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Taste the New Delights

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Chasing Sunsets and Waterfalls

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Help PAC Stay on Track

As a former Girl Scout I was taught to be prepared, always.  So, not willing to give up I prepared to hold our concerts if we were allowed to gather during this Covid-19 chaos.  So far that hasn’t happened. I commend Gov. Cooper on taking the path to try and keep us all safe and well. However, it did mean …

Learning to Love Limbo

My name is Missy (Ada Holmes) McIver, age 74.   When did I become a member of the vulnerable generation?  I majored in Art History, which gave me a lifelong love of art, but was too intimidated to try studio art.    In my 20’s I spent a year studying photography and calligraphy, both lifelong avocations.  I am also a …

Whimsical Works

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of Roy Minshew is his stature, a very imposing man of great height and structure, but one with a deep, dry wit and humor, along with a classic Southern drawl.  Roy was born in 1950 in south Georgia where he has lived his entire life, except for his stint in the …


The Art of Collecting

We all collect something we love, and when you visit The Bascom you’re sure to find that something. With a focus on local and regional artists in our Shop, you will always find work in wood, ceramics, glass, paper, and more. Whether it is an exquisite turned bowl by one of the world-renowned Moulthrops, an amazing crystalline glazed ceramic piece …

Kokedama Mama

Given time, Janice Mankovich of Little Flowering Mountain would fall in love with just about every kind of flower and/or foliage on the planet. Last week it was Snapdragons. Today it’s Chinese Asters. Next week it could be Dianthus or Pansies or Galax. She often showcases this week’s best foliage pal in a delightful natural hanging planter, self-contained, made of …

Plateau’s Artful Icon

Patty Calderone is synonymous with Fine Art in Highlands. She knows her way around a canvas,  around the region’s consortium of artists, around the complex business of art, and lately around the art of France. She’s a talented artlaw (art outlaw), upending traditions and rules in surprising, inventive ways. She began as a watercolorist. Over the years, Patty broke through …


Flies and Specks

Most of us know them as Brook Trout, or Brookies, but if you grew up in Western North Carolina,  you know them as “Specks.”    Specks are our only native trout species here in the Southeast, and they are technically an Arctic Char.   I know what you’re thinking…native species / Southeast / Arctic Char?…something doesn’t add up.   Millions …

Red-bellied Woodpecker

This relatively large, Robin-sized bird is common year-round on our Plateau and in the eastern U.S. from Canada to Florida. The Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) has a black-and-white barred back and wings with a pale pink belly. The male has a distinct red crown and nape. The female has similar plumage but lacks the red crown.  Look for these birds …

Perfecting Your Putting

I was recently asked by a student of mine what part of the game I felt players struggled with the most.  The answer was easy, putting! I think it’s a pretty well-known fact that the quickest way to shave strokes off your round is to tighten up your putting. Yet I see very few people actually practicing this skill. When people …


Visit Dry Falls

About three miles northwest of Highlands on US 64/NC 28 along the Cullasaja River is Dry Falls.  The trip from Highlands follows a National Scenic Byway which is part of a nine-mile declension of the river, forming a series of falls and cascades that culminate in Dry Falls before flowing into the Tennessee River near Franklin. There are pull-offs along …

A Landscape Mainstay

The Hydrangea is a genus of over 75 species and native to Asia as well as the Americas, but  we are used to seeing only three-to-six species in this area.  Its name comes from the Greek word, Hydor, meaning water and Angos, meaning vessel. Another name is Hortensia, deriving from Latin, meaning of the garden.  Don’t you wish every plant …

Birds, Bees, & Butterflies

Many of us wonder what we can do to help reverse the alarming declines in many bird, butterfly, and bee populations.    One way we can make a real difference is by using native plants in our home landscapes, because they are by far more nutritional than exotics for native insects needed for pollination and as food for nestling birds.  …