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.

Sunday, May 26, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
May 26 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Monday, May 27, 2024
Volunteer: Grace Covenant Community Garden
May 27 all-day
YWCA of Asheville

Spring has sprung, and at the YWCA that means that our talented Nutrition team is cooking up new ways to serve fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables to the children in our Early Learning and Empowerment Child Care programs. We are so grateful to be partnering with the wonderful volunteers who operate Grace Covenant’s Community Garden to receive produce grown specifically for our kitchen! The YWCA has been partnering with Grace Covenant for three years, and we have received over 1000 pounds of healthy, local produce from the garden.

YWCA Nutrition Specialist Melinda Aponte works hard to make the most of the bounty from Grace Covenant, and she also nurtures our own YWCA garden to teach kiddos in our childcare programs healthy habits and get them in the garden. Love the idea of helping to feed children fresh, healthy foods? Volunteer with the YWCA Nutrition team this spring and summer to help out in the YW garden space.

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
May 27 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Tuesday, May 28, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
May 28 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
May 28 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Wednesday, May 29, 2024
Volunteer: Grace Covenant Community Garden
May 29 all-day
YWCA of Asheville

Spring has sprung, and at the YWCA that means that our talented Nutrition team is cooking up new ways to serve fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables to the children in our Early Learning and Empowerment Child Care programs. We are so grateful to be partnering with the wonderful volunteers who operate Grace Covenant’s Community Garden to receive produce grown specifically for our kitchen! The YWCA has been partnering with Grace Covenant for three years, and we have received over 1000 pounds of healthy, local produce from the garden.

YWCA Nutrition Specialist Melinda Aponte works hard to make the most of the bounty from Grace Covenant, and she also nurtures our own YWCA garden to teach kiddos in our childcare programs healthy habits and get them in the garden. Love the idea of helping to feed children fresh, healthy foods? Volunteer with the YWCA Nutrition team this spring and summer to help out in the YW garden space.

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
May 29 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Thursday, May 30, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
May 30 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
May 30 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

The Learning Garden presents:
Introduction to Botanical Dye Gardening
May 30 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am
Buncombe County Extension Center

In this introduction to planning a dye garden, you will learn about what plants to choose, growing requirements, and colors you can grow for natural dyeing. We will also talk about how to design your dye garden to make it beautiful and productive. We will have samples of fiber we have dyed and we will have a tour of the garden. We’ll send you home with a free pack of dye seeds.

Wear appropriate attire as some of this presentation will be held outside.
The talk is free, but seating is limited and registration is required.

Spring Plant Sale: Upper-level Member Preview
May 30 @ 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm
NC Arboretum
Calling all garden lovers! Join us for an upper-level member preview event featuring unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse – including many of the beautiful plants featured in our seasonal landscapes. All proceeds from this portion of the sale benefit The North Carolina Arboretum Society and support the Arboretum’s educational programs, facilities and exhibits year-round. Thank you for your support!
Members at the Rhododendron ($150) level and above. Show your current membership card for entry. Rain or shine.
Interested in joining as a member or upgrading? Learn more.
Friday, May 31, 2024
Master Gardeners Plant Clinics
May 31 all-day
Various Locations

Again this growing season, the Extension Master GardenerSMPlant Clinics will be held at several locations and special events across the area.  At each Plant Clinic, Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer all of your gardening questions and address your related concerns. Feel free to bring plant or insect samples for identification and/or problem resolution.  You can pick-up soil test kits and receive information about in-person programs and activities at The Learning Garden and the Gardening in the Mountains online seminars.  Please stop by to learn more!

2024 Plant Clinic Locations

Asheville City Market. On the third Saturday of each month, April through September. Master Gardener volunteers will be at the Asheville City Market located at 52 N. Market Street, Asheville, NC 28801.  The specific dates will be April 20, June 15, July 20, August 17, and September 21. We will not be at the City Market in May; instead, we will be at the Spring Fling Plant Sale (see below).

 

2024 Spring Herb Festival. In addition to City Market, the Master Gardeners Plant Clinic is returning to the 2024 Spring Herb Festival this year. Our table will be located at the entrance hall to the Davis Event Center at the WNC Ag Center on Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27 from 8:30 a.m.- 5 p.m.,on Sunday, April 28 from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. The WNC Ag Center is located across the highway from the Asheville Airport at 761 New Boylston Highway, Fletcher, NC 28732. A map and directions to the WNC Ag Center can be found by clicking: https://www.wncagcenter.org/directions.aspx.

Spring Fling Plant Sale. Be sure to look for the Plant Clinic tent at this year’s Spring Fling Plant Sale on May 18 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The Plant Sale will be located at the Interchange Building, 59 Woodfin Place, in downtown Asheville.

NC Arboretum Plant Sale. EMG volunteers will also staff Plant Clinics at the North Carolina Arboretum Plant Sale on May 31, and June 1, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. The NC Arboretum is located at 20 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville, NC 28806. The Plant Sale and Vendor Market, May 31 and June 1, is open to all members and the general public.  For more information on the public sale, please refer to the WNC Arboretum website at https://www.ncarboretum.org.  NOTE: The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies to all non-members.

Volunteer: Grace Covenant Community Garden
May 31 all-day
YWCA of Asheville

Spring has sprung, and at the YWCA that means that our talented Nutrition team is cooking up new ways to serve fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables to the children in our Early Learning and Empowerment Child Care programs. We are so grateful to be partnering with the wonderful volunteers who operate Grace Covenant’s Community Garden to receive produce grown specifically for our kitchen! The YWCA has been partnering with Grace Covenant for three years, and we have received over 1000 pounds of healthy, local produce from the garden.

YWCA Nutrition Specialist Melinda Aponte works hard to make the most of the bounty from Grace Covenant, and she also nurtures our own YWCA garden to teach kiddos in our childcare programs healthy habits and get them in the garden. Love the idea of helping to feed children fresh, healthy foods? Volunteer with the YWCA Nutrition team this spring and summer to help out in the YW garden space.

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
May 31 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Spring Plant Sale
May 31 @ 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

If you are in need of plants for your yard or home, the Spring Plant Sale and Market can help! The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Join us on May 31-June1 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials, houseplants and crafts to the sounds of live music.

ALSO:

Buncombe Master Gardener Plant Clinic @ NC Arboretum

May 31 @ 10:00 pm – Jun 1 @ 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer your gardening questions and address your related concerns. Feel free to bring plant or insect samples for identification and/or problem resolution. You can pick-up soil test kits and receive information about in-person programs and activities at The Learning Garden and Gardening in the Mountains online seminars. Please stop by and learn more!

Spring Plant Sale and Market
May 31 @ 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

Calling all garden lovers! Join us on Friday and Saturday, May 31 – June 1 for our annual Spring Plant Sale and Market. The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials and crafts to the sounds of live music. On Saturday, June 1st, children can participate in crafts at the Kids Corner. Rain or shine.

On Friday and Saturday, join us from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. for a free adult education class From the Ground Up: Soil Health Basics. Learn more about what promotes healthy soils that grow sustainable landscapes and ultimately make for growing healthy communities! Pick up some tips from award-winning soil scientist Laura Lengnick on simple DIY soil tests that will help you determine the quality of your soil.

The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies for all non-members. Interested in joining as a member? Join today!

Participating vendors include:
Appalachian DiviniTEA
B.B. Barns
Bear Necessities Farm
Bellyfull Plants Nursery
Blazing Star Flowers
Blue Ridge Exotics
Botanical Tortoise Co
Bridge and Tunnel Coffee
Buggy Pops
Camilla Calnan Photography **
Conjure Craft Chocolate
Connections Gallery Gift Shop
Couple of Bees **
Finally Farm
Fjallraven
Flower Moon Nursery
Full Moon Tea Co
Half Light Honey
High Country Nursery
Homegrown Tropicals
Imladris Farm
Jen Toledo Painting & Drawing **
Matcha Nude
Milkweed Meadows Farm
Red Root Native Nursery *
Sandy Mush Herb Nursery
Saturnia Farm
Superbloom Natives
Sustainabillies
Tanager Plants
The Artful Plant
The Farm Connection
The Turquoise Tortuga
Well Seasoned Table *
Werhloom Honey*
Very Sad Lab

Calling all garden lovers! Join us on Friday and Saturday, May 31 – June 1 for our annual Spring Plant Sale and Market. The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials and crafts to the sounds of live music. On Saturday, June 1st, children can participate in crafts at the Kids Corner. Rain or shine.

On Friday and Saturday, join us from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. for a free adult education class From the Ground Up: Soil Health Basics. Learn more about what promotes healthy soils that grow sustainable landscapes and ultimately make for growing healthy communities! Pick up some tips from award-winning soil scientist Laura Lengnick on simple DIY soil tests that will help you determine the quality of your soil.

The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies for all non-members. Interested in joining as a member? Join today!

Participating vendors include:
Appalachian DiviniTEA
B.B. Barns
Bear Necessities Farm
Bellyfull Plants Nursery
Blazing Star Flowers
Blue Ridge Exotics
Botanical Tortoise Co
Bridge and Tunnel Coffee
Buggy Pops
Camilla Calnan Photography **
Conjure Craft Chocolate
Connections Gallery Gift Shop
Couple of Bees **
Finally Farm
Fjallraven
Flower Moon Nursery
Full Moon Tea Co
Half Light Honey
High Country Nursery
Homegrown Tropicals
Imladris Farm
Jen Toledo Painting & Drawing **
Matcha Nude
Milkweed Meadows Farm
Red Root Native Nursery *
Sandy Mush Herb Nursery
Saturnia Farm
Superbloom Natives
Sustainabillies
Tanager Plants
The Artful Plant
The Farm Connection
The Turquoise Tortuga
Well Seasoned Table *
Werhloom Honey*
Very Sad Lab

*Friday only
**Saturday only

Buncombe Master Gardener Plant Clinic @ NC Arboretum
May 31 @ 10:00 pm – Jun 1 @ 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer your gardening questions and address your related concerns. Feel free to bring plant or insect samples for identification and/or problem resolution. You can pick-up soil test kits and receive information about in-person programs and activities at The Learning Garden and Gardening in the Mountains online seminars. Please stop by and learn more!

Saturday, June 1, 2024
Master Gardeners Plant Clinics
Jun 1 all-day
Various Locations

Again this growing season, the Extension Master GardenerSMPlant Clinics will be held at several locations and special events across the area.  At each Plant Clinic, Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer all of your gardening questions and address your related concerns. Feel free to bring plant or insect samples for identification and/or problem resolution.  You can pick-up soil test kits and receive information about in-person programs and activities at The Learning Garden and the Gardening in the Mountains online seminars.  Please stop by to learn more!

2024 Plant Clinic Locations

Asheville City Market. On the third Saturday of each month, April through September. Master Gardener volunteers will be at the Asheville City Market located at 52 N. Market Street, Asheville, NC 28801.  The specific dates will be April 20, June 15, July 20, August 17, and September 21. We will not be at the City Market in May; instead, we will be at the Spring Fling Plant Sale (see below).

 

2024 Spring Herb Festival. In addition to City Market, the Master Gardeners Plant Clinic is returning to the 2024 Spring Herb Festival this year. Our table will be located at the entrance hall to the Davis Event Center at the WNC Ag Center on Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27 from 8:30 a.m.- 5 p.m.,on Sunday, April 28 from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. The WNC Ag Center is located across the highway from the Asheville Airport at 761 New Boylston Highway, Fletcher, NC 28732. A map and directions to the WNC Ag Center can be found by clicking: https://www.wncagcenter.org/directions.aspx.

Spring Fling Plant Sale. Be sure to look for the Plant Clinic tent at this year’s Spring Fling Plant Sale on May 18 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The Plant Sale will be located at the Interchange Building, 59 Woodfin Place, in downtown Asheville.

NC Arboretum Plant Sale. EMG volunteers will also staff Plant Clinics at the North Carolina Arboretum Plant Sale on May 31, and June 1, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. The NC Arboretum is located at 20 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville, NC 28806. The Plant Sale and Vendor Market, May 31 and June 1, is open to all members and the general public.  For more information on the public sale, please refer to the WNC Arboretum website at https://www.ncarboretum.org.  NOTE: The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies to all non-members.

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 1 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Spring Plant Sale
Jun 1 @ 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

If you are in need of plants for your yard or home, the Spring Plant Sale and Market can help! The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Join us on May 31-June1 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials, houseplants and crafts to the sounds of live music.

ALSO:

Buncombe Master Gardener Plant Clinic @ NC Arboretum

May 31 @ 10:00 pm – Jun 1 @ 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

Master Gardener volunteers will be available to answer your gardening questions and address your related concerns. Feel free to bring plant or insect samples for identification and/or problem resolution. You can pick-up soil test kits and receive information about in-person programs and activities at The Learning Garden and Gardening in the Mountains online seminars. Please stop by and learn more!

Spring Plant Sale and Market
Jun 1 @ 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
NC Arboretum

Calling all garden lovers! Join us on Friday and Saturday, May 31 – June 1 for our annual Spring Plant Sale and Market. The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials and crafts to the sounds of live music. On Saturday, June 1st, children can participate in crafts at the Kids Corner. Rain or shine.

On Friday and Saturday, join us from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. for a free adult education class From the Ground Up: Soil Health Basics. Learn more about what promotes healthy soils that grow sustainable landscapes and ultimately make for growing healthy communities! Pick up some tips from award-winning soil scientist Laura Lengnick on simple DIY soil tests that will help you determine the quality of your soil.

The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies for all non-members. Interested in joining as a member? Join today!

Participating vendors include:
Appalachian DiviniTEA
B.B. Barns
Bear Necessities Farm
Bellyfull Plants Nursery
Blazing Star Flowers
Blue Ridge Exotics
Botanical Tortoise Co
Bridge and Tunnel Coffee
Buggy Pops
Camilla Calnan Photography **
Conjure Craft Chocolate
Connections Gallery Gift Shop
Couple of Bees **
Finally Farm
Fjallraven
Flower Moon Nursery
Full Moon Tea Co
Half Light Honey
High Country Nursery
Homegrown Tropicals
Imladris Farm
Jen Toledo Painting & Drawing **
Matcha Nude
Milkweed Meadows Farm
Red Root Native Nursery *
Sandy Mush Herb Nursery
Saturnia Farm
Superbloom Natives
Sustainabillies
Tanager Plants
The Artful Plant
The Farm Connection
The Turquoise Tortuga
Well Seasoned Table *
Werhloom Honey*
Very Sad Lab

Calling all garden lovers! Join us on Friday and Saturday, May 31 – June 1 for our annual Spring Plant Sale and Market. The Market features unique plants grown in The North Carolina Arboretum’s Production Greenhouse and includes over 30 local growers and businesses. Shop an outstanding collection of annuals, perennials and crafts to the sounds of live music. On Saturday, June 1st, children can participate in crafts at the Kids Corner. Rain or shine.

On Friday and Saturday, join us from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. for a free adult education class From the Ground Up: Soil Health Basics. Learn more about what promotes healthy soils that grow sustainable landscapes and ultimately make for growing healthy communities! Pick up some tips from award-winning soil scientist Laura Lengnick on simple DIY soil tests that will help you determine the quality of your soil.

The Arboretum’s standard $20 parking fee applies for all non-members. Interested in joining as a member? Join today!

Participating vendors include:
Appalachian DiviniTEA
B.B. Barns
Bear Necessities Farm
Bellyfull Plants Nursery
Blazing Star Flowers
Blue Ridge Exotics
Botanical Tortoise Co
Bridge and Tunnel Coffee
Buggy Pops
Camilla Calnan Photography **
Conjure Craft Chocolate
Connections Gallery Gift Shop
Couple of Bees **
Finally Farm
Fjallraven
Flower Moon Nursery
Full Moon Tea Co
Half Light Honey
High Country Nursery
Homegrown Tropicals
Imladris Farm
Jen Toledo Painting & Drawing **
Matcha Nude
Milkweed Meadows Farm
Red Root Native Nursery *
Sandy Mush Herb Nursery
Saturnia Farm
Superbloom Natives
Sustainabillies
Tanager Plants
The Artful Plant
The Farm Connection
The Turquoise Tortuga
Well Seasoned Table *
Werhloom Honey*
Very Sad Lab

*Friday only
**Saturday only

Sunday, June 2, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
Jun 2 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 2 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Monday, June 3, 2024
Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 3 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Tuesday, June 4, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
Jun 4 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 4 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Wednesday, June 5, 2024
Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 5 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Thursday, June 6, 2024
Tools to Support Liberation
Jun 6 all-day
online w/Bountiful Cities

Liberation Tools is a cooperative subset of the 501c3 nonprofit Soul & Soil Project based in the unceded Tsalagi (Cherokee) territory of Western North Carolina.
Our mission is to build a collective that sustainably and skillfully crafts quality tools used for growing food, and freely distributes them to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. To support these efforts, we sell these tools for twice the cost of producing one, thereby allowing people with accumulated wealth to access high quality tools by also paying for an identical tool to be sent to a BIPOC land steward.

https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/o/tickets/forms/edit?ticketingId=d65860b2-f8dc-4438-bef5-191cf74bb9dc&#advanced-parameters

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden
Jun 6 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
NC Arboretum

What is Bonsai?

Bonsai is a challenging and rewarding horticultural activity, in which ordinary plants are grown in an extraordinary way. Through rigorously applied cultivation techniques, trees, shrubs, vines and even herbaceous plants are kept in a miniaturized state, developed into artistic shapes and then displayed in special containers.

What makes the Arboretum’s bonsai endeavor unique among all other public collections in the United States? Regional Interpretation. Visitors will find the Arboretum’s bonsai collection of more than 100 specimens carefully cultivated with a Southern Appalachian accent. The collection draws inspiration from the traditional roots of bonsai, but takes the form of a contemporary, Southern Appalachian influenced American garden. Plantings in the landscape include species and cultivars of American, European and Asian origin.

 

The Bonsai Exhibition Garden

Established in October 2005, The North Carolina Arboretum’s Bonsai Exhibition Garden is a world renowned garden that displays up to 50 bonsai specimens at a time. Represented are traditional Asian bonsai subjects such as Japanese maple and Chinese elm, tropical plants such as willow-leaf fig and bougainvillea, and American species such as bald cypress and limber pine. Of particular importance are the plants native to the Blue Ridge region, such as American hornbeam and eastern white pine, which enable the Arboretum to bring the thousand-year tradition of bonsai home to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Interpretive signage throughout the garden conveys information about the art and history of bonsai, and the Arboretum’s own creative approach to it.

 

Outdoor Bonsai Exhibition Garden

  • Bonsai on Display Mid May – November; 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily
  • Garden Open Year Round
  • Parking Fees
    • Personal/Standard Vehicle (up to 20′ long): $20
    • Large vehicles (21′-29′ long): $60
    • Busses and Oversize Vehicles (30′ long+): $125
    • Members: Free

    Apart from the parking fee, there is no other admission charge to enter the Arboretum or our facilities, except in the case of advertised ticketed events.

Foodscaping: Edible Plants in Flower Beds
Jun 6 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am
NC Cooperative Extension , Buncombe County Center

Sun & Shade Series:
Foodscaping Edible Plants in Flower Beds

 

IN-PERSON PROGRAM

Location: NC Cooperative Extension , Buncombe County Center, 49 Mount Carmel Road , Asheville, NC 28806

Presenter: John Fieselman, Extension Master GardenerSM Volunteer

Foodscaping aims to incorporate edible plants into an existing ornamental garden. The designs can incorporate various kinds of vegetables, fruit trees, berry bushes, edible flowers, and herbs, along with purely ornamental species. We will be demonstrating our foodscaping designs in the Sun & Shade garden.

A portion of this class will be in the garden, please dress appropriately for the weather.

Registration: The talk is free, but seating is limited and registration is required. Please click on the link below to register. If you encounter problems registering or if you have questions, call 828-255-5522.