Greenhouse group seeks growth

Charles Clouse says he’d rather grow tomatoes than build condos on his West Asheville property.

A jumping glass gas: A group of local agronomy experts hopes to reopen Emerald Acres’ former greenhouses in West Asheville. The facility needs maintenance work to stop the blowout of uncaulked glass panes. photo by Cecil Bothwell

Clouse, who won a former poinsettia nursery in a lawsuit, owns a complex that includes nearly 24 acres under glass plus warehouses, furnaces, pumps, a lake and an electrical generator big enough to power a small village (see “Green from Grime,” May 30 Xpress). Unlike would-be developers, however, he wants to return the greenhouses to use—only this time to grow organic food.

Marilyn Vestal read about Clouse’s dreams of organic splendor and immediately phoned organic grower Chuck Marsh. Marsh shared Vestal’s excitement. “I couldn’t sleep that night,” he says. “The possibilities are endless.”

Marsh contacted Clouse and Glenda Rice of Emerald Acres Market LLC—a company formed to manage the nursery complex. Then he rounded up acquaintances who he guessed might be interested in the project, and they gathered at the greenhouses on July 10. The group’s goal is to reopen the facility as an organic growing, research and education center and a hub for regional food-security planning.

Greenhouse expert Ratus Fischer of EcoWorks Water Management conducted an initial inspection of the complex. “Growing could begin here at any time,” he reported. He said there is a rising demand for organic flowers, medicinal herbs and pharmaceutical-plant research as well as organic food, and that the prospects for profit are strong at the facility. He estimated the cost of returning the greenhouses to service as roughly $10,000 per acre.

There was discussion of how to organize the reopening. Frank Adams, a worker-owned-business expert with the Southern Appalachian Center for Cooperative Ownership, suggested that, for numerous reasons, creating a for-profit business, perhaps a worker-owned LLC, was more practical than establishing a nonprofit.

Peter Marks of the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project argued that however the facility is run, it should not provide subsidies to farmers. “We can’t undercut the market for other farmers by underwriting the growers here,” he said. “That doesn’t help build the local farm economy.”

The group also addressed the question of how to recruit growers. Growers may be asked to buy in, to become “sharecroppers” or to rent space. There was general agreement that the group would aim to begin production in some segment of the complex by next January, with cleanup and refurbishment starting by late this fall.

Organic farmer Tom Elmore, who works with the Land of Sky Regional Council, and Extension Agent Amanda Stone, an expert in commercial horticulture with the N.C. Cooperative Extension, offered their expertise as well.

Marsh, Clouse and Stone are eager for interested growers to contact them. Fischer and Marsh have slated a unit-by-unit audit of the facilities, with an eye on deciding where to start the rehab and what work needs to be done to preserve the whole facility until production can be ramped up. The group will meet again before the end of July to move toward a formal structure and issue a request for proposals.

For more information, contact Clouse at 280-8985, Rice at 258-9263 or Stone at 255-5522.

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Cecil Bothwell
A writer for Mountain Xpress since three years before there WAS an MX--back in the days of GreenLine. Former managing editor of the paper, founding editor of the Warren Wilson College environmental journal, Heartstone, member of the national editorial board of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, publisher of Brave Ulysses Books, radio host of "Blows Against the Empire" on WPVM-LP 103.5 FM, co-author of the best selling guide Finding your way in Asheville. Lives with three cats, macs and cacti. His other car is a canoe. Paints, plays music and for the past five years has been researching and soon to publish a critical biography--Billy Graham: Prince of War:

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

One thought on “Greenhouse group seeks growth

  1. dori

    i live right down the street from these greenhouses, and i just want to publicly thank the owner of this land for protecting it, and for bringing this into our little pocket of greenness and quiet. when i first saw these greenhouses i had some fantastical visions of what they could be (yes, exactly!) and i also had nightmares of it all disappearing for rows of condos (and ensuing idiots) and ruining what is currently a beautiful and green little pocket of rustic quiet (which is why i decided to move here in the first place). i am thrilled beyond belief about our upcoming new neighbors, and i’m ready to be involved in any capacity that i can.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.