Hella End-of-Summer Weekend in Asheville

(Photo of Christopher Mello's Gnomon garden by Zen Sutherland)

Looks like the cool weather has awakened the sleeping giant that is BlogAsheville... Good thing, too, because this weekend rocks.

Saturday

• Asheville FM Open House and Launch Party

Asheville FM, our new community radio station, hosts an open house from 2–7 p.m. Saturday behind the West Asheville Izzy's at 373 Haywood Road. The party continues at 9 p.m. at the Grey Eagle with musical guests Floating Action, Ahleuchatistas, & the Space Heaters.

Tickets for the Grey Eagle event available at thegreyeagle.com and Harvest Records, $6 advance and $8 at the door.

• First Annual West Asheville Garden Stroll

A free tour of 15 gardens in five West Asheville areas. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Demonstrations and talks by garderners, music, food and drink. Garden descriptions are here.

(Several I haven't seen look great, but Christopher Mello's weird, playful and gorgeous Gnomon garden is a local treasure, IMO.)

Neighborhoods include

• Vermont/Sulphur Springs
• Falconhurst
• Brucemont/Louisiana
• Burton Street
• East West Asheville

The big purple LaZoom Tour Bus will run between neighborhoods.

The stroll kicks off at 10:30 a.m. at the West Asheville Library, 942 Haywood Road, with a ceremony honoring the library's longtime volunteer gardener Tom Jordan. For more information, call the West Asheville Branch Library, 250-4750.

Sunday

• Organicfest

10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Battery Park Ave.
live music
organic food
80+ vendors
arts and crafts
(My best friend is a big Organicfest fan, she says they give away so many free samples of organic products you should bring your own shopping bag to carry it all. Just saying!)

• Twestival

2-8 p.m. Asheville Pizza on Coxe
The locals who brought us last years benefit event ($6000 raised for water wells in the developing world) join again for a fun community benefit for the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, a WNC organization connecting growers and buyers for a sustainable, local food connection.

This year's event offers live music, a raffle, a live musical cake walk, local produce, a photo booth and a pizza creation contest. Asheville’s own Now You See Them headlines.

Tix are $10 ($7 with promo code "localfood" when you purchase tix online here).