Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

Farm Profile: Alicia Breton and Sheila Sherman of My Favorite Plants

Story by Amy Cooke

“A customer told us a really great way to have an interesting garden here,” explained Alicia Breton, co-owner of My Favorite Plants. “She said to come to the farmers’ market every week and buy something beautiful that’s in bloom. That way you know it grows here and that you will have flowers all summer long.”

Breton and partner Sheila Sherman bring some of the most interesting flowering plants they can find to the Watauga County Farmers’ Market each Saturday morning. “One of the great things about the farmers’ market is that you can indulge in odd and unusual plants and people will be interested in having something a little different,” Breton said.

“It really helps to have locally grown plants here,” she continued. “We’ve already killed off the weak ones so you have a much better chance. You can buy what really blooms here and what is really hardy here.”

My Favorite Plants is located near Todd where Breton and Sherman built their own house, dug their own pond and grow everything from fragrant plum-colored Visions astilbe to silvery blue zenobia.

Shrubs, small trees and plenty of flowers are growing at My Favorite Plants in all stages—from tiny to ready to plant. My Favorite Plants has lupines, yarrows, gaillardias, and red hot pokers for sun. The shade houses have plenty of plants that thrive under trees, including ferns and a special Jacob’s Ladder called Stairway to Heaven.

Hostas are ready to enhance shade gardens, too, from the proven Frances Williams to the new and exciting Olive Bailey Langdon and Striptease. The thriving hostas at My Favorite Plants have huge blue, gold, green and white leaves.

Shrubs include lilacs like Royalty and Lilac Lane that bloom later to avoid spring frosts. My Favorite Plants also has lavender and white chiffon Rose of Sharon and several ninebarks. “We have Copperina, Summer Wine and Diablo with red foliage and Nugget with yellow. Ninebarks are wonderful plants with good color all year,” said Breton. “It’s a good plant to try that many people do not know about. They look good in the garden and are great for arrangements.”

Many of Breton and Sherman’s favorite plants are viburnums. They have fragrant Chenault, red-leafed Red Wings, the beautiful Pinkie Winkie and many more.
“We are glad to have people come and see plants here,” said Breton. “They are welcome to stop by and it is good to come out and see things visually growing so you can plan for your own garden. People are taking a risk because we are not always here, though.”

Visitors get to see dragonflieshovering over the newly renovated pond, flocks of darting hummingbirds and butterflies sipping nectar from coneflowers and bright orange butterfly weeds.

Bluebirds and Carolina wrens nest on the property, and Baltimore orioles come for visits.

Breton always loved the mountains, but had never seen snow or a lilac or a daffodil bloom before she moved here. Originally from Central Florida, she joined the Peace Corps after college. “I joined for idealism and to learn another language but went to St. Kitts Nevis in the Caribbean where they speak English. The idealism has taken a few hits, but is still surviving,” she said.

Sherman left her native Detroit for the Peace Corps, too, where she met Breton and Boone resident Mary-Kent Whitaker who talked them into moving here. They arrived on the first day of spring in 1982 and landed jobs at Goodnight Brothers, finding their calling in helping people buy garden and farm supplies.

“We both went to work at Goodnight’s because Gary Brown told us they would hire people with no expertise. He said they hired him, so they would hire anybody,” explained Breton.

“We loved helping people there. In the springtime, people would meet people they hadn’t seen all winter,” said Sherman. “It was such a diverse group of people: rich and poor, black and white, educated and those who could not write their names.”

Sherman continued, “Out of that we grew our own business. She’s the brains and I’m the pack mule. This whole thing started at Goodnight Brothers.”

Sherman makes custom cabinets and bookcases and Breton still works in the Ham House department of Goodnight Brothers part time. Both of them miss the now-closed downtown store where so many gardens were started. My Favorite Plants also got its start there. “We realized that all of the good plants were gone from the businesses that sell to you when it was time to plant here,” explained Breton. “ There was a gap and we thought we might be able to fill it.

“When we were ready to plant tomatoes here, Goodnight’s got just the scraps, so we started growing for this market. We started with pansies and violas and then grew other annuals and perennials and vegetables. By the time Goodnight’s closed, we were beginning to do shrubbery and were ready to start this business.”

Breton loves plants so much that her reward for a hard day of work in the nursery is to move just a few feet. “I love growing things,” she said. “What I really like to do when I finish work is to move to the vegetable garden and pull weeds for a couple of hours.”

My Favorite Plants are available on Saturday mornings at the Watauga County Farmers’ Market, as well as at Wren’s Nest and the Mustard Seed. Contact Alicia Breton and Sheila Sherman at 336-877-1155, at 95570C Three Top Road in Todd or at ab_ss@skybest.com.