Join us at the Arlington County Fair – Small County, Big Fun!

Posted on August 15, 2018 by

The Arlington County Fair is August 15-19 and VCE & MGNV are there!

2018 Arlington County Fair LogoMeet us at the 2018 County Fair for rides, food, fun, PLUS the Extension Master Gardener booth and Competitive Exhibits ranging from baked goods to homegrown veggies to artwork. Residents of Arlington, Alexandria City, and Falls Church are eligible to enter the Competitive Exhibits. Free admission, shuttle service from locations around Arlington. Go to http://arlingtoncountyfair.us/ to learn more.

Wednesday, August 15 through Sunday, August 19, hours vary.
Thomas Jefferson Community & Fitness Center
3501 Second St. South, Arlington 22204

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September 2018 Public Education Events

Posted on August 15, 2018 by

MGNV LogoThe following public education programs are scheduled by VCE Master Gardeners in Arlington and Alexandria in September 2018

Classes |  Plant Clinics |   Wednesday Library Garden Talks

Classes

Saturday, September 1, 11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Glencarlyn Library Community Garden
300 South Kensington Street, Arlington, VA 22204

Garden Talk—Partnering with Pollinators:

Library Garden Talks First Saturday of the month in the Glencarlyn Library Community Garden

Join Extension Master Gardener (EMG) volunteers in the Library’s Community Garden the first Saturday of each month to learn about a different sustainable gardening topic. This month, EMGs will highlight attracting pollinators to your garden. The mission of the Glencarlyn Library Community Garden is to provide resources for Arlington residents to learn how to create gardens in both the suburban and urban landscape.

Free. Questions? Call 703-228-6414 or email mgarlalex@gmail.com.
Continue reading →

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Continuing Tradition, Introducing Change: The Quarry Shade Garden

Posted on August 13, 2018 by

By Lynn Berry, Certified Master Gardener

Native groundcovers: green-and-gold and hay-scented ferns in May 2010. Photo Credit: Mary Free

Native groundcovers: green-and-gold and hay-scented ferns in May 2010. Photo Credit: Mary Free

In the summer of 2016, Carolyn Vincent, Karen Smith, and Dina Lehmann-Kim took over leadership of the Quarry Shade Garden. Established in 1989, the Shade Garden is the oldest Master Gardener (MG) demonstration garden in Arlington.  The original leader and visionary of the Shade Garden was Master Gardener Emerita Alice C. Nicolson. Alice organized the digging out and planting of a garden from a rocky hillside in Bon Air Park that was the site of an old quarry. With planning, research, creativity, and much old-fashioned sweat equity, Alice and her MG cohorts planted and nurtured a garden in which shady, dry, rocky, and hilly conditions could produce lovely results. Continue reading →

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VINE: Lonicera sempervirens (Trumpet Honeysuckle)

Posted on August 10, 2018 by
Lonicera sempervirens

Lonicera sempervirens ‘John Clayton’ Photo © 2012 Mary Free

Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic

Check out Mary Free’s video of Hummingbirds feasting on Lonicera flowers.

Low maintenance and showy, Trumpet Honeysuckle blooms intermittently until frost with coral flowers and red fruit present together. A more compact cultivar, ‘John Clayton,’ produces fragrant yellow flowers and copious orange-red fruit. It was discovered in 1991 on the grounds of a 17th century Virginia church. The species name “sempervirens” refers to the plant’s evergreen habit, particularly in the South. The Virginia Native Plant Society selected Trumpet Honeysuckle as Wildflower of the Year for 2014.

Learn more . . .

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Medicinal and Edible Herbs

Posted on August 6, 2018 by

Statue in the Urban Herb Gardens at Georgetown University Medical CenterAdapted with permission by Kathie Fricke and Maria Velikonja, Master Gardener Interns
All Photos © 2018 Maria Velikonja

Medicinal and edible herbs are all around us, even in the heart of the city. Dr. Adriane Fugh-Berman, Professor of Pharmacology and Physiology, recently took Virginia Cooperative Extension Agent Kirsten Conrad and Master Gardener interns Maria Velikonja and Kathie Fricke on a tour of the Urban Herb Gardens at Georgetown University Medical Center. Continue reading →

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PERENNIAL: Chelone glabra (White Turtlehead)

Posted on August 3, 2018 by
Chelone glabra (White Turtlehead) flower detail at Longwood Gardens.

Chelone glabra (White Turtlehead) flower detail at Longwood Gardens.
Photo © 2015 Elaine L. Mills

Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic

This robust native perennial frequents moist woods, thickets, low meadows, swamps, and stream banks.  Its white tubular Snapdragon-like flowers are said to resemble turtle heads.  The plant is named for Chelone (rhymes with “baloney”),  a nymph of Greek mythology who was punished by being turned into a turtle.

Learn more . . .

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