Annual garden sale returns to Black Mountain

The Black Mountain Beautification Committee’s annual garden sale will return for the 18th year May 19 and May 20.

For the second year in a row, the sale will be held in the Town Square parking lot, along with a portion of Honeycutt Street. This marks the third location for the garden sale over the years. The first location was on Sutton Avenue and later at the Monte Vista Hotel.

The sale moved to its current location after a scheduling conflict at the hotel.

Roynan Jones, the Black Mountain Beautification Committee’s garden sale chairperson, said this new location works better for the sale because it is in a more central location.

She said there will be 20 vendors at the sale this year, ranging from growers to artists. In addition to these vendors, there will also be a bake sale and a “members market” where Beautification Committee members can sell their own goods.

There will also be a raffle where participants can enter to win a plant donated from the vendors. Jones said these plants are valued at around $30, and a raffle ticket can be purchased for $3, or two for $5.

Jones said the garden sale is the biggest fundraiser for the Black Mountain Beautification Committee and funds its other endeavors, including paying for repairs for the planters around town and plants to go in them. Funds come from application fees from vendors as well as the raffle.

Jones said it is a lot of work preparing for the garden sale each year, but it is worth it to her.

“It’s just a day of having people working together because it’s so much fun,” Jones said. “Many of our members look forward to it. It’s a lot of work, but it’s kind of like, after all this prep, it’s showtime.”

Jones said she starts preparing for the sale in December by applying to reserve the space. In January, the committee is looking for vendor applications, and by March these applications are finalized.

Black Mountain Beautification Committee member Libba Fairleigh said the sale began in 2004, just four years after the start of the committee itself. She said the idea came from a desire to bring in more plants to the town.

More:Black Mountain Beautification Committee presents community improvement awards

Fairleigh, who organized the sale in the past before handing over the task to Jones, said the sale is always the third weekend in May because spring is traditionally the busiest time for the growers and they have commitments on the other weekends. Because the Black Mountain sale has been going on so long, the third weekend in May has been reserved by most of the growers for this sale.

Jones and Fairleigh said this garden sale is unique in that the committee helps vendors load and unload their goods, as well as helps buyers pick up their purchases.

Fairleigh said each year the sale feels like a family reunion with returning vendors and buyers.

“One couple from Tennessee comes every year,” Fairleigh said. “They stay at the Monte Vista. They came down, and it’s basically like family at this point. Its very fun.”

The Black Mountain Beautification Committee Garden sale will be held adjacent to Town Square May 19 from 4-8 p.m. and May 20 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.