Homegrown Dreams is an entry-level, exploratory workshop designed to help you incorporate small-scale, self-sufficiency and sustainability into all aspects of your life. Whether you own or rent a home, or live in a rural or urban setting, you can move towards more self-reliance NOW!

Wherever you are along the spectrum of self-reliance, join us for the exploratory workshop to:

• Enhance your confidence, skill, and excitement to create the lifestyle you imagine.
• Uncover your personal values, skills, and resources
• Chart a path to move forward over the next 1 to 5 years in your homestead plans.

• Homegrown Dreams 2023 Panelists

  Homegrown Dreams includes a panel of local homesteaders and a regional expert on soil, climate, rainfall, typography, vegetation, wind, and how that affects and determines life, farming, and building in our region.

  George Brabant

  George grew up on and in the St. Lawrence River,  Thousand Islands, New York. He was immersed in nature from a young age, experiencing all four seasons and their rhythms. He moved to Lake Placid for a couple years and then to high in the Colorado Rocky mountains. After a decade and a half of skiing, kayaking, fishing, and hunting in the Rockies, George landed in Asheville NC, making a living as a remodel contractor. He discovered Permaculture as a result of losing his brother and reading the works he left behind. He started to question our way of living and how sustainable it is.

  Permaculture was explained to George as using nature as a guideline. The edge of the forest turns full and green every year with no help from humans. It happens from a symbiotic relationship between plants, animals, and fungi. He started running with this philosophy and turned our property into a Permaculture Food Forest. He bought chickens and ducks, removed all grass, and installed swales, ponds, and fruit trees. A year in, he sought help from more experienced minds and took a permaculture design course and became a certified instructor. Now they are giving classes, tours, and having other local permaculture and gardening instructors do tours of our farm as well. Their food forest is named Phat Ninja Farm.

  Era Keys

  Era is a queer, non-binary permaculture educator, consultant, and designer. They have experienced living and working in Permaculture since 2013. In the past 9 years, they have lived on and managed permaculture farms and permaculture design businesses, educated in North Florida, Puerto Rico and Oregon, and lived in an EcoVillage based in permaculture. They currently reside in Marshall, NC with their family where they are creating a permaculture homestead. Their ultimate goal is to produce high quality permaculture education and tools that are accessible and digestible for the everyday person, so that we may weather the ever-evolving challenges of today’s world.

  Homegrown Dreams Instructor

  Brandon Greenstein

  Brandon Greenstein is the Director of Sustainability Consulting for Organic Growers School, developing new initiatives to provide services to home-growers. His background is in renewable systems, earth works, energy, water, and permaculture. He provides consulting, design and technical services for the creation of integrated systems. Brandon has been homesteading, including off-grid living and food production, in the western NC mountains for 20 years. 

  Organic Growers School also offers Farm Dreams, a day-long program similar to the Homegrown Dreams, but geared towards those wanting to be commercial farmers. The difference is that Farm Dreams is focused on an enterprise model, where income generation is a significant part of the equation.

Join the East Asheville Library and Buncombe County Special Collections for a screening of the documentary The Mystery of George Masa followed by a Q&A session with the documentarian, Paul Bonesteel, founder of Bonesteel Films. This free event will be Saturday, April 29 at 10 a.m. at the East Asheville Library.

The Mystery of George Masa details the life of Masahara Iizuka, a Japanese immigrant who came to the Asheville in 1915, where he focused his camera and his passions on preserving the beauty of the wilderness he discovered. Eighteen years after his arrival, his death left behind thousands of photographs and an impressive legacy that included a role in the founding of two great national treasures, The Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Appalachian Trail.

Paul Bonesteel is a filmmaker from North Carolina with a commitment to telling stories that illuminate and inspire. His other documentaries include Muni, a story about Black caddies turned golfers during the Jim Crow Era, The Day Carl Sandburg Died, and America’s First Forest: Carl Schenck and the Asheville Experience.

After the film, please be sure to visit the exhibit Masa’s Mountains: An Exhibit of The Work & Legacy of Photographer George Masa on display throughout the month of May at the East Asheville Library.

To dive deeper into the story of George Masa and view even more of his photographs visit Buncombe County Special Collections in person at Pack Memorial Library or online.

We’re doing it AGAIN y’all!!
Join us for the third annual Spring Fling, taking place at:
91 Holbrook Road, Candler, NC, 28571
April 29, 2023
11:00 AM to 4PM
Our beautiful greenhouses are over-flowing with spring vibes and are full of unique plants, live music, a mechanical bull, h-e-m-p goodies, and fantastic vendors, ready to launch us into the warm season.

Come experience one heck of a unique venue as we have bluegrass jams, a set with HUG – Hendersonville Ukulele Group, the Substandards, almost madi, and a SURPRISE band! We’ll also have all the Farm Fam favs like Lauren Daviss of @fiddyshadesofgreen, Amy and Jesse Ross, and MS. SUSIE (#protectmssusieatallcosts).

Almost Madi will be joining us to play gentle tunes as you peruse our wonderful line-up of craft vendors, which will include artisan food vendors like App Wyld, as well as beautiful jewelry, amazing art, glass blowers, ceramics, and of course a wide selection (and maybe even a few special drops) of green goodness from Appalachian Standard!

The Spring Fling is *FREE* to the public. Parking is available on site but can be limited so it is recommended that groups carpool. This is an outdoor event. The first 100 people to join us will receive a goodie bag!

Please join us in Hendersonville, NC, April 29th, 2PM. Live Music From Johhny Blackwell and Joe Roads, as well as Raffle Prizes! Fundraiser benefits Jennifer’s cancer treatment and search for a cure. Thank you!!! Other ways to help: https://givesendgo.com/G9QUV?utm_source=sharelink&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=G9QUV https://gofund.me/57aec302

The Second Annual Block Party will be held on Saturday, April 29th from 2:00 – 7:00 PM on South Liberty Street at the crossroads of East Chestnut and Merrimon Place in Asheville, North Carolina.

The event is free to enter, but a recommended donation at the door is encouraged, with all donations going directly to benefit The Pisgah Conservancy, an organization that leads sustainable projects to improve and preserve Pisgah National Forest.

The event will feature live music from several performers, including Red Clay Revival, The Larry Keel Experience, DJ Logic, and an interactive drum performance by Billy Zanski.

There will also be over 15 local craft vendors and fun activities for the whole family, such as yard games, a board breaking station from Premier Martial Arts Studio and more.

Food sold on-site by Pulp & Sprout, Smashville Food Truck, and sweet treats by Sunshine Sammies.

Craft beverages will be sold by One World Brewing, The Whale and N/A beverages by Headspace Elixirs. Complementary water provided by Blue Moon Water.

Pisgah National Forest is one of the most visited National Forests in the nation, with millions of visitors each year. The Pisgah Conservancy has successfully led projects focused on improving the forest’s trail systems and access points in a sustainable way, developing a close relationship with the National Forest Service in the process. The Block Party aims to create awareness and financial support for The Pisgah Conservancy’s work, which is crucial in the face of unprecedented growth in the outdoor recreation economy and the region as a whole.

The Block Party committee consists of seven individuals from Looking Glass Realty’s Asheville office, who donate their time and talents to organize the event. This year, event coordinator Jessica Grion of Pisgah Brewing has joined the team, and the committee is excited to work with The Pisgah Conservancy once again to make the event a success.

Please click the link below to learn more about our Sponsorship Opportunities for this year’s event: Block Party Sponsorship Opportunities.

Want to volunteer? Contact Jessica at [email protected].

This is a rain or shine event! Donations at the door can be made by Cash, Venmo and Paypal.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for additional event information and updates.

Thank you kindly for your support! Happy trails and see you on the Block!

~ Looking Glass Realty

We are seeking volunteers to assist us in our small after school program for children in West Asheville in low-income housing.  We provide a safe and nourishing environment, healthy snacks, and creative activities.  Our program currently meets during the school year on most Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 3:00-5:00pm. You may volunteer for one or two days a week. 

Volunteer Responsibilities:

• Assist with serving snacks
• Interact with children during activity time
• Supervise games and outdoor free time
• For people with background in education, there is also an opportunity to assist with curriculum development and program planning and administration

Requirements:

• Background check
• Orientation booklets will be provided
• Masks are required if unvaccinated

Gain a workable knowledge of how to properly record financial transactions for your business. Discover the three most important financial reports and how to use them to make the best-informed business decisions. If you’re a new business owner or need a refresher on the basics of accounting, this seminar is designed for you.

Speaker(s): Michelle Tracz

Co-Sponsor(s): Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, Brevard/Transylvania Chamber of Commerce

Celebrate the warmer weather and bask with the frogs and turtles! Join us as we walk you through the web-based program, ecoEXPLORE. You’ll learn how to submit photos and complete nature themed challenges to earn badges and prizes!

This initiative by the NC Arboretum includes a different challenge each season that will keep children engaged in learning about nature year-round while also contributing to citizen science. The theme this spring is herpetology, the study of reptiles and amphibians. We’ll explore shores of the fishing ponds and woods for a variety of scaly and slimy friends! Stick around after the program to continue your exploration of the nature trails and playground.

Click here to learn more about ecoEXPLORE

Ages: 5-10 yrs; families welcome

Where: Owen Park; Picnic shelter at the far end of the parking lot by the dock

For more information, contact Rose Wall and Jen Knight by email: [email protected]. Please reach out in the case of inclement weather to learn if the program will still take place.

Look out for more ecoEXPLORE Family Days one Wednesday every other month.

Enrollment is now open for two adult improvisation acting classes offered by Hendersonville Theatre (HT). Classes will be taught by professional improvisation actor and comedian Emily Swindal. Both classes are open to anyone over the age of 18, regardless of experience level.

Improv Level One: Communicate. Collaborate. Play. meets on Wednesdays from April 5 to May 24. Tuition is $180. In the class, students will work at getting comfortable on stage while having fun doing it. Students will learn to have compassion for themselves and their classmates as performers as they learn the fundamentals of improvisation and develop support and spontaneity. Together, they will learn the importance of “yes-and-ing,” heightening the absurdity and raising the stakes. They will also cover the differences between short form and long form improv. This is a short form class similar to Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Whether you live in a rural, urban or suburban environment, nature is everywhere!
Join us to learn practical tips on how to re-wild your land (or balcony!) to support a healthy habitat for butterflies, birds, native plants – and your family.
We will also discuss yard foraging and share recipes for delicious spring greens that many folks have in abundance this time of year.

Many of the landscape methods that we utilize have negative environmental repercussions. Henderson County Extension Agent and host of the Gardening in the Mountains Radio Show Steve Pettis will help you manage your landscape in the most environmentally friendly way possible.

We are seeking volunteers to assist us in our small after school program for children in West Asheville in low-income housing.  We provide a safe and nourishing environment, healthy snacks, and creative activities.  Our program currently meets during the school year on most Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 3:00-5:00pm. You may volunteer for one or two days a week. 

Volunteer Responsibilities:

• Assist with serving snacks
• Interact with children during activity time
• Supervise games and outdoor free time
• For people with background in education, there is also an opportunity to assist with curriculum development and program planning and administration

Requirements:

• Background check
• Orientation booklets will be provided
• Masks are required if unvaccinated