In 2022, the WNC Nature Center and the WNC Farmers Market partnered to create a new exhibit at the wildlife park. The Educational Farmers Market Garden provides fresh produce for the animals in addition to educating the public about how agriculture and nature can have a sustainable relationship. 

Using sustainable planting methods including rainwater collection, composting, soil restoration, and companion plants, the educational garden produces lettuce, carrots, squash, zucchini, cantaloupe, cherry tomatoes, and acorn squash for the animals’ diets and enrichment. The Farmers Market is also working directly with their farmers and vendors to provide watermelon, pumpkins, and trees for enrichment that can’t be grown onsite at the garden.

The WNC Nature Center and the WNC Farmers Market both opened to the public in 1977, and for the past 45 years, millions of visiting residents and tourists have learned that Western North Carolina is a unique ecosystem of plants and animals combined with a culture as rich as its soil.