Campus Gardens
SEC Garden Crew Members host several weekly garden workdays for each of the gardens that anyone, of any experience level, is welcome to attend! Garden hours change each semester so check back each semester for updated workday hours. For locations and more information on each garden, follow the links below!
Please contact one of our Garden Crew Members if you have any questions about the campus gardens or workday hours. Garden updates and events are posted on the @secgardens Instagram page.
Garden Workday Hours (Fall 2025)
Castanea Forest Garden: Wednesdays from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm.
Sol Garden: Tuesdays from 11:30 am – 12:30 pm.
ROOTS Garden: Sundays from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
Castanea Forest Garden
Castanea Forest Garden
The Castanea Edible Forest Garden is a living representation of permaculture ideas and serves as a food forest for all living communities! Castanea features many edible perennial plants, including pawpaws, mulberries, plums, persimmons, raspberries, strawberries, passionfruit and chestnuts, that will support our local community and provide students with opportunities to connect with nature for decades to come.
Where is Castanea Garden located?
Castanea Forest Garden is located adjacent to the Sam Millar Facilities Complex. It is on the side of the building which faces the Kimmel Arena and Parking Deck.
How do I get involved?
Throughout the school year and the summer term, Garden Managers hold open Garden Workdays that will be posted on the SEC Gardens Instagram page.
What is the garden’s history?
On March 24, 2012, 23 students, faculty, and community members came together to plant the first edible forest garden in the UNC school system. The garden has over 20 species of fruit, nut, berry, and food plants.
The club committed to expanding the permaculture movement at UNC Asheville as an effort to address the pressing environmental issues of climate change, food access, biodiversity loss, and anthropocentric disconnection from the land that created us.
The Edible Forest Garden Club also focused on being a cooperative learning-teaching group of students. Their goal was to spread the knowledge of how easy it is to utilize plant species for food and nourishment through demonstrations on campus.
The management of the garden was passed on to the SEC as a way to continue student interest and involvement even after club members graduated.
The Edible Forest Garden Club’s Community Garden was funded through the SEC’s Green Grants program.
ROOTS Garden
ROOTS Garden
The largest of the SEC gardens, ROOTS serves as a space for UNC Asheville students & faculty as well as Asheville community members to learn and participate in sustainable agriculture practices. The intergenerational activities that are practiced in the garden are intended to make connections between the diverse communities and neighborhoods of Asheville, educational institutions, and various sectors of the food system. ROOTS garden serves as an opportunity to gain and share knowledge, which in turn will create a community response to local food insecurity.
Where is ROOTS Garden located?
ROOTS is located on the Rhoades Property – the last driveway on the right hand side of W.T. Weaver, before it intersects with Merrimon.
How do I get Involved?
Throughout the school year and the summer term, Garden Managers hold open garden workdays that will be posted on the SEC Gardens Instagram page.
Sol Garden
Sol Garden
The UNC Asheville Sol Garden is a student-led urban garden that focuses on facilitating educational opportunities for students and community members of all backgrounds and disciplines. Sol Garden is an experimental space dedicated to annual and perennial production of vegetables, fruit, herbs, medicines, and pollinator-friendly plants. It is a space where students can take the first steps into the insightful world of growing plants and discussing the greater implications of doing so. Our mission is to connect people around growing food and to build community in doing so. To address the often inaccessible structure of communal gardens and other green spaces, the layout of the Sol Garden is designed for volunteers of all levels of ability.
Where is Sol Garden located?
Sol Garden is located behind Brown Hall and Highsmith Student Union.
How do I get Involved?
Throughout the school year and the summer term, garden managers hold open garden workdays and events that will be posted on the SEC Gardens Instagram page.
Contact Us
218 Highsmith University Union, CPO 1200
One University Heights, Asheville, NC 28804
Office: (828) 232-5143
Fax: (828) 251-6759
Email: sec@unca.edu