Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
Over 40 Years of Growing Gardens and Gardeners
If your friends and loved ones are into houseplants, you don’t have to look far for good gifts this holiday season! Gardening is a hobby that comes with a lot of needed stuff, and with so many great things on the market, you can check off your shopping list in no time.
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
In 1994, Bedford, Virginia boasted the largest recorded Witch Hazel tree at 34.8 feet in height. The last native* shrub to bloom in autumn, its fragrant, yellow, spider-like flowers illuminate the landscape as leaves fall. VNPS named Witch Hazel as Wildflower of the Year in 2002.
The Glencarlyn Library Community Garden coordinators have created a new series of short videos about locally invasive plants and native alternatives. This month's post is on Wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei).
Many of us were taught in school that male flower parts are stamens, and female flower parts are pistils. More current botanical literature, however, says the female reproductive structure is made up of one or more carpels. So what's the difference between carpels and pistils, and what’s the gynoecium?
Stumped on what to give your favorite gardener? Check out these articles on a variety of gifts, recommended over the past few years by Extension Master Gardeners.
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
This native deciduous holly produces prodigious quantities of red, berry-like fruits, which decorate the plant mid-fall into early spring. Female cultivar ‘Red Sprite’ needs male ‘Jim Dandy’ to make fruit. Purchase at least two females and one male for a “berry” good show.
