Locke Rosser ’s horticultural oddment led him to visit two continents and pick up about hundreds of kind of plant after graduate from North Carolina State University in 2021 .
“ I be intimate I want to move around abroad to observe gardening practice in other countries , ” Rosser says . “ I like to push myself to go to places where English is n’t the primary lyric and the vegetation is unfamiliar to me . ”
The travel was possible because of the friendship he made at NC State .

Exploring IndiaRosser earned a knight bachelor ’s in horticultural scientific discipline with a concentration in landscape design , garden , and urban environments in December 2021 .
“ The landscape painting design program gave me the science to analyze a website and consider of innovative ways to evoke nature while making the most of textures , colors , and plant mixture , ” he says .
He also interned with JC Raulston Arboretum and Juniper Level Botanic Garden while at NC State . After gradation , Rosser became a landscape designer at Kiefer Landscaping and Nursery , but when he was invited by a friend to call his place land of India , he could n’t surpass up the opportunity .

Rosser started his trip in Delhi , India , and then traveled across the country , visit the Jim Corbett National Park in the lower Himalayas . Because of the frequent rain during the monsoon time of year , the landscapes were lush . There , he was able to see Cedrus deodara — a great evergreen plant coniferous tree — in its native home ground , as well as turmeric and ginger .
The same park also wreak him full circle back to college .
“ I was on a motorbike driving past waterfalls in search of our hotel , ” Rosser call back . “ I set out seeing Sauromatum — also called Voodoo lily — and I was losing my mind . Only a few moment afterwards , I saw an Amorphophallus — or a clay bloom — and then I kept seeing more ! Seeing these arum that I first learned about during my internship at Juniper Level Botanic Garden was one of the highlights of my trip . ”

He also traveled to Jodhpur in westerly India , which is in the desert , as well as Sanjay Gandhi National Park N of Mumbai and Guhagar on the westerly sea-coast .
“ I spent my day range around the village exploring the beaches and flora , ” Rosser says . “ My host brought me to many local farms to see how they were prov cessing their mango into various exportable products . ”
Rosser also visited a nearby farming university and insure how they tame crops like yam , cassava , arrowroot , and sweetpotatoes .
intern in South AfricaAfter exploring India , Rosser traveled to South Africa for an internship he find out about from a booster .
“ While work at Juniper Level Botanic Garden , I met a great ally , ” Rosser explain . “ He visited Babylonstoren while interning for GreenPop , a nonprofit in Cape Town that particularise in re-afforestation and urban greening . ”
Babylonstoren is a reality - famous hotel with eating place , a spa , vinery , woodlet , and gardens . Rosser was invited to link their 50 - soul garden crew from October to January , but he extended it for another month .
“ I was really feeling at plate on the farm , ” Rosser says .
During the internship , he rotated through three teams : greenhouse , fruit , and vegetable . The greenhouse team manages indigenous plants on the property , the fruit team manages the orchards , and the vegetable squad provides produce for the farm - to - table restaurant .
“ Besides the bountiful garden truck that hail from the garden , the layout itself and the always flowing water make any nook of the farm feel like paradise , ” Rosser says .
Returning to RaleighAfter enwrap up his internship , Rosser returned to Raleigh because he miss his house , Friend , and the state ’s plants . Now , he ’s working as a landscape designer for Durham - based Garden Environments , a native works - centre design and installation society .
“ Plant identification courses have given me the skill to observe and make sense of the plants I encounter at home and afield . ”Rosser credits his prof at NC State for showing him horticulture careers that relate to his interestingness and for teaching him about how people interact with natural surroundings and how to contrive landscapes to make those connection stronger .
“ Julieta Sherk and Anne Spafford have instruct me so much about landscape design and the plethora of uses for works in every character of space , ” he say . “ Their experience and cognition have allowed me to grasp the design mental process and form my own manner of body of work . ”
He ’s also thankful he was able-bodied to learn how to identify so many different kinds of flora .
“ Plant identification courses have given me the science to discover and make sense of the plant I run into at household and abroad . ”
Source : cals.ncsu.edu