Calendar of Events
Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.
Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.
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March 9, 2023 at 10 a.m. & 12 p.m.
Recommended for Grades K-5
Limited availability
When the class gets lost on the way to the planetarium, Ms. Frizzle saves the day by blasting into outer space for an epic interplanetary field trip! Hop on the Magic School Bus for a musical adaptation of the popular series, and join the gang as they pull together (with lessons in communication, music, science, and social studies) to return safely to planet Earth.
Reservations for individuals (10 people or less): $12 each. To reserve, call the box office at 828-257-4530 ext. 1, email [email protected], or complete the Student Series Reservation Form.
Reservations for groups (11 people or more): $11 each. To reserve, download and complete the Student Series Reservation Form. Please note that all group reservations require a deposit of $1 per ticket. Please contact the box office if you have questions.
View the Study Guide here.
Prepare for your visit, learn about the theatre, and get the most out of each performance with this Guide to the Wortham Center.
Performance Length: 60 minutes
March 9, 2023 at 10 a.m. & 12 p.m.
Recommended for Grades K-5
Limited availability
When the class gets lost on the way to the planetarium, Ms. Frizzle saves the day by blasting into outer space for an epic interplanetary field trip! Hop on the Magic School Bus for a musical adaptation of the popular series, and join the gang as they pull together (with lessons in communication, music, science, and social studies) to return safely to planet Earth.
Reservations for individuals (10 people or less): $12 each. To reserve, call the box office at 828-257-4530 ext. 1, email [email protected], or complete the Student Series Reservation Form.
Reservations for groups (11 people or more): $11 each. To reserve, download and complete the Student Series Reservation Form. Please note that all group reservations require a deposit of $1 per ticket. Please contact the box office if you have questions.
View the Study Guide here.
Prepare for your visit, learn about the theatre, and get the most out of each performance with this Guide to the Wortham Center.
Performance Length: 60 minutes
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The first show of our 2023 Season!
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| The Montford Park Players, North Carolina’s longest running Shakespeare theatre is pleased to announce auditions for the first show of our 51st Season – “Wendy and Peter”, a Peter Pan story, written and directed by Skyler Goff.
Audition Dates: ADULTS ONLY CALLBACKS (ADULTS and CAST YOUTH) ROLES FOR YOUTH (Ages 8-18) ROLES FOR ADULTS (Ages 18+) NOTE: ALL ACTORS should prepare a monologue on any theme, memorized, and no longer then one minute. NOTE: All actors must fill out the following Google Forms, located HERE :
NOTE: This 2023 Season Audition Form will be used for all our productions this year. Note that this season we will NOT be requiring video audition submissions. Note to Selected Actors and parents: Early Rehearsals will prioritize getting all actors below the age of 18 out no later than 8pm without parent/guardian consent. Adults may be asked to arrive later and leave no later than 9:30pm. We hope you’ll join us for the beginning of a spectacular season of theatre! Skyler Goff, Playwright and Director |
Story Parlor of West Asheville will host Black Diamond Enterprise in presenting
Black Poetry Theatre for Black History Month. Feb. 9th @7pm join us for the production of RAISING BLACK where via poetry, skits and monologues we explore the Joy, Pain, Sunshine & Rain of life. Come for the encouragement, a good time & singing!
Call Story Parlor for tickets (828) 367-9377.
Workshop: MOVEMENT FOR ACTORS AND IMPROVISERS
Presented by Ripley Improv w/ instructors Mary Chieffo and Madi Goff
Learn the tools for becoming a dynamic performer and creating ensembles that spin improvised adventures from absolutely nothing in Ripley’s Movement for Actors and Improvisers Workshop.
Starting with the basics of Alexander technique, actors and improvisers will learn to energetically connect to the body and voice. Then, using improvisation along with select lines from Shakespeare’s plays, students will explore tools for stage presence and moment-to-moment work, enhancing their connection to fellow performers and the audience. Finally, in improvised scene work, students will put it all together and discover how connection, emotion, and stage picture creates story.
Bios for Instructors Mary Chieffo and Madi Goff:
Mary Chieffo (Ripley Guest Artist) is a Juilliard alum, studied Shakespeare enthusiast, and Star Trek: Discovery actor.
Madi Goff (Ripley Company Member) is Groundlings Sunday alum and current performer in The Groundlings Crazy Uncle Joe Show.
March 9, 2023
Thursday at 7pm
Did you know that three Buncombe County Libraries have a seed library so you can check out seeds? Each seed library offers vegetable, herb, and flower seeds that you can take home and plant.
If you’re a gardener or want to be a gardener, you can borrow seeds from the library at planting time. At the end of the growing season, save seeds from the plants and return a portion of the seeds to the library to be loaned out the next year. If you don’t have any seeds at the end of the season, that’s OK too. It’s not a requirement, it just helps the seed libraries grow. There is no charge to use the seed library, just visit the Weaverville, Black Mountain or Leicester Libraries and sign up. You’ll find different seeds at each location and you don’t need a library card to use the seed library.
The benefits of a seed lending library are many: it’s a way to have fun, build community with fellow gardeners, and support people who are new to gardening. It also preserves rare, open-pollinated or heirloom seeds and encourages local gardeners to save quality seeds that are suited to our growing area.
For more information on any of our seed libraries, contact the Black Mountain Library, the Leicester Library, or the Weaverville Library.
Gardening in the Mountains presents:
Get Going with Grasses!
Presenter: Nancy Duffy – Owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design
Grasses are great garden plants! Learn about specific grasses, their uses, and planting and maintenance.
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Nancy Duffy is the owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design. Over the last decade she has increasingly focused on natural planting styles and has done many meadow and woodland designs.
Video access:
To access this video on the Buncombe County Master Gardener website, click on the link below:
Get Going with Grasses!
Or go to www.buncombemastergardener.org , click on the ‘Gardening Videos’ tab at the top of the page, and select the video from the list provided.
A South-Eastern Regional Premier and Shakespeare’s most wicked wonder join beloved Main Stage productions, Music on the Rock® and Playhouse Jr. Family Programming to round out an inviting 2023 season.
The Main Stage curtain lifts later this month with Here Comes the Sun Band & Friends – Music of the Beatles and More!, the musically-authentic act that will rock-and-roll fans through a decade of The Beatles music. A crowd favorite, the Music on the Rock® series will also feature Rumours – The Ultimate Fleetwood Mac Tribute Show in March, followed by the bluesy swagger of the Rolling Stones.
The season’s Main Stage series kicks off in April with Ring of Fire, a musical portrait of “The Man in Black,” Johnny Cash. Mother’s Day weekend brings the witty and hilarious Steel Magnolias. Children of all ages and the Vagabonds who never grew up will delight in a newly imagined Cinderella: Enchanted, a fresh take on a magical fairytale, followed by Broadway’s longest-running musical and infamous nine-time Tony Award-winner, A Chorus Line. And this summer, FRP is thrilled to present the South-Eastern Regional Premier of The Girl on the Train, a thrilling mystery based on the bestselling novel by Paula Hawkins and DreamWorks film.
In time for the haunting season, William Shakespeare’s Macbeth tragedy will engage audiences in the terrifyingly prophetic tale of revenge, murder, and madness in a smaller, intimate setting as part of FRP’s new Black Box series.
Slowpoke! The True Story of a Tortoise and Hare, an Appalachian retelling of Aesop’s fable arrives in November, and the season concludes with the popular holiday must-see A Playhouse Christmas–the same festivity and excellence in an all new show!
Catch everything from foot-stomping Music on the Rock® to Broadway energy to intimate Black Box performances with a season subscription, on sale February 28. Single tickets for all remaining shows go on sale on March 8, 2023. For a complete lineup with show descriptions and to purchase tickets, visit www.flatrockplayhouse.org.
This project was supported by the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. www.NCArts.org.
After six years of hard work, the dream of using The Learning Garden as a hub for public gardening education is finally a reality. The Learning Garden, located at the Extension Office, 49 Mt. Carmel Road, is offering the public the opportunity to Visit and Learn in the garden on selected 2nd and 4th Thursdays, February – October. The Thursday in-person programs will consist of five garden-specific series. Visitors can walk around before or after the program and soak in our lovely gardens. Our gardens will open at 9:00 a.m. and all the demonstration programs run between 10-11:30 a.m. To ensure a good learning experience, attendance will be limited and registration will be required.
Dahlia Series
February 23 – Getting Your Dahlias Ready for Planting
August 3 – Disbudding Dahlias for Better Blooms
October 26 – Dividing and Storing Dahlias
Dye Garden Series
May 4 – Planning Your Dye Garden
June 22 – Introduction to Natural Dyeing
July 27 – Fresh Indigo
August 24 – Botanical Printing: Printing with Leaves and Flowers
September 28 – Dyeing with Hopi Black Sunflower
November 9 – The Magic of Indigo
Rose Garden Series
March 9 – Pruning Roses
April 6 – Climbing Roses
April 13 – Rose Pests and Pathogens
May 20 – Growing Beautiful Roses (Saturday Seminar)
Sun & Shade Garden Series
May 11 – Planting a Native Butterfly Host Plant Garden
June 29 – Foodscaping Edible Plants in Flower Beds
August 31 – Dealing with “the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” Plants
Sept 14 – Native Butterfly Life Cycles in the Fall Garden
Vegetable Garden Series
March 23 – Building an ADA Compliant Raised Garden
April 26 – Planting Root Crops: Leeks, Onions, Carrots, Parsnips
May 25 – Planting a Seed Saving Garden
June 8 – Common Vegetable Garden Pests
July 13 – Kid Friendly Gardening
August 10 – Preserving Your Vegetable Harvest
In addition to the Thursday programs listed above, The Learning Garden will present a series of ninety minute (+/-) hands-on seminars covering various gardening topics. These in-person programs will be held at The Learning Garden on selected Saturday mornings, February – September.
Saturday Seminars
February 18 – Tool Selection and Sharpening
March 18 – Pruning Trees and Shrubs
April 22 – Gardening for the Birds
May 20 – Growing Beautiful Roses
June 17 – Pollinator Plants in The Learning Garden
September 16 – Bulbs for All Seasons
Each of the programs in The Learning Garden will be announced individually through this blog and on our website two weeks before each program. Each announcement will include instructions on how to register. Mark your calendar and register to attend as many as you can.
Joining a CSA (or Community Supported Agriculture) program connects you directly with local farms in your community. Members buy a “share” of a farm’s harvest upfront and receive a weekly box of fresh produce or other farm goods. The best time to sign up for a CSA is in February and early March. This year, ASAP is expanding on a national “CSA Week” in late February to promote “CSA Month” from Feb. 15 to March 15. CSA Month will include a social media campaign with CSA education and farmer features; digital tools for finding CSA programs; and an in-person CSA Fair at the YWCA of Asheville on March 10 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
In addition to traditional produce CSAs, the fair will include farms with specialty CSA products, such as meat or flowers. The fair is relaxed setting where attendees chat with farmers about their products, growing practices, payment structure, and more. Attendees can sign up for a CSA during the fair or follow up with farmers later. The fair will also feature local food tastings and activities for kids, as well as produce and food products available for purchase. The event is free and open to the public. The YWCA is located at 185 S. French Broad Ave. in Asheville. Participating farms will be announced in late February.
For farmers, the CSA Fair is a chance to build relationships, even if attendees decide not to purchase a share. “[The customers we meet at the CSA Fair] tend to really want to know the farmer and the food, meaning they are a bit more adventurous when it comes to trying new things,” says K.P. Whaley of Tiny Bridge Farm in Hendersonville. “They are interested in knowing how and what we are growing, and really want us to be successful as a farm operation. We may get some customers from the fair and that’s great. But we also start building relationships with future customers.”
For those unable to attend the fair or who are looking for a CSA outside of Buncombe County, online tools at asapconnections.org/csa help customers compare CSAs throughout the Appalachian Grown region, making it easier to choose a program that fits individual needs. The Appalachian Grown region includes Western North Carolina as well as bordering counties in South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Virginia. Things customers could consider when choosing a CSA include convenient pickup times and locations; the farm’s growing practices; and appropriate share size (i.e., how much food). Some farms offer variations on the traditional CSA model, such as online selection, shorter commitment, or a market share (members pay upfront, but select their own produce at the farmers market each week).
Gardening in the Mountains presents:
Get Going with Grasses!
Presenter: Nancy Duffy – Owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design
Grasses are great garden plants! Learn about specific grasses, their uses, and planting and maintenance.
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Nancy Duffy is the owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design. Over the last decade she has increasingly focused on natural planting styles and has done many meadow and woodland designs.
Video access:
To access this video on the Buncombe County Master Gardener website, click on the link below:
Get Going with Grasses!
Or go to www.buncombemastergardener.org , click on the ‘Gardening Videos’ tab at the top of the page, and select the video from the list provided.
A South-Eastern Regional Premier and Shakespeare’s most wicked wonder join beloved Main Stage productions, Music on the Rock® and Playhouse Jr. Family Programming to round out an inviting 2023 season.
The Main Stage curtain lifts later this month with Here Comes the Sun Band & Friends – Music of the Beatles and More!, the musically-authentic act that will rock-and-roll fans through a decade of The Beatles music. A crowd favorite, the Music on the Rock® series will also feature Rumours – The Ultimate Fleetwood Mac Tribute Show in March, followed by the bluesy swagger of the Rolling Stones.
The season’s Main Stage series kicks off in April with Ring of Fire, a musical portrait of “The Man in Black,” Johnny Cash. Mother’s Day weekend brings the witty and hilarious Steel Magnolias. Children of all ages and the Vagabonds who never grew up will delight in a newly imagined Cinderella: Enchanted, a fresh take on a magical fairytale, followed by Broadway’s longest-running musical and infamous nine-time Tony Award-winner, A Chorus Line. And this summer, FRP is thrilled to present the South-Eastern Regional Premier of The Girl on the Train, a thrilling mystery based on the bestselling novel by Paula Hawkins and DreamWorks film.
In time for the haunting season, William Shakespeare’s Macbeth tragedy will engage audiences in the terrifyingly prophetic tale of revenge, murder, and madness in a smaller, intimate setting as part of FRP’s new Black Box series.
Slowpoke! The True Story of a Tortoise and Hare, an Appalachian retelling of Aesop’s fable arrives in November, and the season concludes with the popular holiday must-see A Playhouse Christmas–the same festivity and excellence in an all new show!
Catch everything from foot-stomping Music on the Rock® to Broadway energy to intimate Black Box performances with a season subscription, on sale February 28. Single tickets for all remaining shows go on sale on March 8, 2023. For a complete lineup with show descriptions and to purchase tickets, visit www.flatrockplayhouse.org.
This project was supported by the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. www.NCArts.org.
IN-PERSON DEMONSTRATION
Presenters: Alan Wagner and Ralph Coffey- Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteers
Pruning in the landscape is different from pruning tomatoes or doing bonsai pruning. However, it still requires the use of time-tested techniques, high quality, sharpened tools, and knowledge of the right time to prune a particular plant. And it requires practice.
Join Alan Wagner and Ralph Coffey as they demonstrate the techniques of pruning shrubs and small trees.
Wear comfortable shoes and dress appropriately as part of this presentation will be held outside, weather permitting.
DYSTOPIA WORKSHOP
Presented by Ripley Improv
Learn how to improvise narrative through the lens of genre! Ripley Improv will pull back the curtain and reveal the tropes, themes, and characters that make an improvised play a YA Dystopia. You’ll monologue, you’ll fight, you’ll fall in love, and, in the end, you’ll know how to construct a complete show. After you attend the workshop, be sure to get a ticket to the show. Ripley will be drawing an attendee’s name from a hat. The winner will be one of the tributes to perform in Saturday’s DYSTOPIA show.
About Ripley Improv:
Ripley is an all-female and nonbinary, genderqueer improv collective that creates stories about people who save the day, save the world, and save each other.
Their mission: To awaken bravery, embrace weird, and cultivate play.
March 11, 2023
Saturday at 11am
Oscar Wilde’s brilliant and wicked comic-masterpiece defines wit and style. The comedy is blissfully silly and outrageously shrewd. Over 120 years after its first performance, The Importance of Being Earnest continues to delight audiences with its playful language, charming character and biting look at society.
The Importance of Being Earnest is the story of two bachelors, John “Jack” Worthing and Algernon “Algy” Moncrieff, who create alter egos named Ernest to escape their tiresome lives. They attempt to win the hearts of two women who, conveniently, claim to only love men called Ernest. The pair struggle to keep up with their own stories and become tangled in a tale of deception, disguise and misadventure. The elaborate plot ridicules Victorian sensibilities with some of the best loved, and indeed bizarre, characters to be found on the modern stage. Presented in a reader’s theater format, actors don’t memorize scripts but read them to the audience while using their voices and upper bodies to convey the roles they are playing.
Reader’s theatre actors don’t memorize scripts but read them to the audience while using their voices and upper bodies to convey the roles they are playing. Actors also use vocal and facial expressions, as well as hand and arm movements.
The cast of The Importance of Being Earnest features Natalie Broadway as Cecily, Rachel Crisp as the Reader, Rowan Duncan as Jack, Bruce Jayne as Lane and Merriman, Alexandra McPherson as Miss Prism, Regina Palian as Gwendolen, Terry Terranova as Dr. Chasuble, Matt Wade as Algernon and Katie Winkler as Lady Bracknell.
The Importance of Being Earnest’s artistic team includes director John Baldwin and stage manager Sara Hassinger.
John Baldwin began directing 10 years ago at Broadway West in Fremont, CA. His directing credits include Run For Your Wife, Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some), Coney Island Christmas, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, A Very Modern Marriage, and has directed for play festivals for The Magnetic Theatre and Calliope Stage in Silva.
The show is rated PG due to mild adult situations. Showtimes are 3 pm and 7:30 pm on Saturday, March 11. Running time is approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes with one 15 minute intermission. Hendersonville Theater has made masks optional for patrons, and no proof of vaccination is required to attend a performance.
Ripley’s premiere genre brings epic dystopian storytelling to life on the stage, honoring popular titles such as Hunger Games, Divergent, and A Handmaid’s Tale. In each performance you can expect to find your protagonist battling the evil powers that be as well as her own hormones. What might otherwise be a silly exploration of teenagers in a bleak setting often turns into a heartfelt commentary on everyone’s unique ability to rise to the challenge and affect change.
About Ripley Improv: Ripley Improv is an all-female and nonbinary / genderqueer improv collective that creates stories about people who save the day, save the world, and save each other. Their mission: To awaken bravery, embrace weird, and cultivate play.
With Mary Chieffo, Madi Goff, Laurie Jones, Kelly Lohman and Jessica Lynn Verdi.
March 11, 2023
Saturday at 7:30pm
Did you know that three Buncombe County Libraries have a seed library so you can check out seeds? Each seed library offers vegetable, herb, and flower seeds that you can take home and plant.
If you’re a gardener or want to be a gardener, you can borrow seeds from the library at planting time. At the end of the growing season, save seeds from the plants and return a portion of the seeds to the library to be loaned out the next year. If you don’t have any seeds at the end of the season, that’s OK too. It’s not a requirement, it just helps the seed libraries grow. There is no charge to use the seed library, just visit the Weaverville, Black Mountain or Leicester Libraries and sign up. You’ll find different seeds at each location and you don’t need a library card to use the seed library.
The benefits of a seed lending library are many: it’s a way to have fun, build community with fellow gardeners, and support people who are new to gardening. It also preserves rare, open-pollinated or heirloom seeds and encourages local gardeners to save quality seeds that are suited to our growing area.
For more information on any of our seed libraries, contact the Black Mountain Library, the Leicester Library, or the Weaverville Library.
Gardening in the Mountains presents:
Get Going with Grasses!
Presenter: Nancy Duffy – Owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design
Grasses are great garden plants! Learn about specific grasses, their uses, and planting and maintenance.
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Nancy Duffy is the owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design. Over the last decade she has increasingly focused on natural planting styles and has done many meadow and woodland designs.
Video access:
To access this video on the Buncombe County Master Gardener website, click on the link below:
Get Going with Grasses!
Or go to www.buncombemastergardener.org , click on the ‘Gardening Videos’ tab at the top of the page, and select the video from the list provided.
Workshop
MUSICAL IMPROV
Presented by Ripley Improv w/ instructor Kelly Lohman
Improvising songs can be as easy as A/B, A/B, C! Learn simple musical formats that will wow an audience and make you feel like a wiz. Practice scene-into-song techniques and ways in which a song can enhance your character’s emotional journey. Taught by Ripley Improv member, Kelly Lohman, a 20-year musical improv veteran and recurring guest artist on the fully-improvised (and musical) television series Show Offs.
Bio for Instructor Kelly Lohman:
Kelly Lohman is a member of Little Candle Productions and Vs. Theatre Company. She improvises musicals in cities across the country with The Society. Kelly performs regularly at Impro Studio with Ripley, Oregon Trail Uncharted, Fraudway, and more. Favorite theatrical roles include Hope in “Urinetown”, Christine in “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”, Anne in “The Elliots”, and Jennifer in “The Dastardly Ficus”. TV and film credits include Bones, Gilmore Girls, Days of Our Lives, and The Hillside Strangler.
March 12, 2023
Sunday at 11am
About Ripley Improv: Ripley Improv is an all-female and nonbinary / genderqueer improv collective that creates stories about people who save the day, save the world, and save each other.
Their mission: To awaken bravery, embrace weird, and cultivate play.
ENCOUNTER
Presented by Ripley Improv
ENCOUNTER is a fully-improvised, hour-long stage play that explores the stories of first contact between one woman and the completely unknown. Inspired by Ripley’s namesake film Alien, along with Arrival, and the book Annihilation, ENCOUNTER blends sci-fi, horror, and “the new weird,” unpacking the emotional and psychological impact of a meeting with benevolent extraterrestrials, malevolent predators, and entirely unexplained forces.
Ripley has no script. No set dialogue. Not even an outline. Each performance of ENCOUNTER offers a brand new story based on a single audience suggestion.
With Mary Chieffo, Madi Goff, Laurie Jones, Kelly Lohman and Jessica Lynn Verdi.
About Ripley Improv:
Ripley Improv is all-female and nonbinary, genderqueer improv collective that creates stories about people who save the day, save the world, and save each other.
Their mission: To awaken bravery, embrace weird, and cultivate play.
March 12, 2023
Sunday at 4:00pm
Did you know that three Buncombe County Libraries have a seed library so you can check out seeds? Each seed library offers vegetable, herb, and flower seeds that you can take home and plant.
If you’re a gardener or want to be a gardener, you can borrow seeds from the library at planting time. At the end of the growing season, save seeds from the plants and return a portion of the seeds to the library to be loaned out the next year. If you don’t have any seeds at the end of the season, that’s OK too. It’s not a requirement, it just helps the seed libraries grow. There is no charge to use the seed library, just visit the Weaverville, Black Mountain or Leicester Libraries and sign up. You’ll find different seeds at each location and you don’t need a library card to use the seed library.
The benefits of a seed lending library are many: it’s a way to have fun, build community with fellow gardeners, and support people who are new to gardening. It also preserves rare, open-pollinated or heirloom seeds and encourages local gardeners to save quality seeds that are suited to our growing area.
For more information on any of our seed libraries, contact the Black Mountain Library, the Leicester Library, or the Weaverville Library.
Gardening in the Mountains presents:
Get Going with Grasses!
Presenter: Nancy Duffy – Owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design
Grasses are great garden plants! Learn about specific grasses, their uses, and planting and maintenance.
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Nancy Duffy is the owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design. Over the last decade she has increasingly focused on natural planting styles and has done many meadow and woodland designs.
Video access:
To access this video on the Buncombe County Master Gardener website, click on the link below:
Get Going with Grasses!
Or go to www.buncombemastergardener.org , click on the ‘Gardening Videos’ tab at the top of the page, and select the video from the list provided.
Extension Master GardenerSM volunteers will be staffing the Helpline as indicated in the schedule below. You may send an email or leave a voicemail at any time and an Extension Master Gardener volunteer will respond during Garden Helpline hours. When emailing, please include a photo if it helps describe your garden question. Soil test kits can be picked up at the Extension office, 24/7. The kits are located in a box outside the front door.
Three ways to contact the Garden Helpline
Call 828-255-5522
Email questions and photos to [email protected]
Visit the Extension Office at 49 Mt. Carmel Road during Helpline hours, listed below.
Garden Helpline Hours
March – (starts March 6)
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
April through September:
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Wednesday 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m.
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
October – (ends October 26th)
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Thursday 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
We are here to help and support you! Please contact us. We look forward to answering your gardening questions.
The Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse is undergoing a name change! We are excited to streamline our program and we can’t wait to share the news with you!
Our new name will be Playhouse Jr.!
This new name will encompass many things. You might ask….what is Playhouse Jr.?
Playhouse Jr. means many things and we are excited to share this news with our community!
We are introducing a new software system for our Playhouse Jr. families! This new system will make your life easier! Once you have registered you are in our system for good. That means that once you register all you have to do is access your account to purchase any classes and camps moving forward. No need to register every time!
To register for our new system and to enroll in classes please visit this link: https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=548849
Questions? Please email [email protected]!
Want to register over the phone? No problem! You can call our Education Director, Lauren Hopkins at (828)693-0403 ext. 246 starting Monday March 6!
After six years of hard work, the dream of using The Learning Garden as a hub for public gardening education is finally a reality. The Learning Garden, located at the Extension Office, 49 Mt. Carmel Road, is offering the public the opportunity to Visit and Learn in the garden on selected 2nd and 4th Thursdays, February – October. The Thursday in-person programs will consist of five garden-specific series. Visitors can walk around before or after the program and soak in our lovely gardens. Our gardens will open at 9:00 a.m. and all the demonstration programs run between 10-11:30 a.m. To ensure a good learning experience, attendance will be limited and registration will be required.
Dahlia Series
February 23 – Getting Your Dahlias Ready for Planting
August 3 – Disbudding Dahlias for Better Blooms
October 26 – Dividing and Storing Dahlias
Dye Garden Series
May 4 – Planning Your Dye Garden
June 22 – Introduction to Natural Dyeing
July 27 – Fresh Indigo
August 24 – Botanical Printing: Printing with Leaves and Flowers
September 28 – Dyeing with Hopi Black Sunflower
November 9 – The Magic of Indigo
Rose Garden Series
March 9 – Pruning Roses
April 6 – Climbing Roses
April 13 – Rose Pests and Pathogens
May 20 – Growing Beautiful Roses (Saturday Seminar)
Sun & Shade Garden Series
May 11 – Planting a Native Butterfly Host Plant Garden
June 29 – Foodscaping Edible Plants in Flower Beds
August 31 – Dealing with “the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” Plants
Sept 14 – Native Butterfly Life Cycles in the Fall Garden
Vegetable Garden Series
March 23 – Building an ADA Compliant Raised Garden
April 26 – Planting Root Crops: Leeks, Onions, Carrots, Parsnips
May 25 – Planting a Seed Saving Garden
June 8 – Common Vegetable Garden Pests
July 13 – Kid Friendly Gardening
August 10 – Preserving Your Vegetable Harvest
In addition to the Thursday programs listed above, The Learning Garden will present a series of ninety minute (+/-) hands-on seminars covering various gardening topics. These in-person programs will be held at The Learning Garden on selected Saturday mornings, February – September.
Saturday Seminars
February 18 – Tool Selection and Sharpening
March 18 – Pruning Trees and Shrubs
April 22 – Gardening for the Birds
May 20 – Growing Beautiful Roses
June 17 – Pollinator Plants in The Learning Garden
September 16 – Bulbs for All Seasons
Each of the programs in The Learning Garden will be announced individually through this blog and on our website two weeks before each program. Each announcement will include instructions on how to register. Mark your calendar and register to attend as many as you can.
WNC Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training (CRAFT) is a farmer-led effort to bring established farmers, farm apprentices, and aspiring farmers together for year-long training in the art and science of sustainable agriculture, straight from the hearts, mouths, and fields of seasoned local farmers in Western North Carolina.
Farmers learn best from other farmers, and aspiring farmers learn best from hearing how successful farmers in the region run their farms. Farm Tours form the core of the WNC CRAFT training program.
WNC CRAFT is a membership program, and its fees cover a whole year of learning and networking opportunities. More details on tours will be provided upon joining CRAFT. Tours & benefits are only available to CRAFT Members.
CRAFT Tour Schedule 2023:
- March 19th: Lambing at Black Thorn Farm & Kitchen
- March 30th: Mental Health First Aid Training with NC Agromedicine Institute at Creekside Farm & Education Center
- April 2nd: Farmer Social at Olivette Farm
- April 16th: Mechanical Weed Control and Tractor Implements for Cultivation at Gaining Ground Farm
- July 30th: Silvopasture at Wild East Farm
- October 29th: Land Access Model and Winter Growing at Olivette Farm
Did you know that three Buncombe County Libraries have a seed library so you can check out seeds? Each seed library offers vegetable, herb, and flower seeds that you can take home and plant.
If you’re a gardener or want to be a gardener, you can borrow seeds from the library at planting time. At the end of the growing season, save seeds from the plants and return a portion of the seeds to the library to be loaned out the next year. If you don’t have any seeds at the end of the season, that’s OK too. It’s not a requirement, it just helps the seed libraries grow. There is no charge to use the seed library, just visit the Weaverville, Black Mountain or Leicester Libraries and sign up. You’ll find different seeds at each location and you don’t need a library card to use the seed library.
The benefits of a seed lending library are many: it’s a way to have fun, build community with fellow gardeners, and support people who are new to gardening. It also preserves rare, open-pollinated or heirloom seeds and encourages local gardeners to save quality seeds that are suited to our growing area.
For more information on any of our seed libraries, contact the Black Mountain Library, the Leicester Library, or the Weaverville Library.
Gardening in the Mountains presents:
Get Going with Grasses!
Presenter: Nancy Duffy – Owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design
Grasses are great garden plants! Learn about specific grasses, their uses, and planting and maintenance.
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Nancy Duffy is the owner of Muddy Boots Garden Design. Over the last decade she has increasingly focused on natural planting styles and has done many meadow and woodland designs.
Video access:
To access this video on the Buncombe County Master Gardener website, click on the link below:
Get Going with Grasses!
Or go to www.buncombemastergardener.org , click on the ‘Gardening Videos’ tab at the top of the page, and select the video from the list provided.
Presenter: Cynthia Gillooly, floral designer and co-owner of Verde` Designs
Join Cynthia Gillooly, an experienced indoor plant expert, and learn about terrarium containers and plant selection for those high-humidity gardens. Cynthia will teach us about soil, plant care and maintenance, and her tricks, tools and accessories to make your own terrific terrariums.