Sandy Mush Herb Nursery in the Blue Ridge Mountains of NC
Photography by Christopher Jayne.
When a former student at Great Dixter in East Sussex moves to North Carolina and recommends a remote nursery in the Blue Ridge Mountains, we take note.
Sandy Mush Nursery, near Leicester, North Carolina, was established over four decades ago and is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Fairman Jayne, applying skills in propagating seeds learned at least 60 years ago when he studied in London at Kew’s famous horticulture school.
Says Kate: “Fairman’s been working with plants his entire life, and I’ve been involved with plants ever since I went to college.” With a shared interest in hard-find-plants, they knew early on that they wanted to run a plant nursery together.
Bleeding hearts (Dicentra spectabilis) growing around the Sandy Mush gardens in spring.
Of their specialisms, Kate says: “Our collection reflects our interest in fragrant plants and herbs, then going on to trees and shrubs, and then moving on to more wildflowers and native plants as interest has grown in that field.”
Immaculately tended evergreen shrub cuttings.
A note on the nursery’s name, as related by Christopher Jayne (who photographs the nursery for the website and social media): “Sandy Mush is the name of the community we are in. The oral history is that in the early days of European settlement...
...animal drovers would stop in the valley. When they went to get water for their mush (think oatmeal, cornmeal, or porridge) it would always have sand in the water. So it became Sandy Mush Valley. We have fast-moving streams coming off the mountains, and the sand never completely settles.” And the soil is well-drained.
Kate recognizes the telephone voices of all her old customers. Kate and Fairman look for new plants to sell from outside sources, but they also find that their property is naturally conducive to a rich selection of plant life.
Plants are shipped in good old newspaper, to places where it is sensible to ship. Instead of sending out quite so much, Sandy Mush encourages visits to the nursery.
A pollinator busy with a tea plant, Camellia sinensis sinensis ‘Sochi’. Before the plant list begins in earnest, there is plenty of engaging information, hinting at lives well-lived.
