It’s growing season: Locate your neighborhood community garden

Photo courtesy of Beaverdam Community Garden.

Community gardens do more than just grow food. They help to build a sense of community by giving neighbors an opportunity to work together and get to know each other. They increase nutritional education and access to healthy food by providing affordable, often free, produce to neighbors in need or area food-assistance programs. They offer a community gathering spot for both recreation and discussion, often leading to organizing for other community efforts. Community gardens beautify neighborhoods, often occupying otherwise empty lots and, in many cases, making neighborhoods safer.

The WNC area is rich with community gardens of all sorts — from CSAs to donation gardens that grow for area food banks to education gardens for public schools. Xpress is working to compile a database of community gardens to help interested neighbors find and support these community efforts. To add your garden to our database, send the address, contact information, volunteer workdays (if applicable), cost of plot rental (if applicable) and a brief description to ceidson@mountainx.com.

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Map | Buncombe County | Jackson County | Mitchell County | Yancey County |

Buncombe County

Name: Beaverdam Community Garden at YMCA

Address: 201 Beaverdam Road

Website: nccgp.org

Volunteer workdays: Inquire for details

Contact: wlong@ymcawnc.org

Grows for: Education for YMCA youth programs and donation for YMCA Mobile Kitchen and pantry at Beaverdam site. Allotment plots for community members also available.

 

Name: Burton Street Community Peace Gardens

Address: 47 Bryan St.

Website: burtonstreet.org

Volunteer workdays: Saturdays, 10a.m.-noon

Contact: 828-301-0166

Grows for: Community members, education and job training for neighborhood youth

 

Name: Crossroads Assembly Community Garden

Address: 20 South Bear Creek Road

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Inquire for details

Contact: g_adalins@att.net, 665-0708

Grows for: Local food banks via donation of 50 percent of yield

 

Name: Dr. George Washington Carver Edible Garden

Address: 30 George Washington Carver Ave.

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Mondays, 4-6 p.m.

Contact: majerla@hotmail.com

Grows for: Education and feeding any community members who wander through

 

Name: Dr. John Wilson Community Garden

Address: 99 White Pine Dr., Black Mountain

Website: Black Mountain Rec Department

Volunteer workdays: Saturdays, 1-3pm; additional dates available for groups upon request.

Contact: diana.mccall@townofblackmountain.org

Grows for: Food assistance programs, via donation-only beds and a portion of each rental plot
Name: Falconhurst Community Garden

Address: 61 Blue Ridge Ave.

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Most Sundays. Contact for details.

Contact: 828-252-2441 or AshevilleJM@gmail.com

Grows for: Members. Open to interested families or individuals in or with ties to the surrounding community.

 

Name: Good Faith Community Garden

Address: 1418 Patton Ave.

Website: abernethy.org

Volunteer workdays: Saturdays, 10 a.m.- 2 p.m.

Contact: 254-2612 or 712-0620

Grows for: Steadfast House Women and Children’s Shelter, BEAR Closet and Haywood Street Mission

 

Name: Grace Covenant Community Garden

Address: 789 Merrimon Ave.

Website: gcpcusa.org

Contact: hobblein@hotmail.com

Workdays: Multiple. Inquire for details.

Grows for: Various local food assistance programs via 75-80 percent donation of yield

 

Name: Home Grown Garden

Address: 80 Lake Eden Road, Black Mountain

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Saturdays, 9 a.m.-11 a.m.

Contact: milawkirkland@gmail.com

Grows for: Black Mountain Home for Children, Youth & Families

 

Name: Joyner Community Garden

Address: 30 Joyner Ave.

Website: bountifulcities.org

Volunteer workdays: Contact for details

Contact: erickemp01@yahoo.com or 828-595-6236

Grows for: Volunteers and the community on or around Joyner Avenue.

 

Name: Kenilworth Presbyterian Community Garden

Address: 123 Kenilworth Road

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Inquire

Contact: 828-252-8872

Grows for: Loving Food Resources

 

Name: Love and Fishes Bountiful Garden

Address: 297 Haywood St.

Website: Haywoodstreet.org

Volunteer workdays: Wednesdays, 9 a.m.- noon and Saturdays 9 a.m.-noon

Contact: lmichael9@gmail

Grows for: The Downtown Welcome Table

 

Name: Pisgah View Peace Garden

Address: 1 Granada St.

Website: pisgahviewpeacegarden.com

Volunteer workdays: Contact for details

Contact: gfelsen@hotmail.com

Grows for: Community members as well as the elderly, disabled and homeless

 

Name: Sand Hill Community Garden

Address: 58 Apac Circle

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Saturdays, 10 a.m.-noon

Contact: 828-250-4260

Grows for: MANNA FoodBank via donation of a portion of the yield

 

Name: Shiloh Community Garden

Address: Hampton Street & Century Boulevard

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Contact for details

Contact: 828-274-7739 or shilohcommunityassociation@gmail.com

Grows for: Education and community enrichment, donation to volunteers and community members

 

Name: The Lord’s Acre

Address: Joe Jenkins Road, Fairview

Website: thelordsarce.org

Volunteer workdays: Wednesdays, 6 p.m.-8 p.m. Addition days for groups of 5-10 upon request.

Contact: thelordsacre@gmail.com

Grows for: Food for Fairview and Share the Harvest

 

Jackson County

Name: Cullowhee Community Garden

Address: 65 S. Painter Road, Cullowhee

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Wednesday evenings, Saturday mornings. Additional times for groups available upon request.

Contact: bigelownc@gmail.com

Grows for: Jackson County food organizations including the Community Table and the Market, via a 50 percent or greater donation of yield from each plot

 

Name: Sylva Community Garden

Address: 127 Bartlett Street, Sylva

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Thursdays, 5 p.m.  Additional times for groups available upon request.

Contact: karriejoseph@hotmail.com

Grows for: The Sylva Community Table via a 50 percent or greater donation of yield from each plot.

 

Mitchell County

Name: Green Valley Community Garden

Address: Weatherman Road, Spruce Pine

Website: Facebook

Volunteer workdays: Inquire.

Contact: greenvalleygarden@gmail.com

Grows for: Food assistance programs in Mitchell & Avery counties via donation of a portion of yield

 

Yancey County

Name: Dig In! Yancey Community Garden

Address: Bolens Creek Road, Yancey County

Website: diginyancey.org

Volunteer workdays: Tuesday 5-8pm; Thursday, 8am-noon; Saturdays, 4-7pm

Contact: info@diginyancey.org

Grows for: Food assistance programs in Yancey County

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About Carrie Eidson
Multimedia journalist and Green Scene editor at Mountain Xpress. Part-time Twitterer @mxenv but also reachable at ceidson@mountainx.com. Follow me @carrieeidson

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