Breaking through the "green wall": An introduction to plant identification. part 2 How to learn the name of a plant. Taxonomy. Plant families, genera and species: how to ID plants using "Newcomb's Wildflower Guide" & "Botany in a Day"; Latin names and their meaning.

Children under 6 free, age 6-12 half price.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person

In this 3-hour workshop you’ll learn how to become a hunter-gatherer on your own land. Once established, many of these species are care-free, and can be harvested for years to come. Knowing the appropriate habitat is one key to success. Another is knowing in advance the potential weediness or invasiveness of a species. Diversify your diet, CSA, or restaurant sales.

Breaking through the "green wall": An introduction to plant identification. part 1 How to look at a plant: important aspects of basic plant anatomy for plant ID purposes; the various types of roots, leaves, flowers & fruits and their terminology.

Children under 6 free, age 6-12 half price.

Gynostemma: Propagation, cultivation and uses of "the best plant to grow for your health" aka "Southern Ginseng" (contains ginsenosides), "Immortality vine" (known to promote longevity) - the easiest to grow and use adaptogenic plant.

Western North Carolina is ideally suited for wasabi cultivation. In this workshop I’ll share what I’ve learned over 25 years of working with wasabi, and we’ll inspect several plantings. Wasabi is easily grown if you can provide the right habitat, and a very high-end market is there and waiting. Seeds will be available for purchase and possibly some plants as well.

This class will focus on plant observation with discussions on botany and identification, cultivation, processing and medicine making, and clinical application in the diverse gardens developed by Joe Hollis over the last 50 years.

Thomas Avery Garran, PhD, is an herbalist, practitioner, author, translator, and scholar who has been studying botanical medicine for over 30 years. He holds a PhD in Chinese Materia Medica Studies from the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences in Beijing, China where he currently resides. Dr. Garran is widely published, and is the author and/or translator of four books including Western Herbs in Chinese Medicine: Methodology & Materia Medica, Western Herbs according to Chinese Medicine: A Practitioner’s Guide, and Chinese Herb Cultivation: Daodi Practices for Growing and Processing Chinese Herbs. His recent work focuses on daodi (local) herbs and agriculture, and bringing his nearly 16 years of living, farming, and studying in China back to the U.S.

In this half-day session we’ll spend the afternoon in the garden, learning about native Appalachian medicinal herbs: ID, ecology, propagation, cultivation and uses. We are repeating this workshop, which sold out in April.

Adaptogens to know and grow and use. Health and longevity promoting herbs which we can grow in this area. Adaptogens are herbs that help the body adapt to stress— in other words, health and longevity-promoting herbs.  This is my favorite category of herbs and I have put a lot of effort into acquiring and learning to grow them.   After a brief introduction to the concept, worldwide, and relevant literature, we’ll tour the garden examining  and discussing the plants.  

We’ll tour our large collection (100+ spp.), and discuss habitat, propagation & cultivation, harvesting and processing methods. Chinese medicinal herbs encompass a complete range of plant types (annual & perennial herbs, shrubs, vines, trees) and habitats (garden, woodland, wetland, etc). There is an established market, nationally and locally, but almost no growers. Be a pioneer!

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person

In this half-day session we’ll spend the afternoon in the garden, learning about native medicinal plants. We’ll cover ID, uses, ecology, propagation, cultivation and harvest of plants throughout the garden used in medicine.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person

In this half-day workshop you’ll learn how to become a hunter-gatherer on your own land. Once established, many of these species are care-free, and can be harvested for years to come. Knowing the appropriate habitat is one key to success.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person ($20 for students, residents of Yancey and Mitchell Counties, and groups of 3 or more)

In this workshop we will review all previous efforts to classify western (American & European) herbs in Chinese medicine categories (taste & character, meridians entered, actions & indications) – we have collected eight publications on the topic, plus we’ll be referencing 75+ reports by my students at Daoist Traditions. A particular focus will be native (S. Appalachian) herbs with closely related Chinese species, such as Black cohosh / sheng ma, wild yam / bie xie, Solomon’s seal / yu zhu, American ginseng / Asian ginseng, etc. Mountain Gardens offers a unique opportunity to view these herbs in close proximity.

In this half-day session we’ll spend the afternoon in the garden, learning about both native and introduced medicinal plants. We’ll cover ID, uses, ecology, propagation, cultivation and harvest of plants throughout the garden used in medicine.

In this half-day workshop you’ll learn how to become a hunter-gatherer on your own land. Once established, many of these species are care-free, and can be harvested for years to come. Knowing the appropriate habitat is one key to success. Another is knowing in advance the potential weediness or invasiveness of a species. Diversify your diet, CSA, or restaurant sales.

We’ll tour our large collection (100+ spp.), and discuss habitat, propagation & cultivation, harvesting and processing methods. Chinese medicinal herbs encompass a complete range of plant types (annual & perennial herbs, shrubs, vines, trees) and habitats (garden, woodland, wetland, etc). There is an established market, nationally and locally, but almost no growers. Be a pioneer!

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person ($20 for students, residents of Yancey and Mitchell Counties, and groups of 3 or more)

Western North Carolina is ideally suited for wasabi cultivation. In this workshop I’ll share what I’ve learned over 25 years of working with wasabi, and we’ll inspect several plantings. Wasabi is easily grown if you can provide the right habitat, and a very high-end market is there and waiting. Seeds will be available for purchase and possibly some plants as well. *This will be a three-hour workshop and cost will be $30.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person ($20 for students, residents of Yancey and Mitchell Counties, and groups of 3 or more)

In this half-day workshop, we’ll learn about adaptogens, herbs that help the body adapt to stress— in other words, health and longevity-promoting herbs.  This is my favorite category of herbs and I have put a lot of effort into acquiring and learning to grow them.   After a brief introduction to the concept, worldwide, and relevant literature, we’ll tour the garden examining  and discussing the plants.  

In this half-day workshop we will look at the variety of native woodland plant communities and the edible and medicinal plants associated with each in order to select appropriate plants for any type of woodland. We will discuss the propagation and cultivation / fertilization of important southern Appalachian useful woodland plants and their Asian relatives. We will also consider problems associated with invasive plants, both native and exotic, in a woodland setting.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person ($20 for students, residents of Yancey and Mitchell Counties, and groups of 3 or more)

In this half-day session we’ll spend the afternoon in the garden, learning about both native and introduced medicinal plants. We’ll cover ID, uses, ecology, propagation, cultivation and harvest of plants throughout the garden used in medicine.

In this half-day workshop you’ll learn how to become a hunter-gatherer on your own land. Once established, many of these species are care-free, and can be harvested for years to come. Knowing the appropriate habitat is one key to success. Another is knowing in advance the potential weediness or invasiveness of a species. Diversify your diet, CSA, or restaurant sales.

Join us for a two-hour walk in the garden, as we look at edibles, medicinals, and other useful plants. We’ll look at both native and introduced species. The walk will cover ID, cultivation, harvest, and uses.

$25 per person ($20 for students, residents of Yancey and Mitchell Counties, and groups of 3 or more)

In this half-day session we’ll spend the afternoon in the garden, learning about spring ephemerals, wildfoods, and other springtime plants. We’ll cover ID, uses, ecology, propagation, cultivation and harvest of a wide variety of edible, medicinal, and craft (fiber, dye. paper, basketry, etc., etc.) plants.