horticulture - Their Misuse and Abuse (Name that Plant)
Tricyrtis Toad Lilies
Organizations and committees
Avent is an active member of many gardening and plant organizations and serves on several committees including:
Advisory Committee - USDA-ARS Hardiness Zone Map Revision
Alpine Garden Society
American Fern Society
American Public Gardens Association
Hardy Plant Society
International Bulb Society
Pacific Bulb Society
St. Louis Summit Workshop on Linking Ecology and Horticulture to Prevent Plant Invasions
Woody Plant Advisory Committee - JC Raulston Arboretum
Programs / Articles About Tony Avent or Plant Delights Nursery
Newspapers
Atlanta Journal Constitution - June 6, 2002 (garden/plant profile)
Chesterton Tribune, IND - November 14, 2002
Chicago Tribune - Ken Druse, Sept 14,2003 - Gardener's fantasy and a reality check
The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OH - January 19, 2006 (nursery profile)
Fairfield County Times, CT - January 1998 (catalog profile)
Garner Times, April 10, 1996 (nursery profile)
Greensboro NC News and Record - March 1993
Greenville Examiner - Oct 23, 2010 - NC plant hunter Tony Avent searches the world for new specimens
High Point Enterprise - May 5, 1999 (nursery/garden profile)
Houston Chronicle, GA - January 9, 2010 (nursery profile) - N.C. nursery's plant catalog always fun
The Item, Sumter SC - March 13, 2004 (plant/nursery profile)
The Louisville Courier-Journal - April 1996 (nursery profile)
Maine Sunday Telegram - June 17, 2001(nursery/plant profile)
The New York Newsday - February 1995 (plant profiles)
The New York Times - February 2, 1997 (nursery/plant profile)
The New York Times - February 20, 1997
The New York Times - February 20, 2003 (nursery/book profile)
The New York Times - September 12, 2003
The New York Times - April 2006 (nursery profile)
The New York Times - April 28, 2010
The New York Times - April 29, 2010
The News and Observer October 19, 2002 (plant profiles)
The News and Observer April 6, 2003 (personal profile)
The News and Observer - December 26, 2006 (nursery)
Philadelphia Inquirer - January 22, 1999 (nursery/plant profile)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - February 10, 2001 (nursery/plant profile)
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle - July 27, 2002 (nursery profile)
West Virginia Gazette-Mail - February 1999 (plant profiles)
Magazines
The American Gardener Magazine - Fall 1996 (personal profile)
The American Gardener magazine - July/August 2006 (profile)
Arbor Friends - Friends of US National Arboretum Newsletter - Winter 2008 (profile)
Carolina Gardener Magazine - January 1997
Columbus OH Garden Railway Society Magazine - October 1995 (plant profile)
Early American Homes and Gardens - Spring 1999 (personal profile)
Entrepreneur Magazine - October 1996 (nursery profile)
Fine Gardening Magazine - February 2003 (plant profiles)
Floridata On-Line Magazine - March 2004 (personal profile)
Garden and Gun Magazine - June 2008 (personal profile)
Garden Center Magazine - November 2008 (nursery profile)
Greenhouse Manager PRO Magazine - "Innovator of the Month" - March 1998 (nursery profile)
Greenhouse Manager PRO Magazine - "Catalog and Web Sales" - May 2000 (nursery profile)
Grower Talks Magazine - Summer 1999
Haven Magazine, Denmark - March 2005
Horticulture Magazine - March 1997 (personal profile)
House Beautiful magazine - November 1995 (nursery profile)
International Aroid Society Newsletter - July 2002 (garden profile)
Mirabella Magazine - April 1995
NCSU Alumni Magazine - May 1994 (personal profile)
NCSU Alumni Magazine - June 2006 (profile)
NC Wildflower Preservation Society - Summer 1998
North Carolina Magazine - June 1998 (nursery profile)
North Fork Country, NY Journal - November 2002
Nursery Manager PRO Magazine - November 1993
Ornamental Outlook Magazine - December 1999 (nursery profile)
Philadelphia Hort Society Green Scene Magazine - April 1996
Plants Magazine, England - September 1999 (plant profiles)
Southern Living Magazine - January 1994 (nursery profile)
Southern Living magazine - August 2006 (garden)
Books
Beautiful Madness by James Dodson, 2006
Bizarre Botanicals by Larry Mellichamp and Paula Gross, 2010
The Collectors Garden Book by Ken Druse 1996
The Plant Hunters Garden by Bobby Ward, Fall 2004
TV Shows
Almanac Gardener with Mike Gray (NC Public Television) - numerous since 1994
Coastal Gardener with Dave Egbert (Network) - 2008
Cultivating Life with Sean Conway, Aspidistra, Ferns (PBS) - 2006
Cultivating Life with Sean Conway (PBS) - 2008
Gardener's Diary with Erica Glasener (HGTV) - winter 2002/3
Gardener's Journal with Kathy Renwald (HGTV) - 2002
In The Garden with Bryce Lane (NC Public Television) - 2007
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, Nursery Segment (HGTV) - February 2004
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, Propagation Segment (HGTV) - February 2004
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, Hardy Arailaceae Segment (HGTV) - February 2004
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, Extreme Propagation (NBC) - February 2007
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, New Plants (NBC) - March 2008
Martha Stewart Living with Martha Stewart, New Plants (NBC) - January 26, 2011
Rebecca's Garden with Rebecca Kolls (Hearst Broadcasting) - 1997
The Winter Garden Series (HGTV) - 1999
The Secret Garden Series (HGTV) - Spring 2001
