M R Gardens: Healthy Plants, Healthy Landscapes
M R Gardens is a resource for home gardeners, local businesses and community organizers. Owner Megan Riley gives advice on how to
install no-till Microbe Rich ("M R") garden systems and fills special orders of vegetable
starts, native herbaceous perennials and medicinal herb plants. Megan's philosophy is that
well-managed gardens add to growers' quality of life on multiple levels, and
those benefits should extend to all segments of the community. "Everyone
can benefit from a garden, no matter how big or small the garden is,"
Megan said. "As our culture switches to healthy eating, reviving tasty
nutritious vegetable varieties that are not easily shipped, more people will
need to take part in growing their own food. This is key in ensuring healthy
food is affordable for everyone in the community."
Four
principles guide M R Gardens: Health, Community, Traditions and Sustainable
Systems
Health: Since Megan grows on a small scale, she gives individual attention to the plants and her customers in hopes of producing healthy products and relationships. She follows organic practices so that her plants grow strong over a natural time period.
Health: Since Megan grows on a small scale, she gives individual attention to the plants and her customers in hopes of producing healthy products and relationships. She follows organic practices so that her plants grow strong over a natural time period.
Community: Megan offers a sliding scale so that all
residents in her community can afford healthy plants. Those who want to support
M R Gardens on a larger level help offset the costs. Megan also reaches out to
community organizations that are spreading access of healthy food to low-income
areas.
Traditions: The corner of Oakley where M R Gardens is located
used to be a strong farming community, and her neighbors often talk about the
spectacular garden that the former owners of her land tended. Bits of that
gardening tradition still remain in the community, and Megan hopes to reinspire
her neighbors. Megan buys seed from a local company as well as exchanges heirloom seeds with Cherokee Reservation growers
and others who have been in the mountains for generations.
Sustainable
Systems: Megan
promotes a no-till, low maintenance garden system that relies on layers of
organic matter, microorganisms and healthy soil structure to create a good habitat for plants.
She also incorporates native and/or beneficial plants to attract pollinating
insects and garden pest predators.
Call
828.333.4151 or email megan@mrgardens.net to place an order or set up an
appointment.
