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poinsettia 2018 longwood gardens

December Garden Tips

Hello Friends, Neighbors, Fellow Gardeners,

Seasons Greetings! We wish you and your family a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Healthy New Year! Here are some garden tips, educational opportunities, and videos for December. A lot of gardening events are announced on Facebook as well as on our website. Some upcoming events/resources include UMD Home and Garden Information Center: Ask a Garden Question, A list of book recommendation for young gardeners, Meadowside Nature Center December Programs, Brookside Garden’s Greenscapes Event, online tutorials on winter sowing, tips on how to plant tulip bulbs in pots now for forced March/April Blooms, a video on pruning trees, tips on how to choose a poinsettia, American Horticultural Society’s Great American Gardeners Webinar Series, and more! These events will be hosted as online or live events. 


Seasons Greetings! We wish you and your family a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa and Happy Healthy New Year!

Dear Neighbors,
Our 2023 year of the Mill Creek Towne Garden Club began with an outstanding presentation entitled “Birds in Your Garden” by Dr. Dan Neumann, the Associate Director for Neutron Science and Technology at NIST and a true bird lover! It was well attended by both club members and the community. We all certainly learned a bit more about our own backyards. Our communications chair, Nancy Brady, is also a talented artist. In February, she transformed our meeting room into a gallery of her beautiful paintings which mostly focus on nature. Perhaps you have seen some of her works in local art exhibits. With spring on our heels, our master gardener, Claire Peterson, shared best methods and planters for seed planting. In March, we hosted a Native Tree and Shrub Giveaway. In April, we once again sponsored a stream clean-up. We also hosted a Planters for Spring event by Julie Friedman, where we learned tips about landscape design with planters for spring. September was a month of field trips. We first traveled to Marjorie Merriweather Post’s Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens where we took tours of the mansion and gardens, ending the day with high tea in their café. Additionally, we visited our favorite beekeeper, Karen Henderson’s, beautifully unique home in PA she calls “Bee Balm.” We saw firsthand the hives and all the equipment she uses to process her honey followed by lunch in one of her lovely gardens. Last month we invited author Claudia Kousoulas who shared her book, Private Gardens of the Potomac and Chesapeake.

In addition to opening our programs to the community, we are hard at work maintaining the Roslyn, Miller Fall and Shady Grove entrances, keeping a watchful eye on that tunnel to ensure its cleanliness, as well as alerting the county of fallen trees and replacing diseased ones. We are very pleased with the Mill Creek Village “Welcome Bag” program for new residents that was initiated. Our garden club contributes a seed packet and welcoming note as part of their package.We would like to thank you for your support in the past years! Donations to pay for landscaping and maintenance of the Mill Creek Towne Entrances and our garden-related programs at our community meetings are greatly appreciated and accepted year-round! Please help support the Mill Creek Towne Garden Club! To fulfill our mission, we depend on the generosity of donors who appreciate the value of our services. If you can help, please visit our donations page (see link below). We accept online and offline (cash/check) donations. THANK YOU!

Offline (Check) Donations

We are currently accepting checks payable to the Mill Creek Towne Garden Club. Please send donations to:

MCTGC
7612 Warbler Lane
Derwood, MD 20855

For information on how to make an online donation, please visit:
https://www.mctgardenclub.org/donations/


Planning Tips

  • It’s harvest time and also a good time to start taking stock of what worked well for you this season and what didn’t.
  • Check out garden centers for end-of-season bargains.
  • Take photos and update your garden journal.
  • Start shopping for spring bulbs.
  • Clean, sharpen, and store your garden tools.
  • Inspect your garden hose for leaks an tighten all connections.
  • Gather seeds and carefully label them. Store in a dry location.
  • Plan for 2024 with these Free resources: Landscaping with Native Plants by the Maryland Native Plant Society, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas by the National Park Service, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia Reading Room. Visit our Online Gardening Resources page for more helpful online resources.
  • Buy a good gardening book or magazine subscription for a gift for your favorite gardener.
  • Have a question about gardening? Check the University of Maryland Extension’s New Maryland Grows blog for garden tips.

hg_md_grows_blog

Maryland Grows Blog

In weekly posts on MD HGIC’s blog, learn about pollinator conservation, growing native plants and food, and how to solve plant pest and disease problems.

MD HGIC Video Tips

Our Extension experts are sharing one-minute video tips to help you in the garden this summer. We’re talking about pest management in the vegetable gardentree and lawn diseases, native plantsmowing lawns, and more!

For more information, please visit:

https://marylandgrows.umd.edu/

Montgomery County Master Gardeners logo

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


UMD Home and Garden Information Center: Ask a Master Gardener

ask-extension-master-gardener-a-question

Do you have a gardening question? Our Certified Professional Horticulturists, faculty, and Master Gardener Volunteers are ready to answer – year-round!

See below to ask a master gardener a question on the UMD Extension website:


New Gardening Books

Gardening Books
See our list with recently published books. This cumulative list for 2023 has more than 120 titles and serves as a great resource for holiday gift ideas. Visit our Gardening Books Resources page for gardening ideas.

Do you have a book recommendation for young gardeners?

Here’s a list to get you started.


Online Gardening Resources

online garden resources
Here are some online gardening resources focused on the MD/DC area:

Online Garden-to-Table Recipes

garden to table recipes feature box

There are many resources for recipes to make from your garden crops including seed companies, local farms, and online recipe cookbook catalogs. If you grow vegetables, these are very useful resources as the recipes feature the very plant you are growing. Here are few links to recipes you can make from your garden crops


Local Farms

We are so thankful for our local farms each and every day. During this challenging time, consider supporting your local farms, whether they farm produce, flowers, animals, or specialty. Our food supply is safe and secure, and many farms are continuing to offer delivery or curbside pickup.
#LocalIsTheNewNormal #BuyLocal

How to Support Farmers and Safely Shop at Farmers’ Markets

Montgomery County MD Food and Beverage Guide

The 2023 MoCo Food & Beverage Guide is here! The Guide from the Montgomery County Food Council is available online – delicious baked goods, prepared foods, condiments and more. The craft beverage list grows each year and find two dozen local and amazing farms:

https://mocofoodcouncil.org/foodguide/

2023 Farmers Market header

Download Montgomery County’s Office of Agriculture 2023 Farmers Market Flyer to find a farmer’s market near you.

i-love-farmers-markets

Support Our Local Farmers – Join a CSA and have fresh local produce delivered to you!

CSAs are seeing record numbers of subscribers http://ow.ly/eiQT50zD5lW – find your farmer here: http://ow.ly/jbO250zD56M

Montgomery County Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

CSAs can take many forms, but essentially they are community supported farms in which members contribute to farming projects, usually by way of membership fees, in exchange for fresh, local produce. The concept came to the United States from Europe in the 1980s.  They are a great way to take advantage of fresh, locally grown fruit, vegetables, herbs, and more while supporting nearby farms. Each one is different, some offer pickup locations in urban areas, some offer only farm-based pickups.

There are multiple CSAs located around the County offering a wide variety of products. CSAs begin taking sign-ups for spring and summer seasons in the early part of the year, and they tend to fill up FAST! Know of another CSA not on our list? Let us know! Montgomery Countryside Alliance also maintains a list:

 http://www.mocoalliance.org/community-supported-agriculture.html


pollinator plants
(Photo: Xerces Society / Jennifer Hopwood)

Check out the revised list of Mid-Atlantic native plants for pollinators and beneficial insects, from the Xerces Society.


Plant Tulip Bulbs in Pots Now for forced March/April Blooms

Blooming tulips planted in pots make an attractive centerpiece in the spring. To get those blooming tulips in March or April, plant your tulip bulbs now!

For March/April blooms, plant tulip bulbs in a container filled with soilless mix. Bulbs should be planted with flat sides towards the outside of the container, and they do not need to be planted as deep as with regular outdoor planting (plant so the tips of the bulb show above the potting mix).

Tulips require chilling to bloom. One way to achieve this is to bury your entire pot in a trench (put drainage material in the bottom of the trench first), then cover with leaves, straw, or mulch. Leave outside for a cooling time of 14-20 weeks, then bring inside to a warm place with partial sun.

Once shoots emerge, move to a warmer, full sun location. Tulips usually bloom 2-3 weeks after chilling.

For full instructions, including instructions for other types of bulbs: 


Flowers and Groundcovers

  • Pot bulbs for forced blooming indoors.
  • Avoid walking in planting beds.
  • Leave old flower stems standing for nesting pollinators.
  • Cut back perennials that have turned to mush. Leave others with seed heads for the birds.
  • After hard frost, sow seeds of spring-blooming hardy annuals and perennials then mark beds!
  • Leave seedheads on Black-eyed Susan, Echinacea, Goldenrod, Sunflowers, and Thistles for the birds to enjoy over the winter.
  • Sow wildflower seeds, such as California Poppies, for next spring.
  • Start collecting plant seeds for next year and for trading.
  • Renew your container plantings, which may be looking a bit ragged at this point. Pinch back overgrown plants. Pull out any spent ones and pop in some substitute annuals or mums. Keep them well-watered and add a little liquid fertilizer every few weeks to keep them going through early autumn.
  • Pests to watch for: Aphids, 4-lined plant bug, spidermites, whiteflies, Deer, slugs, snails.
  • Diseases to watch for:  Powdery mildew, Damping off of seedlings, Botrytis on peonies, Volutella blight on pachysandra.
  • 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

Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping


5 Million Trees Initiative

Maryland’s goal is to plant and maintain 5 million native trees by 2031. There are various ways you can get involved – plant trees and register them — or volunteer! A number of tree-planting assistance programs are available at the municipal, county, and state levels.


THIS is the SUPERPOWER of YOUR KEYSTONE NATIVE PLANTS.

  • No exotic plant could ever achieve this.
  • Want butterflies? Feed the caterpillars with keystone plants!
  • Exotic plants will never support as many different species of caterpillars as the Keystone Natives can.
  • Find your keystone native plants here by zip code.

If your zip code doesn’t give you enough information try zip codes of the nearest larger town or city. LINK: https://www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder/


Winterberry Holly

Winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) is multi-stemmed deciduous shrub which loses its leaves in the fall, revealing bright red berries that persist and provide beauty in the winter months. Many cultivars have been developed for enhanced berry production, more compact height (4-6 feet), and berry color (red, orange, and yellow).


Learn how to prune shrubs correctly using heading cuts and thinning cuts. This demonstration is presented by University of Maryland Extension (UME) specialists Dr. Andrew Ristvey and Eric Buehl. | UME

Trees and Shrubs

  • Water your cut Christmas tree daily.
  • Moderately prune evergreens, especially hollies, for indoor decorating.
  • Keep an eye out for bark damage from rabbits and deer.
  • Gently remove layers of snow from outdoor evergreens with a broom.
  • Prune stone fruit trees like cherries, plums, and peaches.
  • Prune maples, dogwoods, birch, elm, walnut, and yellowwood to prevent “bleeding”.
  • Prune out Fireblight damage Malus and Pyrus when very cold.
  • Spray broadleaf evergreens with anti-desiccant to prevent dehydration.
  • Use fallen leaves for mulch or compost.
  • Water slowly and deeply if weather is very dry.
  • Prune foundation shrubs and trees to be no closer than 1 foot from the house.
  • Check often and water newly planted trees if they don’t pass the finger test (stick your finger deep into soil – dry? Water!)
  • Look out for any Poison Ivy vines, which will turn crimson in the late fall and be easy to distinguish from other vines.
  • Remove Ivy, Pachysandra, and other vine-like groundcover from under shrubs.
  • Mulch or compost healthy leaves.
  • Soil test established trees that have not been performing well.
  • Put diseased leaves, pesticide-laden grass clippings and weed seeds out for recycling rather than the compost pile.
  • Spray with dormant oil to decrease pest infestations.
  • Remove dead and dying trees.
  • Pests to watch for:  azalea lacebug, bagworms, borers, caterpillars, gypsy moths, Japanese beetles, scale, sawfly, spidermites, leafminers, voles, and deer.
  • Diseases to watch for:  Fireblight
  • For more tips, see UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.

Vegetable Planting Calendar

Download vegetable planting calendars from University of Maryland Extension, in English and Spanish. This page also has a link to a frost/freeze date calculator. 

https://extension.umd.edu/res…/vegetable-planting-calendar


Winter sowing is a method of sowing seed in enclosed containers such as milk jugs and leaving the containers outside in the winter. The seeds germinate despite the cold. Later in the spring they are transplanted into the garden. This method gives gardeners a head start if they do not have or want to use indoor lights. View this video to learn more. | UME

Herbs, Veggies, and Fruit

  • Set up a cold frame, then plant lettuces, radishes, and carrots from seed.Vent cold frames on sunny days.
  • Spread ashes from wood fires on your vegetable beds.
  • Plant cover crop (i.e., rye, clover, hairy vetch, winter peas) where nothing is growing.
  • Cover carrots, parsnips, and turnips with straw to extend harvest.
  • Protect fig trees from freezing by piling up leaves around them.
  • Harvest sweet potatoes.
  • Cover strawberry beds with straw or pine needles.
  • Harvest leaves of herbs used in cooking (rosemary, basil, sage) in early morning, for best flavor. Dry them indoors if you can’t use them right away.
  • Cut herbs and flowers for drying indoors.
  • Preserve gourds for display in the fall.
  • Divide perennials and herbs. Pot up extras and give away at plant swaps.
  • Thin seedlings.
  • Harvest your herbs often and keep them trimmed back to encourage leafy growth.
  • Apply dormant oil spray to fruit trees.
  • Pests to watch for: Asparagus beetle, aphids, birds, cabbage worms, corn earworm, cutworms, deer, rabbits, squash vine borer, and tomato hornworm.
  • Diseases to watch for: Apple scab, Cedar-apple rust.
  • Here are some more UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips.

Melting Ice Safely

Each winter, people apply tons of ice-melting materials to sidewalks, driveways, and steps, often without regard to proper application procedures or to what the deicing substance contains. To prevent damage to your home and the environment, choose a deicer carefully.


Lawns

  • Avoid walking on frozen grass to avoid damaging the crowns.
  • Store your fertilizer and seeds in rodent-proof containers.
  • Clean yard of all leaves and other debris.
  • 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.

How to choose a Poinsettia

If you’re purchasing a poinsettia, make sure you choose one with the yellow true flowers!

Although they look like petals, the colorful red structures are actually bracts, or modified leaves. The true flowers are yellow and can be seen clustered in the center of the bracts.

Sometimes, especially after sitting out in big-box stores, these yellow flowers will fall off, which means your plant won’t last as long!

For more information on indoor plant care:


Indoors/Houseplants

yellow and pink orchidsyellow and pink orchids

  • Keep watering your poinsettias and give them plenty of light. Ensure they are away from drafts and that the pots drain freely.
  • Check houseplants, and any plants you brought indoors for the winter for insects.
  • Keep succulents and cacti on the dry side.
  • Start new indoor plants from cuttings – try an easy one such as violets.
  • Repot and fertilize houseplants when new growth begins.
  • Change water in cuttings started last fall and add 2-3 pieces of fish tank charcoal. 
  • Do not over water house plants.
  • Check on your container plants daily and keep them well-watered.
  • Rotate houseplants to promote even growth.
  • 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.

Read and follow label instructions on all pesticides and herbicides.

Start the year off by minimizing your #risk to #pesticides and always #ReadTheLabel! Learn more here: http://npic.orst.edu/health/readlabel.html

Questions about your label? Call us! 800-858-7378 M-F 8am-12pm PST


Indoor/Outdoor Insect and Wildlife Tips

  • Watch for insect and disease problems throughout your garden.
  • Put suet out for birds.
  • Keep bird feeders clean and filled.
  • Change the water in your birdbath daily and throw the Mosquito Dunk (or bits) into any standing water.
  • Switch your deer deterrent spray.
  • Set out traps for mice, moles, and voles.
  • Watch for: carpenter ants, flies, mosquitos, 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:

hgic-banner

HGIC GARDEN TIPS & TASKS
 
 
 

Meadowside Nature Center, Montgomery Parks December Program Line-Up

It’s here, the winter program lineup! Here’s what’s happening at Meadowside this December.

Dec 8 DIY Ugly Sweater

Dec 15 Holiday Hand-off

Dec 15 Craft a Hiking Stick

Dec 16 Etch and Sip Ornaments

Dec 16 Christmas Bird Count

Dec 31 Happy Noon Year’s Eve

Follow this link to view our December programs: https://mocoparks.org/3SMNE0f


Brookside Garden’s Greenscapes Event

Friday, February 16, 2024

9am – 4pm

Don’t miss out on the Early Bird discount!
Don’t miss out on the Early Bird fee of $50 that ends on Friday, January 12. 

Join Brookside Gardens for a day of virtual lectures on Friday, February 16, 2024, as industry experts share valuable lessons from the field of creating sustainable landscapes. Lectures will reimagine traditional gardens with native plants and offer the latest in ecologically focused management strategies.

Take advantage of the Early Bird fee of $50 that ends on Friday, January 12. All sessions will be recorded and made available online to registrants. For more information and to register online, visit https://mocoparks.org/3lWVVus.


Let’s Talk Gardens

Thursdays 12 to 1 p.m.

Smithsonian Gardens

Lets Talk Gardens October Speakers Panel
 
“Grow” your gardening know-how! Our free online gardening program, Let’s Talk Gardens, covers a wide range of topics presented by our own professional staff, as well as guest speakers. 

And we encourage you to watch videos in our Let’s Talk Gardens Video Library.

mctgc-logo-with-flowers
McKee Beshers Wildlife Mgt Sunflowers 2023

August Garden Tips

Hello Friends, Neighbors, Fellow Gardeners,

Hope you are finding ways to stay cool and enjoying these last days of summer in August! As we approach the end of summer, enjoy the summer crops and flowers and preserve some for the winter months. Don’t forget to support our local farmers by visiting our local farmer’s markets and local farms! Make sure you have your gardens taken care of when you plan your summer trips. 🌞🌼 Here are some garden tips, educational opportunities, and videos for August. This includes some events from U.S. Botanic GardenMaster Gardeners of Montgomery County, and Maryland Gardens. A lot of gardening events are announced on Facebook as well as on our website. Some upcoming events include Ask a Master Gardener at Twinbrook Library, National Farmers Market Week (August 6-12), Montgomery County Ag Fair, Foodie Fridays: Saving Seeds & Stories, Montgomery College’s Fall 2023 Garden Classes, American Horticultural Society’s Great American Gardeners Webinar Series, and more! These events will be hosted as online or live events. 

Planning Tips

  • It’s harvest time and also a good time to start taking stock of what worked well for you this season and what didn’t.
  • Check out garden centers for end-of-summer bargains.
  • Take photos and update your garden journal.
  • Start shopping for spring bulbs.
  • Inspect your garden hose for leaks an tighten all connections.
  • As the heat and humidity move in, take it easy by working in the morning or early evening to avoid intense sun and humidity. Leave the big projects for this fall. For now, just concentrate on maintaining the beds you’ve already established and nurturing new plantings.
  • Plan for 2023 with these Free resources: Landscaping with Native Plants by the Maryland Native Plant Society, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas by the National Park Service, Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia Reading Room. Visit our Online Gardening Resources page for more helpful online resources.
  • Buy a good gardening book or magazine subscription for a gift for your favorite gardener.
  • Have a question about gardening? Check the University of Maryland Extension’s New Maryland Grows blog for garden tips.

hg_md_grows_blog

Maryland Grows Blog

In weekly posts on MD HGIC’s blog, learn about pollinator conservation, growing native plants and food, and how to solve plant pest and disease problems.

In a Flash: How You Can Help Fireflies

Dr. Anahí Espindola from the University of Maryland Entomology Department offers ways you can support these special insects that light up the summer nights to the delight of children and adults alike. Read her post

MD HGIC Video Tips

Our Extension experts are sharing one-minute video tips to help you in the garden this summer. We’re talking about pest management in the vegetable gardentree and lawn diseases, native plantsmowing lawns, and more!


Master Gardener Plant Clinics

Ask a Master Gardener” Plant Clinics are returning to several county locations in Maryland. Bring your plant and gardening questions and get answers from Master Gardeners trained by the University of Maryland Extension. Check out the details in your county: https://extension.umd.edu/programs/environment-natural-resources/program-areas/home-and-garden-information-center/master-gardener-program/local-programs

Montgomery County Master Gardeners logo

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


New Gardening Books

Gardening Books
See our list with recently published books. This cumulative list for 2023 has more than 120 titles and serves as a great resource for holiday gift ideas. Visit our Gardening Books Resources page for gardening ideas.

Online Gardening Resources

online garden resources
Here are some online gardening resources focused on the MD/DC area:

Online Garden-to-Table Recipes

garden to table recipes feature box

There are many resources for recipes to make from your garden crops including seed companies, local farms, and online recipe cookbook catalogs. If you grow vegetables, these are very useful resources as the recipes feature the very plant you are growing. Here are few links to recipes you can make from your garden crops


Local Farms

We are so thankful for our local farms each and every day. During this challenging time, consider supporting your local farms, whether they farm produce, flowers, animals, or specialty. Our food supply is safe and secure, and many farms are continuing to offer delivery or curbside pickup.
#LocalIsTheNewNormal #BuyLocal

How to Support Farmers and Safely Shop at Farmers’ Markets

Montgomery County MD Food and Beverage Guide

The 2023 MoCo Food & Beverage Guide is here! The Guide from the Montgomery County Food Council is available online – delicious baked goods, prepared foods, condiments and more. The craft beverage list grows each year and find two dozen local and amazing farms:

https://mocofoodcouncil.org/foodguide/

2023 Farmers Market header

Download Montgomery County’s Office of Agriculture 2023 Farmers Market Flyer to find a farmer’s market near you.

i-love-farmers-markets

pollinator plants
(Photo: Xerces Society / Jennifer Hopwood)

Check out the revised list of Mid-Atlantic native plants for pollinators and beneficial insects, from the Xerces Society.


Flowers and Groundcovers

  • Cut petunia stems back by two thirds and fertilize.
  • Start seeds of pansies, calendula, flowering cabbage, kale, and other fall annuals.
  • Start collecting plant seeds for next year and for trading.
  • As the days get cooler, plant hardy mums.
  • Renew your container plantings, which may be looking a bit ragged at this point. Pinch back overgrown plants. Pull out any spent ones and pop in some substitute annuals or mums. Keep them well-watered and add a little liquid fertilizer every few weeks to keep them going through early autumn.
  • Don’t fertilize plants that slow down in the heat, but keep them watered.
  • Fertilize lightly plants that are blooming heavily.
  • Divide Hostas and Daylilies.
  • Divide and cut back Bearded Iris and Peonies.
  • Fill in bare spots in the garden with annuals.
  • Check your container plants and keep them well-watered.
  • Deadhead spent flowers to encourage reblooming.
  • Cut a few flowers to enjoy in your workplace or home.
  • Water transplants deeply when dry.
  • Pinch out tips of leggy plants.
  • Stake tall plants.
  • Spray roses with Neem oil every two weeks.
  • Feed your roses and new plantings with slow-release fertilizer sparingly.
  • Check for black spots on your roses – remove and discard any affected leaves in the trash, never back into your garden or in your compost – apply fungicide with Neem oil every two weeks during the growing season.
  • Tie up clematis and other fast-growing climbing vines.
  • Pests to watch for: Aphids, 4-lined plant bug, spidermites, whiteflies, Deer, slugs, snails.
  • Diseases to watch for:  Powdery mildew, Damping off of seedlings, Botrytis on peonies, Volutella blight on pachysandra.
  • 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

Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping


5 Million Trees Initiative

Maryland’s goal is to plant and maintain 5 million native trees by 2031. There are various ways you can get involved – plant trees and register them — or volunteer! A number of tree-planting assistance programs are available at the municipal, county, and state levels.


THIS is the SUPERPOWER of YOUR KEYSTONE NATIVE PLANTS.

  • No exotic plant could ever achieve this.
  • Want butterflies? Feed the caterpillars with keystone plants!
  • Exotic plants will never support as many different species of caterpillars as the Keystone Natives can.
  • Find your keystone native plants here by zip code.

If your zip code doesn’t give you enough information try zip codes of the nearest larger town or city. LINK: https://www.nwf.org/NativePlantFinder/


Emerald Ash Borer damaged tree

Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a serious threat to Maryland ash trees. It has killed many millions of ash trees across the Mid-West and Eastern U.S.

  • The presence of the emerald ash borer typically goes undetected until trees show symptoms of being infested, usually, the upper third of a tree will thin and then die back. This is usually followed by a large number of shoots or branches arising below the dead portions of the trunk.
  • Other symptoms of infestation include small D-shaped exit holes in the bark where adults have emerged, vertical splits in the bark, and distinct serpentine-shaped tunnels beneath the bark in the cambium, where larvae effectively stop food and water movement in the tree, starving it to death. 

Trees and Shrubs

  • Prune evergreens to get in shape for fall/winter.
  • Don’t transplant azaleas this month. Avoid late summer pruning.
  • Water slowly and deeply if summer is very dry.
  • Prune foundation shrubs and trees to be no closer than 1 foot from the house.
  • Contact a certified arborist to have your trees’ health inspected.
  • Remove spent lilac and rhododendron blossoms.
  • Fertilize your azaleas and rhododendrons and monitor them closely for any lacebug damage.
  • Prune flowering shrubs as their flowers fade. Last chance to do so for fall-blooming camellias.
  • Cover berry bushes and fruit trees with bird netting.
  • Take soft cuttings of plants to propagate.
  • Check often and water newly planted trees if they don’t pass the finger test (stick your finger deep into soil – dry? Water!)
  • If you must mulch, remove old mulch and then add 2″ – 3″ shredded pine or pine needles, keeping 3″ away from trunk.
  • Remove Ivy, Pachysandra, and other vine-like groundcover from under shrubs.
  • Soil test established trees that have not been performing well.
  • Keep mowers and trimmers away from trunks!
  • Mulch or compost healthy leaves.
  • Soil test established trees that have not been performing well.
  • Put diseased leaves, pesticide-laden grass clippings and weed seeds out for recycling rather than the compost pile.
  • Spray with dormant oil to decrease pest infestations.
  • Remove dead and dying trees.
  • Pests to watch for:  azalea lacebug, bagworms, borers, caterpillars, gypsy moths, Japanese bettles, scale, sawfly, spidermites, leafminers,  voles, and deer.
  • Diseases to watch for:  Powdery mildew.
  • For more tips, see UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.

Vegetable Planting Calendar

Download vegetable planting calendars from University of Maryland Extension, in English and Spanish. This page also has a link to a frost/freeze date calculator. 

https://extension.umd.edu/res…/vegetable-planting-calendar


August vegetables in season
What to plant in August

Herbs, Veggies, and Fruit

  • Remove finished plants.
  • Plant/seed cool season plants (turnips, carrots, beets, spinach, Chinese cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts).
  • Harvest leaves of herbs used in cooking (rosemary, basil, sage) in early morning, for best flavor. Dry them indoors if you can’t use them right away.
  • Preserve gourds for display in the fall.
  • Attend a county fair and enter some of your garden bounty.
  • New fruit plants: keep watered their first spring, summer, and fall.
  • Pick raspberries and peaches at a local pick-your-own farm or visit a local farmer’s market.
  • Deadhead garlic chives before they go to seed. Makes a nice cut flower.
  • Dig up garlic when tops turn brown. Let dry in sun, then store.
  • Sow seeds of: beets, beans, cucumbers, pumpkins, and squash for fall harvest.
  • Sow heat-tolerant greens like Swiss Chard and mustard greens in part-shade.
  • Keep all transplants watered deeply for 2-3 weeks.
  • Put in supports for tomatoes and tall-blooming plants.
  • Divide perennials and herbs. Pot up extras and give away at plant swaps.
  • Thin seedlings.
  • Harvest your herbs often and keep them trimmed back to encourage leafy growth.
  • Apply dormant oil spray to fruit trees.
  • Pests to watch for: Asparagus beetle, aphids, birds, cabbage worms, corn earworm, cutworms, deer, rabbits, squash vine borer, and tomato hornworm.
  • Diseases to watch for: Apple scab, Cedar-apple rust.
  • Here are some more UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips.

Lawns

  • Cool-season lawns go dormant in the hot, dry summer. Do not water!
  • Mow in the early evening.
  • Over seeding may be done now through October.
  • Keep newly seeded lawns well watered.
  • Apply grub control to your lawn.
  • Calibrate your spreader before fertilizing.
  • To control crabgrass, apply pre-emergent herbicide to lawn (when forsythia blooms drop).
  • Mow high to reduce weeds and stress: Fescue & Bluegrass: 3″ – 3 1/2″, Zoysia: 2″
  • Control wild onions in warm season turf with broadleaf weed control.
  • Have soil tested (every 3 years minimum).
  • Clean yard of all leaves and other debris.
  • Turn your compost pile.
  • The soil resources from the Natural Resources Conservation Service are available here:
  • Diseases to watch for: brown patch, and red thread
  • Pests to watch for: Grubs
  • See UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips for more details.

Indoors/Houseplants

yellow and pink orchidsyellow and pink orchids

  • Prune potted bougainvillea or hanging baskets that will overwinter inside.
  • Bring Christmas cactus and poinsettias indoors if you took them out for the summer in preparation for holiday blooming. Fertilize them and put them where they will get just 10 hours of bright light per day.
  • Repot and fertilize houseplants when new growth begins.
  • Change water in cuttings started last fall and add 2-3 pieces of fish tank charcoal. 
  • Do not over water house plants.
  • Check on your container plants daily and keep them well-watered.
  • Rotate houseplants to promote even growth.
  • 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.

Read and follow label instructions on all pesticides and herbicides.

Start the year off by minimizing your #risk to #pesticides and always #ReadTheLabel! Learn more here: http://npic.orst.edu/health/readlabel.html

Questions about your label? Call us! 800-858-7378 M-F 8am-12pm PST


Indoor/Outdoor Insect and Wildlife Tips

  • Watch for insect and disease problems throughout your garden.
  • Ticks are very active now. 
  • Check your plants at night with a flashlight for any night-feeding insects like slugs.
  • Look out for slug eggs grouped under sticks and stones. They are the size of BBs and pale in color.
  • This is the perfect time to apply grub control.
  • Put out slug traps around your vulnerable edibles and hostas.
  • Leave hummingbird feeders out until October 15th.
  • Make hummingbird food by boiling two cups sugar in four cups of water.
  • Put suet out for birds.
  • Keep bird feeders clean and filled.
  • Change the water in your birdbath daily and throw the Mosquito Dunk (or bits) into any standing water.
  • Switch your deer deterrent spray.
  • Set out traps for mice, moles, and voles.
  • Watch for: carpenter ants, flies, mosquitos, 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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HGIC GARDEN TIPS & TASKS
 
 
 

Support Our Local Farmers – Join a CSA and have fresh local produce delivered to you!

CSAs are seeing record numbers of subscribers http://ow.ly/eiQT50zD5lW – find your farmer here: http://ow.ly/jbO250zD56M

Montgomery County Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

CSAs can take many forms, but essentially they are community supported farms in which members contribute to farming projects, usually by way of membership fees, in exchange for fresh, local produce. The concept came to the United States from Europe in the 1980s.  They are a great way to take advantage of fresh, locally grown fruit, vegetables, herbs, and more while supporting nearby farms. Each one is different, some offer pickup locations in urban areas, some offer only farm-based pickups.

There are multiple CSAs located around the County offering a wide variety of products. CSAs begin taking sign-ups for spring and summer seasons in the early part of the year, and they tend to fill up FAST! Know of another CSA not on our list? Let us know! Montgomery Countryside Alliance also maintains a list:

 http://www.mocoalliance.org/community-supported-agriculture.html


Ask a Master Gardener at Twinbrook Library

SATURDAY

September 9th & 23rd

10 AM – 1 PM

202 Meadow Hall Drive

Rockville, MD 20851

Struggling with your garden? Do you have plant questions?

The Master Gardeners from Montgomery County Cooperative Extension will offer their highly popular plant clinics. Bring your ailing plants or any other gardening questions for expert advice. See below for upcoming in-person events schedule and details:

https://www.facebook.com/MoCoMasterGardenersMD


National Farmers Market Week

August 6-12, 2023

national farmers week aug 2023

It’s National Farmers Market Week! Find your local market on our market map:
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/…/farmers-market.html

Learn more about the initiative from the Farmers Market Coalition: https://farmersmarketcoalition.org/


Montgomery County Ag Fair

August 11-19, 2023

montgomery-county-ag-fair-2023

The Montgomery County Ag Fair will open August 11, 2023! The fair has activities for all ages and includes special events for children, the military, and seniors. Be sure to visit the Montgomery County Master Gardener Demonstration Garden. Master Gardeners will be there to answer your gardening questions!

More info found at their website.


Foodie Fridays: Saving Seeds & Stories

Friday, September 22, 2023

6:30pm to 8:30pm

Josiah Henson Museum and Park

11410 Old Georgetown Road
North Bethesda, MD 20852

Fee
$10, includes light refreshments, drinks, and a ticket to Josiah Henson Museum

Every seed tells a story. With each seed planted, the genetic story of the plant is passed onto the next generation, just as the stories, memories, and feelings associated with specific foods are passed down among our families. Learn from Niraj Ray, founder of Cultivate the City, about how to save seeds as well as the value of saving seeds from culturally important and hard-to-find crops. 


Garden Classes | MC Lifelong Learning Fall 2023

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HOW TO GROW AND BLOOM – LLI 022
Orchids are more popular than ever, and are readily available at mass markets, florists, and garden centers. Explore how to be successful with orchid selection in the home environment. Learn how to purchase, care, handle, repot, and rebloom your orchid. The instructor will use live plants to demonstrate best practices. You are encouraged to bring your own orchid plants for questions.
View Catalog Description & Prerequisites
CourseCRNCreditsDaysTimeStart – End DatesCampusLocationInstructors
LLI022242690.300T6:30 pm – 9:30 pm10/24/23 – 10/24/23WD&CE Virtual-RemoteDLJanet S. Johnson
GARDEN DESIGN – LLI 519
Do you ever wish you could have a beautiful home garden? In this course, garden enthusiasts and homeowners will examine the basics of garden design. You will discuss current garden trends; and how to integrate the architecture of your home/buildings into the landscape for a cohesive overall design. You will focus on using plants and materials that are suitable for the Mid-Atlantic region to create a garden design suitable for your own home.
View Catalog Description & Prerequisites
CourseCRNCreditsDaysTimeStart – End DatesCampusLocationInstructors
LLI519242680.800T6:30 pm – 8:30 pm11/07/23 – 11/28/23RockvilleMK 101Janet S. Johnson 

Let’s Talk Gardens

Thursdays 12 to 1 p.m.

Smithsonian Gardens

Lets Talk Gardens October Speakers Panel
 
“Grow” your gardening know-how! Our free online gardening program, Let’s Talk Gardens, covers a wide range of topics presented by our own professional staff, as well as guest speakers. 

And we encourage you to watch videos in our Let’s Talk Gardens Video Library.

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