illustrations by Laura Frankstone

One of the largest and most diverse collections of plants that thrive in the Southeast can be found at Raleigh’s J.C. Raulston Arboretum. This meandering, 10-acre research garden, planted with more than 5,000 different kinds of annuals, trees, shrubs, vines, bulbs, ground covers and perennials, is part of N.C. State’s Department of Horticultural Science.

It’s a living classroom, but it is also an oasis, one you have to look to find. Tucked right below Hillsborough Street and just outside the Beltline between warehouses and industrial buildings, the Arboretum is alive with color at this time of year.

Artist Laura Frankstone brought her sketchpad to capture its fleeting beauty for Walter’s summer issue. Frankstone, who lives in Chapel Hill, is a proud member of the selective Urban Sketchers collective, a group that draws scenes on location in cities around the globe. Here are the vignettes that caught her eye.