Word from up the road in Tuckaseegee is frost has arrived.This news brings with it what most gardeners and farmers in Jackson County consider the end of the growing season. Aside from a few hearty vegetables, there is little that will now grow successfully here in the mountains. And so most of us will begin the work of tilling and plowing and sewing cover crops — in essence putting our gardens and fields to bed for another year. However, here at the tailgate market, even with word of frost, there are still growers bringing in some produce planted late, or fall crops planted early in August. So, there is still fresh and canned food for sale to accompany the nursery plants and herbs. Wearing long-sleeved shirts and light jackets today, as opposed to what has been lighter summer wear for the previous three months, the vendors keep warm with a constant chatter which continues on through the morning. I’ve been talking this morning with Neil Dawson, who has parked next to me in line on “tailgate row,” and we’re talking about the nursery business and mainly the non-produce side of the farmer’s market phenomenon. As noon approaches, and the vendors begin to pack up to go home, Neil invites me to come over to his nursery in Tuckaseegee so I can see first hand what we have been talking about all morning. Fascinated by our conversation, I agree to go.

Dawson Green, the name of Neil and Peggy Dawson’s Tuckaseegee nursery “green” — which refers to “farm” or “field.” Neil’s dad’s farm down in LaGrange, North Carolina, was called “Dawson Farm.”

“I’ve always wanted to use that name for a place of our own up here in the mountains,” says Peggy as the three of us sit out in the 30-by-100 foot main greenhouse of their operation located on the Tuckaseegee River near the intersection of N.C. 281 and 107. “We’ve just changed ‘farm’ to ‘green’ because of the old-country connection and the reference to our green house business, and as a metaphor for the living things we produce. It has a certain charm, don’t you think?” she says, askingly, with her familiar and slightly sarcastic smile.

Peggy leaves us to return to the house, where she is busy preparing what will be ribs and hushpuppies for a benefit dinner for the Tuckaseegee Volunteer Fire Department later in the day. As I look around me in the largest of the three greenhouses, I see I am surrounded by a great variety of hundreds of well-tended and displayed potted and hanging plants as well as all kinds of accessory items, both functional and decorative. Proudly displayed near the front of the building is a large plaque which reads: “MidAtlantic Regional Garden Faire, 1st Place, Best Display of Plant Material.”

This is Neil’s fourth year of being self-employed. The former Western Carolina student has lived in jackson County for 25 years. For all of that time, Neil has been Farm Manager for Wolf Creek Tree Farm and Nursery in Cullowhee. Today, he splits his time between Dawson Green and the tree farm.
As we walk around the greenhouse, Neil tells me about the business and answers my many questions.
“What we have, essentially, is a spring greenhouse operation — meaning that we open to the public for walk-in business by mid-March and continue until the 4th of July. The rest of the year we are open by appointment only. We are a 50 percent retail and 50 percent wholesale operation. This means that we sell to both retail businesses (such as farm supply stores and landscape nurseries) and to individuals.
We have a full line of vegetables — much of which is grown as ‘custom garden starters,’ starting plants in flats for personal gardens — and annual flowers, as well as perennials and exotic species. Everything we sell is grown from seed or root stock, right here. It’s a real hands-on operation. Greenhouse work is hard work and very time consuming. I’ve gotten a real education starting this business!” says Neil, wiping some imaginary sweat from his brow.

“I grew up farming. My background is mainly in tobacco and soybeans. I’ve used my knowledge of farming and soil science and applied it to my work with the Christmas tree business. I’ve also maintained a family garden for many years. My friends and neighbors and people from the community started coming over at some point and began asking to buy vegetables from my garden. Well, those humble beginnings led to what you see here, now.” As Neil talks, I am looking at a beautifully exotic orange-and-white flowering plant hanging overhead in a smoke-vine basket. I ask Neil what this plant is.
“That’s a Siberian Iris. I call it the orchid of the iris world. We grow 30 to 40 varieties of Siberian Irises. These kinds of plants, you might say, are my passion. The greenhouse operation all began with the small 10-by-20 foot greenhouse out back. I’ve always had a love for orchids and exotic specialty plants such as tillandsias and rare irises. I’m a member of the American Iris, orchid, and Siberian Iris Societies. In this sense, I guess you could say uniqueness is our specialty here at Dawson Green. We’ve found we can’t compete with Wal-Mart for flower-bed annuals, so our business, more and more, is focusing on perennials and exotic species. In addition to the orchids and irises, we grow and sell several different types of flowering ginger, tillandsia, banana plants, bog plants, ferns, and exotic dwarf trees such as ginko, burning bush and Japanese maples. This is the direction our business is moving in, along with the herbacious perennials, or permanent plantings — such as hostas, phlox, columbines, etc....

“Largely, we carry what our customers want. And this is Peg’s specialty — learning to read people and the market, and trying to be current with the coming trends, yet keeping the business one that caters to the community.”

Having made our way through the three greenhouses and a large well-organized garden, we wander over to the house, where Peg is in the kitchen busy preparing for the Volunteer Fire Department dinner. On the wall above the stove is a wooden sign that says: “Martha Stewart doesn’t live here!” Peg smiles as she sees me staring at her sign — her wonderful wit and sense of humor ever present. “You boys getting hungry?” she asks, grinning sheepishly. If it’s ribs you’re hankering for, you’re going to have to wait,” she says, and smiles. As I ask her about Dawson Green, she talks while she kneads cornmeal dough for hushpuppies.

“While the greenhouse business is a lot of work, I like the independence of working for myself. On the other hand, one has to be resourceful living here in the mountains. But I like the challenge of trying to spot the trends before they become trendy, if you know what I mean? And I like the process of providing things that aren’t available at Wal-Mart and at garden shows — things like smoke-vine baskets, rustic-made birdhouses and garden sculptures that compliment the greenery that we grow. This sort of thing is common fare here in Tuckaseegee, but in the outside world these things are objects d’art! We’ve got people coming to us from as far away as Charlotte to get this kind of thing. All of these items are produced here locally, made by folks right here in the community. I like the idea of supporting the local economy, the community — of growing and selling locally. Keeping things close to home. This has always been a conscious imperative for me in my end of the business. From seed to buyer, we’re almost 100 percent local.

“Neil’s talents are for farming, production. My interests are more people-oriented and in sales, so that’s where most of my time is spent.”

“Peg’s more the people person of the two of us,” Neil chimes in. “But I’ve been honing my people skills this summer at the Sylva Farmer’s Market. I’ve enjoyed the camaraderie there as much as the commerce. And I’ve come away from this year’s market knowing what I need to concentrate on growing next year. I’ve learned that not everyone loves eggplant and okra,” he says, smiling.

“There’s always something we have to be thinking about even when we’re doing other things, seems like. This afternoon, we’ll be discussing next year’s seeds, over ribs,” Peg pipes in, laughing.

I use this opportunity to ask about the future. “What do you see in your crystal ball?” I ask Peggy.

“Two things,” she replies without batting an eye. “Roses! And medicinal plants. Roses are making a come-back. Especially the new hardy varieties that will do well here in the mountains. As for the medicinal herbs and plants, I find that people are becoming more and more interested in learning about natural medicines and remedies. And I want to be part of the movement toward a more self-sufficient and natural health care system. Synthetic medicines are just too unreliable and expensive without the alternative of something more organic.

“While we want to expand and to change, we’re going about it slowly. Learning as we go,” Neil adds. “And we’ve enjoyed contributing to the Farmer’s Market this year. I’m happy to see a market here in Jackson County. We’ve needed one for a long time, and it looks like it’s been a success. It’s been a good year down on Mill Street. And next year should be even better.”

As I walk back to my truck, and with the perfumed smell of basil, orchids, garden plants and fertile earth hovering in the air around the Dawson farm, I, too, think back over the course of the summer and the benefits brought to all by the creation and existence of the tailgate market, and the good times had in the process. And I think, with special gratitude, of Johnny and Karen White and Christy Bredenkamp — founders of the Jackson County Farmer’s Market .... where the conversation and the tales are as endless and as interesting as the food is good.

(The Dawson Green web page can be found at: www.thedawsongreen.com . To contact Neil or Peggy Dawson for more information or for orders, call 828.293.5057, or email: dawgreen@gte.net, or write or come by at 194 Canada Rd./Tuckaseegee, NC, 28783.)

 

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The Smoky Mountain News