Verner Experiential Gardens (VEG!)

Verner Experiential Gardens (VEG!) at the North Carolina Outward Bound School (NCOBS) is a collaboration among four non-profit organizations: Verner Center for Early Learning, NCOBS, The Roots Foundation, and Warren Wilson College. 

Once a week, throughout the year, Verner classrooms visit the garden to explore and learn. Our garden has a variety of features including garden beds and huge mounds, fruit trees, a herb spiral, a cistern, and composting bins. 

The Verner Experiential Gardens at North Carolina Outward Bound School are safe, beautiful, abundant places for learning, growing, and gathering that:

• Provides an outdoor classroom distinct from existing environments at Verner, where children explore and engage in self-directed learning.
• Connects children to the source of their food, leading them to healthy eating habits
• Connects Verner to the broader community.
• Provides a place for NCOBS and Verner staff to meet, relax, learn, play, and eat.
• Is aesthetic and welcoming to look at and be in all year round.

At VEG! multiple generations gather and interact, share space and food and stories, and collaborate in exploring ways of growing, learning, and working together that regenerate and give health to people and the earth.

Volunteer at VEG

Interested in volunteering at the garden? Fill out the volunteer application here. 
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Interested in donating materials for the garden? We would appreciate any donations of lumber, gently used tools, stones, plant starts/seeds, and any other garden-related items. Please complete the volunteer application and let us know!  Thank you!

Special Thanks

All of us would like to thank all of our community partners for helping us maintain the garden and to Warren Wilson College for providing us with regular deliveries of mulch and compost, bringing us starter plants, and for making our beautiful garden sign. We would also like to thank Chris Spoerer for building our beautiful garden shed.