Saturnia Farm - Great Plants Grown by Great Folks!
Meet Sarah Coury and Ben Pick, two people whose passion for conservation and horticulture led to the creation of one of our region’s most popular native plant nurseries. In 2019, from a handful of saved seeds, willow cuttings and plant plugs they started Saturnia Farm. Saturnia will be one of our cherished vendors at the upcoming GFLP Native Plant Sale on April 11th, 2026.
Saturnia Farm, located in Weaverville, NC is built on a philosophy that gardens are ecosystems and plants are participants in the web of life. Ben and Sarah see gardening as an invitation to reconnect — with nature, with wildlife, and with the rhythms of the seasons. Through their work, they’re helping gardeners move beyond traditional turf lawns into landscapes that are life-giving, resilient, and beautiful.
The farm’s name is inspired by the Saturniidae, the family of giant silk moths whose stunning but fleeting lives depend on healthy plant communities.
Here is the lovely backstory shared on their website…
“Saturnia Farm is named in honor of the giant silk moths, or Saturniidae, magnificent creatures often unseen in their adult form due to nocturnal and ephemeral lives. We chose this name because so many of the plants we grow are not only beneficial to wildlife, but are absolutely essential to their continued creation and survival.
(Image thanks to Moths of North Carolina)
Nothing illustrates this dynamic better than the intertwined relationship between butterfly and moth species and their larval host plants — where plants truly do make animals. All butterflies and moths are specialists in the caterpillar stage, when they can only eat specific plant species, so adults will only lay eggs on those species. Monarch butterflies and milkweed. Pipevine swallowtail butterflies and dutchman’s pipe vine. Io moth and hackberry, buttonbush, willow, redbud. Without finding enough of these necessary plants, they cannot reproduce. We feel honored to grow plants that grow animals!
What a blessing it is that, with the right plants and caretaking practices, we can create a garden that creates these splendid critters, and also fuels the entire food web, for caterpillars and other insects born from plants in turn make the lives of birds, toads, small mammals, fish, turtles… “
Saturnia Farm Plant Highlights:
Native perennials that return year after year, supporting local ecosystems.
Butterfly and moth host plants, like spicebush and willows, that help complete intricate life cycles.
Native fruit trees and shrubs, such as elderberry, that offer food for wildlife and people.
Grasses and sedges that are foundational to healthy landscapes.
Some of the noteworthy species include:
American pussy willow (Salix discolor) — great early nectar source
Coral honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) — hummingbird magnet
Northern bayberry (Myrica pensylvanica) — aromatic shrub with wildlife value
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) — both ornamental and edible
Here is the great news for you plant lovers - you can stock up on a cart-load of their plants at the upcoming Gardening for Life Project Native Plant Sale.
Saturday, April 11 • Noon- 5 PM
At the Congregational Church (UCC), Tryon
210 Melrose Ave., Tryon, NC 28782
(Sale location will be in the Melrose Ave. parking lot of the church)
This event is brought to you by the Gardening For Life Project, in partnership with the Congregational Church (UCC), Tryon, NC.