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X-WR-CALNAME:Winding Stair Gardens
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://windingstairgardens.com
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Winding Stair Gardens
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DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260502T100000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260502T160000
DTSTAMP:20260503T212151
CREATED:20260408T225354Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T143655Z
UID:3588-1777716000-1777737600@windingstairgardens.com
SUMMARY:2026 Spring Farm Tour
DESCRIPTION:This Event is Sold-Out \nThere is something about a lamb that stops people in their tracks. Come find out why. \nWinding Stair Mountain Farm is a living\, working farm twelve miles west of Franklin\, and for a morning or an afternoon this spring\, it is yours to explore. Meet our newest baby lambs\, the fearless Mama Peaches who guards them\, and a cast of characters that includes Sylvester the goose\, Icelandic sheep\, heritage chickens\, guinea hens\, and a flock of turkeys with strong opinions. Then watch as we fire up our hand-built\, traditional water-powered grain mill — a working reconstruction built the old way — and grind the organic corn grits and polenta you may have already spotted at our nursery on Saunders Road. \nWhat You’ll Experience: \n\nBaby lambs and Icelandic sheep\, including Cocoa Bean — and the chance to feed them by hand\nMama Peaches\, our resident donkey and self-appointed guardian of the flock\nSylvester the goose\, heritage chickens\, free-roaming guinea hens\, and our heritage turkey flock\nA live demonstration of our 18-foot water-powered grain mill grinding organic corn into grits and polenta\nA tour of our mountain vegetable garden and the story of this Blue Ridge property\nA look at the archival history of land that began as a logging site and became a thriving sustainable farm\n\n\nBoth sessions are strictly limited to 20 guests. This is not a petting zoo or a staged experience — it is the real thing\, and it only happens once this spring. \nThis one is a good fit for families with young children\, anyone who grew up around farming and wants to feel that again\, and anyone curious about what real Appalachian land stewardship looks like up close. \nWinding Stair Campground Spring Farm Tour\nMay 2 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am\n\n10:00 am – 11:30 am (SOLD OUT)\n1:00 pm – 2:30 pm (SOLD OUT)\nAdults: $20 | Children under 10: $10 | Family Bundle available \nAbout Greg & Stacy: Stacy and Greg are the stewards of Winding Stair Mountain Farm — the hands behind the animals\, the mill\, and everything that makes this tour worth the drive. Their commitment to historic Appalachian building methods\, native plants\, and sustainable farming isn’t a program or a philosophy. It’s just how they live\, and how they’ve shaped this land. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThis Event is Sold-Out
URL:https://windingstairgardens.com/event/2026-spring-farm-tour/
LOCATION:Winding Stair Campground\, 7984 Old West Murphy Road\, Franklin\, NC\, 28734\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://windingstairgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Meet-the-Sheep-SOLD-OUT-jpg.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260516T100000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260516T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T212151
CREATED:20260406T192141Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260415T202811Z
UID:3496-1778925600-1778932800@windingstairgardens.com
SUMMARY:Tame Your Steep Slope
DESCRIPTION:Saturday May 16th\, 2026 | 10am\nChoose-Your-Price: ($5 -$30)\nYour steep slope isn’t just an eyesore. It’s moving. Slowly\, steadily\, and after a heavy rain? It heads downhill\, taking your soil with it. \nSteep slope erosion is one of the most common — and most urgent — challenges for homeowners across Western North Carolina. The good news? The right plants can fix it fast. \nIn this class\, Greg Mason will demonstrate proven techniques to tame your steep slope that goes beyond the usual advice. You’ll learn about plants with root systems that will actually hold your hillside\, while building something that looks like it was always supposed to be there. \nWhat You’ll Cover: \n\nReading Your Slope: How to assess grade\, soil composition\, and water movement to understand what you’re actually working with before you plant a single thing\nRoots That Work: Which species establish quickly and send roots deep enough to bind soil and slow erosion\, even on serious grades\nThe Beauty Part: How to layer in native shrubs\, groundcovers\, and perennials so your slope looks like a natural mountain habitat rather than an erosion-control project\nPlant Selection for Our Region: Specific varieties that thrive in our acidic soils and mountain climate\, including what performed well and what didn’t survive Helene\nInstallation Without Making It Worse: Practical guidance on planting into a slope without disturbing the soil more than necessary\nLong-Term Thinking: What your slope will look like in year one\, year three\, and beyond as plants mature and the root network does its job\n\nClass includes time built-in for questions\, site-specific conversations\, and the kind of practical problem-solving that only comes from someone who has actually planted a lot of steep slopes. Bring pictures of your slope challenges\, and Greg will share his expert recommendations. \nAbout Greg: As Winding Stair’s Nursery Manager\, Greg Mason knows these mountain plants from the roots up. He brings a BA in Landscape Architecture along with real-world experience to help you see your slope not as a problem to manage\, but as one of the most beautiful parts of your property waiting to happen. \nPurchase your ticket at our new\, secure online portal here!
URL:https://windingstairgardens.com/event/tame-your-steep-slope/
LOCATION:Winding Stair Gardens\, 57 Saunders Rd.\, Franklin\, NC\, 28734\, United States
CATEGORIES:Home Page Loop,Nursery
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://windingstairgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Tame-Your-Steep-Slope-REVISED-WEBP.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Winding Stair Gardens":MAILTO:eric@windingstairfarm.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260530T100000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260530T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T212151
CREATED:20260421T175201Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260421T193324Z
UID:3638-1780135200-1780142400@windingstairgardens.com
SUMMARY:Native Bees: Species & Superpowers
DESCRIPTION:Saturday May 30th\, 2026 | 10am\nChoose-Your-Price: ($5 -$30)\nNorth America has over 4\,000 species of native bees\, and most of them are far better pollinators than the honeybee you’ve been trying to attract. Our native bees are the most efficient and effective pollinators\, especially for the native plants they have pollinated for hundreds of thousands of years. Brannen Basham and Jill Jacobs of Spriggly’s Beescaping are coming to Winding Stair Gardens to introduce you to the bees your garden actually needs\, and show you how to roll out the welcome mat for them. \nWhat You’ll Cover: \n\nWhich Native Bees are Actually Out There: Enjoy an introduction to the native bee species common to Western North Carolina\, exploring their appearance\, habitat\, behaviors\, and specialities.\nWhat They Need to Stick Around: The nesting conditions\, plant choices\, and small habitat decisions that turn a regular garden into a place bees come back to season after season\nPlants That Do the Real Work: Which flowering species attract the most diverse pollinator activity\, and how to plant a space that provides blooms throughout the growing season\nGetting Started Without Overcomplicating: Realistic\, low-cost steps you can take this season to see results\, whether you have a half-acre or a back porch with some containers\n\nBring your gardening problems and pictures- Brannen & Jill love to answer your questions! \nAbout Spriggly’s Beescaping: Brannen Basham and Jill Jacobs built Spriggly’s Beescaping right here in Western North Carolina with one clear focus: connecting people with nature and showing them how to support local ecosystems in their own outdoor spaces. Their business focuses on nature education and habitat restoration\, offering online courses\, books\, consultations\, landscape design and much more. They know their bees\, they know this region\, and they know how to make all of it make sense to a regular gardener. \nPurchase your ticket at our new\, secure online portal here!
URL:https://windingstairgardens.com/event/native-bees-species-superpowers/
LOCATION:Winding Stair Gardens\, 57 Saunders Rd.\, Franklin\, NC\, 28734\, United States
CATEGORIES:Home Page Loop,Nursery
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://windingstairgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Native-Bees-Species-WEBP.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Winding Stair Gardens":MAILTO:eric@windingstairfarm.com
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DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260530T130000
DTEND;TZID=UTC:20260530T143000
DTSTAMP:20260503T212151
CREATED:20260427T132733Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260427T141739Z
UID:3679-1780146000-1780151400@windingstairgardens.com
SUMMARY:Introduction to Mountain Gardening
DESCRIPTION:Saturday May 30th\, 2026 | 1pm\nChoose-Your-Price: ($5 -$30)\nYour mountain property is not a blank canvas. It’s a slope. It’s shade. It’s soil that would make a flatlander nervous. And if you have deer… well\, you know. \nThe good news? Every one of those things is workable. This beginner-friendly workshop with Arielle McIntyre is built for people who are new to gardening\, new to these mountains\, or both. You’ll leave with a real plan: which plants to put where\, how to stop fighting your soil\, and how to build a garden that actually takes care of itself. \nWhat You’ll Cover: \n\nReading Your Property: How to look at your yard the way a designer does: slope direction\, shade patterns\, water movement\, and what your soil is actually telling you before you buy a single plant\nWorking With Acidic Mountain Soil: What grows well in it\, what doesn’t\, and how to stop treating it like a problem to overcome\nPlants That Earn Their Keep: Native species and deer-resistant selections that thrive here without constant attention from you\nThe Shade Question: Which plants will actually perform under a tree canopy and how to layer them so the shaded spots become some of the best-looking areas on your property\nDeer Strategy: Honest\, field-tested guidance on what actually discourages deer browsing (and what the deer have long since figured out)\nDesigning for Low Maintenance: How to think about plant placement\, spacing\, and succession so your garden gets better over time rather than requiring more work\n\nThis class is perfect for those who aren’t long-time gardeners\, or those folks with a ton of experience but aren’t accustomed to the unique ecosystem found in the southern Appalachian mountains. \nAbout Arielle: Arielle McIntyre doesn’t just know what grows here; she knows how to make it beautiful. As the owner of Kintyre Design and co-creator of the Placemakers Academy of Garden Design\, she brings years of working with resilient\, regionally grounded plantings to every project. \nPurchase your ticket at our new\, secure online portal here!
URL:https://windingstairgardens.com/event/introduction-to-mountain-gardening/
LOCATION:Winding Stair Gardens\, 57 Saunders Rd.\, Franklin\, NC\, 28734\, United States
CATEGORIES:Home Page Loop,Nursery
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ORGANIZER;CN="Winding Stair Gardens":MAILTO:eric@windingstairfarm.com
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