Hello Friends, Neighbors, Fellow Gardeners,

Happy October! Here are some garden tips, educational opportunities, and videos for October. Some upcoming events/resources include MCT Garden Club’s “Introduction to the World of Herbs” on Tue., Oct. 28, Bird Walk: A Documentary about RedGate Park, Next Steps with Nature with Doug Tallamy, Wednesday Water Webinars, Birdability Week 2025 – October 20 – 26, Master Gardener Lectures – Houseplants 101, Bay-Wise Program with Master Gardeners, 2025 H20 Summit, Brookside Garden Events: In-Person and Virtual Programs, Beyond Formality: Embracing Naturalistic Garden Design, Keystone Plants for the Home Landscape, Glory of Fall Garden Tour, Chrysanthemum & Conservatory Tour, Harvest Festival at Agricultural History Farm Park, Seneca Creek State Park October Programs, Montgomery College Lifelong Learning Home and Garden Classes – Fall 2025, and more! A lot of gardening events are announced on Facebook as well as on our website. These events will be hosted as online or in-person events.

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Join Mill Creek Towne Garden Club!

• Are you interested in gardening? Perhaps you’re a beginner, looking to learn more, or an experienced gardener interested in sharing your experiences and learning from others?
• Are you interested in making your home and community a more beautiful place to live?
• Are you interested in getting more involved in your community and getting to know your neighbors better?

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Introduction to the World of Herbs

October 28, 2025

7pm

Mill Creek Parish United Methodist
7101 Horizon Terrace
Derwood, MD 20855

Join us for a special presentation on an “Introduction to the World of Herbs”, by guest speaker, Pat Kenny, Master Gardener on Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at 7pm.

– FREE
– Light Refreshments provided

Learn about the care, maintenance, and uses of the different types of herbs, a popular and interesting aspect of gardening.

Pat’s Bio

A Master Gardener for over 25 years, Pat is a well known speaker on the topic of herbs. She has been a member of the Herb Society of America for 40+ years and a medical and biological illustrator at NIH for 30 years. Pat was also the caretaker of the National Library of Medicine Herb Garden at NIH. Over several decades, she has taught about herbs and herbcraft for the USDA Graduate School – Evening Programs, the Montgomery County Recreation Department, and the University of Maryland – Extension Master Gardener Program. She adds more herbs to her vegetable garden every year!

RSVP: info@mctgardenclub.org

Please do NOT attend this event if you are or have been experiencing symptoms of illness.

THIS EVENT IS FREE, BUT DONATIONS ARE ALWAYS APPRECIATED!

Donations pay for landscaping, repair and maintenance of the Mill Creek Towne Entrances, and our garden-related programs at our community meetings.

NOTE: If Montgomery County Schools are closed due to inclement weather, the Garden Club meeting will be cancelled.

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Visit Our MCT Garden Club Website for Gardening Resources

• Local Gardening Resources: Looking for a Master Gardener as a guest speaker, need gardening advice, or want to learn about resources in or near Mill Creek Towne? Visit our Resources page for details.
• MCTGC Blog: Check our monthly blog for garden tips and local/online garden-related events.
• Gardening Books: Looking for a gift for your favorite gardener? Visit our Gardening Books Resources page for holiday gift ideas.
• Local Gardens: Visit our Local Gardens page to learn about local gardens in our area.
• Montgomery County Farmers’ Markets: Support our local farmers. Check this page to learn about local farmers markets in our area or join a CSA and get fresh local produce year-round!
• Online Gardening Resources: Looking for gardening apps or online resources to help with your gardening? Check out our Online Gardening Resources page for some apps for your smartphone and online gardening resources focused on the DMV area.
• Recipes: Looking for a recipe for your home-grown veggies and fruit? Check our Recipes page for ideas.

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Montgomery County Master Gardeners - Maryland

What can Master Gardeners do for you?

• Help you select and care for annual and perennial plants, shrubs and trees.
• Determine if you need to test your soil.
• Provide you with information on lawn care.
• Identify weeds, beneficial and noxious insects, and plant diseases and remedies.
• Teach you how to use pesticides, mulch and compost.
• Guide you in pruning trees and shrubs.
• Provide you with options for managing wildlife.
• Provide you with gardening resources.
• Help you submit a plant sample for diagnosis

Plant Clinics are held at several sites in the county on a weekly basis and at special events such as garden festivals and the county fair. Regularly scheduled Plant Clinics are located at public libraries and farmers’ markets throughout the county as well as at the Audubon Naturalist Society in Chevy Chase.  There are also clinics three days per week at Brookside Gardens.  The busiest season is April through September, but some clinics are open year-round.  Bring your plant samples and questions to one of these locations in Montgomery County, MD (see link below to find a location near you):

https://extension.umd.edu/mg/locations/plant-clinics

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Buy Fresh Produce and Support Farms at County Farmers Markets

SATURDAYS, 9AM – 1PM​
Until OCTOBER 11, 2025

16501 Redland Road, Rockville, MD 20855

Visit the Derwood Farmers Market on Saturdays and enjoy the amazing flavors our food and beverage vendors are bringing to the table! Whether you’re planning your market brunch, stocking up on fresh-baked treats, or cooling off with a smoothie, there’s something delicious waiting for you. Our market participates in nutrition assistance programs including eWIC & matching dollars for SNAP. The Derwood Market also collects food scraps for composting through a partnership with the Department of Environmental Protection. 

Ready to plan your first taste adventure? See the full list of vendors here:
www.milkladymarkets.org/derwood-market​

We can’t wait to see you! Let’s celebrate fresh flavors, good company, and our amazing community together.

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Flowers and Groundcovers

• From mid-October through November, plant hardy bulbs for spring flowering.
• Pull out spent summer annuals.
• Plant hardy mums and fall season annuals.
• Fertilize established bulb beds.
• Continue to divide and transplant perennials – in particular, Iris and Peonies.
• Cut foliage of irises to 2″.
• Take cuttings from coleus and begonias to propagate and over-winter indoors.
• Sow wildflower seeds, such as California Poppies, for next spring.
• Collect dried flowers and grasses for an indoor vase.
• After hard frost, sow seeds of spring-blooming hardy annuals & perennials, then mark beds!
• Leave seedheads on Black-eyed Susan, Echinacea, Goldenrod, Sunflowers, and Thistles for the birds to enjoy over the winter.
• Dig up bulbs from your Gladiolus, Canna, Caladiums, and other tender bulbs; cut off foliage; let dry for a week; and store for the winter.
• Water thoroughly, especially if you receive no rain for more than seven days.
• Inspect for powdery mildew. If seen, prune back perennials to create needed circulation. Discard properly (i.e., not in your compost bin).
• Rake up weeds and their seedlings, especially look for fast-growing vines such as honeysuckle, autumn clematis, bittersweet, wild grape, Virginia creeper, and poison ivy.
• Pests to watch for: Aphids, 4-lined plant bug, slugs, snails, spidermites, deer, voles, and whiteflies.
• Diseases to watch for:  Blackspot on roses; powdery mildew, rust, bacterial diseases
• See UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.
• For a list of native plant resources, visit: https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/native-plant-resources

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Trees and Shrubs

• Transplant trees when leaves begin to color.
• Water evergreens and new plantings to keep them hydrated this winter.
• Water slowly and deeply if weather is very dry.
• Fertilize if necessary for the last time this season.
• If your conifers start shedding their needles or your spring bulb foliage starts peeking out of the ground, don’t worry. This is normal for our autumn cycle.
• Look out for any Poison Ivy vines, which will turn crimson in the fall and be easy to distinguish from other vines.
• Thin out small trees and cut off any suckering branches growing from the bottom root ball.
• Prune foundation shrubs and trees to be no closer than 1 foot from the house.
• Remove rotting fruits from fruit trees and compost them.
• Take cuttings from azaleas, boxwoods, and camellias to start new plants.
• Contact a certified arborist to have your trees’ health inspected.
• Directly after blooming, prune flowering shrubs and vines.
• Water shrubs and trees deeply during any dry spells.
• IF YOU MUST MULCH: Remove old mulch, then add 2″ – 3″ shredded pine or pine needles, keeping away from trunk.
• Do not fertilize newly planted or transplanted plants the first year.
• Soil test established trees that have not been performing well.
• Plant evergreens for winter interest.
• Keep mowers and trimmers away from trunks!
• Prune broken, dead, diseased, or damaged branches.
• Keep an eye out for bark damage from rabbits or deer.
• Check often and water newly planted trees if they don’t pass the finger test (stick your finger deep into soil – dry? Water!)
• Check for vole problems and set out traps.
• Spray broadleaf evergreens with anti-desiccant to prevent dehydration.
• Use fallen leaves for mulch or compost.
• Remove Ivy, Pachysandra, and other vine-like groundcover from under shrubs.
• Mulch or compost healthy leaves.
• Continue to remove fallen, diseased leaves.
• Put diseased leaves, pesticide-laden grass clippings and weed seeds in your trash — not your compost pile.
• Turn your compost pile weekly and don’t let it dry out. Work compost into your planting beds.
• Apply dormant oil treatment to ornamentals and fruit trees before dormancy breaks.
• Remove dead and dying trees.
• Pests to watch for: adelgids, aphids, azalea lacebug, bagworms, borers, caterpillars, Gypsy moths, scale, sawfly, spidermites, leafminers, webworm, deer, and voles.
• Diseases to watch for: Anthracnose, Exobasidium gall on azaleas, Apple scab Cedar-apple hawthorn or quince rust, Verticillium wilt, Oak leaf blister, Phytophthora, top dieback and root rot on azaleas.
• For more tips, see UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.

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Herbs, Veggies, and Fruit

• Harvest most fruits before frost.
• Set up a cold frame, then plant lettuces, radishes, and carrots from seed.
• Pick pumpkins at a local pick-your-own farm or visit a local farmer’s market.
• Keep an eye out for the first frost date and insulate plants as needed. In Zone 7, it is predicted between October 15 and November 15.
• You can still have vegetable garden and landscape soil tested.
• Harvest sweet potatoes.
• Dig up and store potatoes in a cool, dark spot.
• Pot up rosemary and chives for over-wintering indoors.
• Pick mature tomatoes and peppers to ripen on your window sills.
• Plant garlic bulbs.
• Collect seeds for next year’s planting and for trading at seed exchanges.
• Harvest your herbs often and keep them trimmed back to encourage leafy growth.
• Watch your pumpkins/squash. Harvest them when their rinds are dull and hard.
• Cut herbs for drying indoors.
• Plant cover crops in vegetable gardens and annual beds (for example, rye, clover, hairy vetch, and winter peas).
• Preserve gourds and dry flowers for display in the fall.
• Cut off bottom, yellow foliage on tomato plants.
• Harvest regularly from your vegetable garden to prevent rot and waste.
• Deadhead garlic chives before they go to seed. Makes a nice cut-flower.
• Harvest onions when tops die back.
• Fertilize according to University of Maryland recommendations.
• Water deeply when needed.
• Dig up garlic when the tops turn brown. Let dry in the sun, then store.
• Divide perennials and herbs.
• Prune fruit trees as their buds are swelling. Check for dead and diseased wood to prune out.
• Remove finished plants.
• Mulch strawberry beds for winter.
• Apply dormant oil spray to fruit trees.
• Pests to watch for: Asparagus beetle, aphids, cabbage worms, corn borer, corn earworm, cutworms, squash vine borer, tomato hornworm, rabbits, deer, woodchucks, and birds.
• Diseases to watch for: Powdery mildew, Fungal, bacterial, viral diseases.
• Here are some more UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips.

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Lawns

• Cool-season lawns go dormant in hot, dry weather — Do not water.
• Plug-aerate when soil is moist.
• Divide ornamental grasses.
• Begin mowing leaves into turf to add organic matter and nutrients.
• Fertilize tall fescue and bluegrass with 1 lb. Nitrogen per 1000 feet.
• Let the lawn go dormant for now; it will green back up in the coming rains.
• Over seeding may be done now through October.
• Keep newly seeded lawns well watered!
• Water established lawns deeply but infrequently!
• Mow grass at 3 inches and leave the clippings on the lawn.
• Mow zoysia grass at 2″
• Test soil if you haven’t already.
• Clean yard of leaves and other debris.
• Mulch bare areas.
• Get your lawnmower serviced.
• Keep newly seeded lawns well watered.
• Apply grub control to your lawn.
• Apply fertilizer and lime to turfgrass based on soil tests and UME recommendations.
• Sharpen your lawnmower blade.
• Check and tune-up power equipment (mowers and trimmers).
• Turn your compost pile.
• Diseases to watch for: brown patch, and red thread
• Pests to watch for: Grubs
• See UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.

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Indoors/Houseplants

• All houseplants/overwintering plants should be inside by now!
• Take cuttings of plants you want to overwinter inside and place in water.
• Force the buds on Christmas Cactus by placing in a cool (55-60 degree) room for 13 hours of darkness.
• Begin conditioning Poinsettias indoors in preparation for holiday blooming. Fertilize them and put them where they’ll get just 10 hours’ bright light per day.
• Bring Amaryllis indoors before a hard freeze. Repot every other year at this time. Store in a cool, dark place and do not water until flower buds or leaves emerge.
• Caulk and seal your outside walls to prevent insect entry into your home.
• Check indoors for termites and ants.
• Scan houseplants for insect activity.
• Start/keep fertilizing your indoor plants.
• Maintain moisture in pots, but do not overwater!
• Clean the leaves of your indoor houseplants to prevent dust and film build-up.
• Give your houseplants a quarter turn every few weeks.
• Keep all houseplants out of drafts and away from heat vents.
• Keep succulents and cacti on the dry side.
• Check on your container plants daily and keep them well-watered.
• Remove old leaves, damaged stems.
• Pinch out growing tips of leggy cuttings and plants that are overwintering.
• Clean the leaves of your indoor houseplants to prevent dust and film build-up.
• Pests to watch for:  aphids, spider mites, mealybug, scale, and whitefly.
• See UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more information.
  

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Indoor/Outdoor Insect and Wildlife Tips

• Hand-pick Japanese Beetles or shake them off over a bucket of dishwater.
• Check for any stagnant water mosquito breeding grounds, especially your gutters. Dump out any standing water that sits stagnant for more than three days.
• Add Mosquito Dunks to any standing water in your yard such as birdbaths, downspouts, plant saucers, and gutters.
• Check your plants at night with a flashlight for any night-feeding insects like slugs.
• Watch for insect and disease problems throughout your garden.
• Look out for slug eggs grouped under sticks and stones – they are the size of BBs and pale in color.
• Ticks are very active now.
• Set out traps for mice, moles, and voles.
• Watch for slug damage and set out traps or Sluggo bait.
• Check for mosquito breeding grounds. Dump out any water that sits stagnant for more than three days.
• Hand-pick or cut out any bagworm cocoons.
• Put up birdhouses.
• Put suet out for birds.
• Leave hummingbird feeders out until October 15.
• Make hummingbird food by boiling two cups sugar in four cups water.
• Keep bird feeders clean and filled and provide a source of water.
• Wash out birdbaths daily with diluted bleach solution.
• Switch your deer deterrent spray.
• Set out traps for mice, moles, and voles.
• Remove and destroy gypsy moth egg masses.
• Watch for: eggs, larvae, overwintering stage of many species, carpenter ants, flies, stink bugs, termites, rabbits, raccoons, groundhogs, deer, mice, moles, snakes, squirrels, and voles.
• For more information, see UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips.

Source: University of Maryland’s Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC) and the Washington Gardener.

See more tips from HGIC:

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Bird Walk: A Documentary

Sunday, October 5

2 p.m.

Rockville Memorial Library
21 Maryland Ave.
Rockville, MD 20850

Once a golf course, RedGate Park is home to almost 200 bird species! The park is featured in Cintia Cabib’s documentary “Bird Walk.” Watch the film at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5 at Rockville Memorial Library. Learn more: mcpl.libnet.info/event/14331834.

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Next Steps with Nature with Doug Tallamy

Next Steps for Nature with Doug Tallamy

Free Wild Ones Webinar!

Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025 | 7 PM ET

You asked the questions, and Doug Tallamy has the answers…. 499 of them!

From removing invasives to designing with “cues to care,” Tallamy reminds us that every yard makes a difference.

Register now to join us and find out if Tallamy can answer these questions and more in just one webinar: https://wildones.org/next-steps-for-nature/

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Wednesday Water Webinars

University of Maryland Extension will be hosting monthly webinars on various water quality related topics. Join Andrew Lazur, Water Quality Specialist, as he dives into water topics that affect us all. These webinars will take place via Zoom on the dates shown below, allowing time for Q & A at the end. 

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Bay-Wise Program with Master Gardeners

Saturday, October 25
1:00pm – 2:00pm

Gaithersburg Library
18330 Montgomery Village Ave.
Gaithersburg, MD 20879

Learn how to protect the Chesapeake Bay by with Master Gardener’s Bay-Wise Program

Join Linda Barett from the Master Gardeners of Montgomery County Cooperative Extension Service as she teaches us about their Bay-Wise Program. Most Maryland residents live within a half-mile of a storm drain, stream or river. Most of those waterways eventually drain into the Chesapeake Bay. What we do to maintain our own landscapes can affect the health of our local waterways and environment. A few important landscape practices, and sustainable gardening practices, improves water quality, and conserves natural resources for future generations.

Questions about this program? Contact the Gaithersburg Library at 240-773-9490.

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Montgomery Parks – Events

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Beyond Formality: Embracing Naturalistic Garden Design – PBG0199

Saturday, October 4 | 10:00 am -12:00 pm
Fee: $25.00

Eric Evans , Brookside Gardens Staff

Discover how visionary landscape designers like Capability Brown, Gertrude Jekyll and Piet Oudulf created their own version of naturalistic landscape design as a reaction to the standardized formal gardens of their times. Tour garden areas that highlight naturalistic design elements—such as native plants, organic forms, and ecological harmony—and learn how to incorporate these principles into your own home garden.

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Keystone Plants for the Home Landscape – PBG0200

NOTE: This is a live, Zoom lecture with audience Q&A. After registering, a link will be emailed to you 24 hours prior to the live webinar. Recordings will be made available to students.

Thursday, October 9 | 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Fee: $15.00

Elaine Mills, Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardener

Entomologist Doug Tallamy has drawn public attention to “keystone plants” that are especially supportive of wildlife, especially the insects that are critical to the food web. Join Master Gardener Elaine Mills to hear which trees, shrubs, and perennials native to the Mid-Atlantic region will provide sustenance for birds and pollinators, especially our local butterflies, moths, and pollen specialist bees. Learn about ornamental features, plant pairings, and ideas for landscape uses to help you decide where these high-value plants might fit into your home landscape.

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Birdability Week 2025 – October 20 – 26

Birdability Week is an annual occasion to exchange valuable resources and innovative ideas, aiming to foster an inclusive and accommodating environment within the birding community. By encouraging accessibility, embracing diversity, and promoting a warm and open atmosphere, Birdability Week aims to ensure that birding is an enjoyable experience for everybody.

Celebrate the beauty of birds and enjoy a welcoming and inclusive birding experiences October 20 through October 26, 2025 in Montgomery Parks. Check back later for more programs and details!

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Glory of Fall Garden Tour – PBG0059

Thursday, October 30 | 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Fee: $12 / FOBG: $10

Josh Demers, Brookside Gardens staff

Discover a whole new garden brought on by the changing Autumn season. This walking tour highlights the spectacular fall colors in the woody and herbaceous plant collections with a closer look at our staff’s favorite fall blooming perennials like asters, coneflowers, sedums, and grasses.

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Chrysanthemum & Conservatory Tour – PBG0060

Friday, October 31, 2025 | 1:00 pm – 2:15 pm
Fee: $12.00

Raymond Carter, Brookside Gardens Horticulturist

Delight in an autumn-inspired display of specialty chrysanthemums —a vibrant finale to the garden season! Discover fascinating facts about these amazing flowers, cultivated since the 15th century with over 20,000 varieties worldwide. Learn how our horticulturists create massive blooms, colorful combinations and impressive forms with this incredible plant!

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Registration Now Open for 2025 H20 Summit in October

The Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection’s 2025 H2O Summit will be held from noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, at M-NCPPC’s Wheaton Headquarters, 2425 Reedie Drive in Wheaton. Attendees can learn from experts, connect with others who share a passion for protecting water resources and explore innovative ways to make community waterways more resilient. 

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