Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
Over 40 Years of Growing Gardens and Gardeners
Identifying and removing invasive plants from our home landscapes has become an essential part of gardening. Such plants can be more than bothersome, they can smother or outcompete the native and non-invasive ornamental plants. Gardeners know we have to pick our battles with invasive plants and stay informed on the best methods to tackle them.
Vegetable gardening information and events for September 2022
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
This lovely wildflower, a hummingbird (one feeding in the image) favorite, shines with brilliant scarlet flowers. Its natural habitat is the floodplain forests, freshwater marshes, and wet meadows throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region. The Virginia Native Plant Society honored Cardinal Flower as Wildflower of the Year in 1991.
Featured Glossary word: Bilabiate
The Glencarlyn Library Community Garden added four species of blazing stars to the renovated beds bordering the parking lot. These are all attractive perennial native wildflowers that homeowners may want to consider for their own gardens. The plants, which are all members of the aster family, are distinctive in that their feathery flower heads consist only of disk florets without accompanying ray flowers.
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
This vigorous native vine quickly climbs by twining or trails along the ground in twisted fashion. A prolific bloomer, its white flowers attract pollinators late summer into fall followed by showy seed heads.
Featured Glossary word: Petiole
One houseplant that has been on the market for many years, but still gets overlooked is the Syngonium. These vining plants, also called arrowhead vines (especially in older literature), are perfect for beginners as they thrive in medium light, don’t have any special watering needs, and come in a variety of leaf shapes and colors
