Hi Rosefolly,

I am sorry that no one reached out to you. This forum isn't very active. Maybe one reason is that NC is so diverse, garden-wise. We have the mountains, the piedmont and the coast. All of these microclimates are completely different. I live in Charlotte, grew up in Chapel Hill and have spent quite a bit of time in Asheville.

Asheville has a great NC Arboretum, where you can find some incredible volunteers and classes to teach you about the growing requirements. UNC Asheville also has some interesting senior/continuing ed classes. Organic food to table is paramount in this town. The mountains should be able to accommodate most of your gardening wants ( not citrus) as long as you find a sunny spot (tomatoes, roses) or are willing to cut down a few trees. It is my understanding that their chief nemesis is the wooly adelphid that has attacked the conifers. Most of NC has a 3 season growing. In Charlotte, I start my tomatoes in April and they sometimes go to Thanksgiving. If I bothered with a high tunnel, I could probably bring them through the winter but we get a bit tired of the work/fruits around Halloween.

Asheville, like Chapel Hill/Carborro and Durham are all good (liberal) retirement options. All have good medical facilities, education, gardening, foodie and arts/theatre/breweries galore. Charlotte and Raleigh also score well but are much bigger cities, with much more traffic. The smaller towns tend to be a bit more politically conservative, causing the state to occasionally appear a bit bipolar.

I would encourage you to rent a place for at least a month to get a feel for the town. Asheville has exploded, tourist-wise and it can be a bit tiresome if you are trying to locate or get reservations downtown. As with all liberal towns, they have some pretty active homeless folks. One man, reportedly has a prosthetic leg that he does not wear, because he earns so much money panhandeling, he hired a bodyguard. (Not making this up.)

So, bottom line, if you are liberal, you will probably love Asheville. Just be prepared for lots of tourist traffic, along with spiking hotel rates and some great art/food/gardening opportunities. Interesting side note, the city has rejected Airbnb because they want to discourage homeowners from renting their homes to tourists. They want the lower wage earners, ie restaurants, etc. to have a fighting chance. The city is prone to flooding around Biltmore Village. The highways are straight, so car sickness....a blessing. Charlotte is 2 1/4 hours away...which is probably where all your flights will be channeled through.

Take Care

edit: The highways are straight, so NO carsickness...