Stem Structure and Related Whimsy
Before bunnies, Beatrix Potter majored in fungi. Known today for her darling, bushy-tailed characters, the British illustrator once penned many a mushroom. She studied…
Keeping Up with the Farmer Joneses
Cyndi Ball’s homesteading journey started more than 20 years ago in a town outside Seattle — what she calls “granola country.” After trying to…
Bouquets For Days (and Months)
If wedding ceremonies are the bread and butter of Western North Carolina’s budding cut-flower industry, then a monthly subscription service is the scrumptious, locally-sourced…
Taking Off
Everyone has heard of tiny homes: micro residences that prioritize intentional living over palatial foyers and seldom-used spare bedrooms. But now, three mountain builders…
The Secret’s in the Soil
Winter is a meditative time for Black Mountain’s Diana S. McCall. Manager of the town’s one-acre Dr. John Wilson Community Garden, McCall reserves the…
In the Zone
Brian Killingsworth grew up in Charleston, SC, where his mother and father pruned Golden Celebration roses and potted Parrot Tulip bulbs. They were master…
Solving the Puzzle
When Gilbert Jason Contreras entered remission after six months of chemo, he knew he couldn’t return to his old life. “My oncologist told me,…
More Than Tomato-Skin Deep
Growers liken the Cherokee Purple to a leg bruise, and it’s an apt (if not particularly appetizing) description of the popular tomato. “They’ve got…
Secrets in the Swamp
A picture is worth a thousand words. But even professional photographer Michael Oppenheim admits that 15,000 frames can’t fully realize the primordial tenor of…
Water in the Balance
Bullington Gardens Director John Murphy traces his agrarian roots back to the low-lying Swannanoa Valley, where he worked Warren Wilson College’s farm as an…