Hello Friends, Neighbors, Fellow Gardeners,
April Showers have brought us some wonderful May Flowers! Wishing you and your family a Happy Mother’s Day and happy and safe Memorial Day weekend! Here are some garden tips, educational opportunities, and videos for May. This includes some events from U.S. Botanic Garden, Master Gardeners of Montgomery County, and Maryland Gardens. A lot of gardening events are announced on Facebook and we share them on our Facebook page as well as on our mctgardenclub.org website. Some upcoming events include Backyard Gardening Zoom Sessions, the Smithsonian’s Let’s Talk Gardens series, Brookside Garden’s events: Miniature Perennials, Beginning Birding for Every body!, Shinrin-yoku: The Art of Forest Bathing, Gardening for Dry Shade, Rachel Carson Conservation Park Walking Tour, American Horticultural Society’s Great American Gardeners Webinar Series, MC Master Gardeners Children’s Event – May 13, 2023, Spring Garden Classes at Montgomery College, and more! These events will be hosted as online or live events. Also included are details on Mill Creek Garden Club’s recent Mill Creek Stream Clean up and Planters for Spring.
- Take photos and update your garden journal.
- Check out garden centers for discounted house plants.
- Take an inventory of pots and containers; clean or replenish potted soil.
- Sharpen and replace tools as needed.
- 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.
Mill Creek Stream Clean Up Recap
On April 15th for Earth Month, Mill Creek Towne Garden Club partnered with Rock Creek Conservancy and Montgomery Parks to help clean up Mill Creek Stream in our 2023 Extreme Cleanup! All in all, 10 bags were filled and 11 people participated. Thanks to volunteers from our neighbors, family, and friends with their help to make this project a success! Special Thanks to our program coordinators Ellen McAdams, Mary Etta Nader, and Susan Yu for making this event a success!
Planters for Spring Recap
We enjoyed the “Planters for Spring” presentation and demonstration from our guest speaker, Julie Friedman, Landscape Designer on Tuesday, April 25th! Mill Creek Towne Garden Club members and several guests learned tips about landscape design with planters for spring. We learned what types of pots to use (terra cotta, ceramic, fiberglass, stone-resin blend) and how to keep them off the ground for proper drainage and keep them frost-proof with pot risers and DrainSmart. We also learned how to arrange plants using the “Thriller, Filler, Spiller” technique. To protect your plants from deer, liquid fence and Bobbex were recommended. After the demonstration, a raffle was drawn for the planter. Nancy Brady won the planter and she hopes that it will last a long time (fingers-crossed)! After the presentation, guests enjoyed light refreshments.
For more information about Julie Friedman’s services, please visit: https://www.exteriorsoutdoorstyling.com/
To view the slides for Julie’s presentation, please visit:
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
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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
Become a Master Gardener volunteer in 2023!
Master Gardeners receive training from the University of Maryland Extension and then educate residents about safe, effective, and sustainable horticultural practices that build healthy gardens, landscapes, and communities. Spring 203 Basic Training starts soon. Find all the details here:
New Gardening Books
Online Gardening Resources
Online Garden-to-Table Recipes
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
#LocalIsTheNewNormal #BuyLocal
- Support Our Local Farmers – Join a CSA and have fresh local produce delivered to you!
- Visit a local farmers’ market.
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:
Download Montgomery County’s Office of Agriculture 2022 Farmers Market Flyer to find a farmer’s market near you.
Check out the revised list of Mid-Atlantic native plants for pollinators and beneficial insects, from the Xerces Society.
Flowers and Groundcovers
- After the last frost date, plant warm-season annuals and tender bulbs (calla lilies, dahlias, gladiolus) in the ground and containers.
- Cut back spent tulip an daffodil blooms, but not the foliage!
- Plant pansies.
- Deadhead pansies and bulbs.
- Feed your roses and new plantings with slow-release fertilizer sparingly.
- Remove last of spring flowers, replacing with transplants or seeds.
- Do not set out seedlings or tender annuals until after Mother’s Day (traditional last frost-free date for our entire area).
- Plant and prune roses.
- 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.
- Provide supports for fast-growing perennials such as delphiniums, peonies, and lilies.
- Tie up clematis and other fast-growing climbing vines.
- Plant summer bulbs (such as dahlias and caladiums).
- Pests to watch for: Aphids, 4-lined plant bug, spidermites, whiteflies, Deer, slugs, snails.
- Diseases to watch for: 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
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/
Trees and Shrubs
- Plant and transplant shrubs that have finished blooming.
- Prune back forsythia, spirea, and other early-spring blooming shrubs.
- Check often and water newly planted trees if they don’t pass the finger test (stick your finger deep into soil – dry? Water!)
- Plant tree, shrubs, perennials; this is a good time to plant evergreens.
- If you must mulch, remove old mulch and then add 2″ – 3″ shredded pine or pine needles, keeping 3″ away from trunk.
- Prune crepe myrtle when you can see what is still alive.
- Prune azaleas when they finish blooming.
- 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!
- Test soil pH on some hydrangeas and adjust: Blue: pH 5 – 5.5; Pink: pH 6 – 6.5
- 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.
- Keep an eye out for bark damage from rabbits and deer.
- Pests to watch for: Gypsy moths late in month, scale, sawfly, spidermites, leafminers, caterpillars, voles, and deer.
- Diseases to watch for: Antracnose, Exobasidium gall on azaleas, Phytophthora, top dieback and root rot on azaleas.
- 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.
Herbs, Veggies, and Fruit
- New fruit plants: keep watered their first spring, summer, and fall.
- Plant tender transplants: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, okra, sweet potato.
- Sow seeds of: beans, melons, cucumbers.
- Keep all transplants watered deeply for 2-3 weeks.
- 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.
- This is a good time to have your vegetable garden and landscape soils tested.
- Pests to watch for: Asparagus beetle, aphids, birds, cabbage worms, cutworms, deer, Japanese beetle, rabbits, woodchucks.
- Diseases to watch for: Apple scab, Cedar-apple rust.
- Here are some more UMD’s HGIC Garden Tips.
Lawns
- Fertilize turf only if weak: apply 1 lb. N/1000 sq. ft.
- 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 annual soil science calendars from the Natural Resources Conservation Service are both educational and beautifully done. The one for 2022 as well as those for previous years are available as free PDFs here: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/edu/?cid=nrcseprd1250008
- 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
- Begin hardening off prior to putting outside in shade for summer.
- Repot and fertilize houseplants when new growth begins.
- Repot larger plants that are going outside for the summer.
- 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.
- Put out slug traps around your vulnerable edibles and hostas.
- Leave hummingbird feeders out until October 15th.
- Put up birdhouses.
- Put suet out for birds.
- Keep bird feeders clean and filled.
- 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:
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
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
Brookside Gardens Spring Events
Miniature Perennials
Friday May 12, 2023 10:30am to 12:00pm
Cost: $60
Our staff have found miniature perennial plants that are just like the grown-up ones, including tiny hosta and the smallest heuchera. Your container will have a combination of plants including grasses, creeping groundcover, and flowering selections to create a lush mix of textures and colors. The plants will reward you with beauty year after year!
This event will be held at Brookside Gardens
https://montgomeryparks.org/events/miniature-perennials/
Beginning Birding for Every body!
Saturday May 13, 2023 9:00am to 10:00am
Cost: $7
Join a Brookside naturalist and learn the basics of birding on our frustration-free “flat” bird practice trail. Our wildlife pond boardwalk is accessible for all budding birders. Stroll or roll to each bird station and learn proper use of binoculars, how to navigate a field guide and what to look for and at as you step into the wide world of birding! Rain cancels the program. All attendees must register.
This event will be held at Brookside Nature Center
https://montgomeryparks.org/events/beginning-birding-for-every-body-11/
Shinrin-yoku: The Art of Forest Bathing
Fee: $30 / FOBG: $27
Instructor: Ana Ka’ahanui, certified Forest Therapy Guide
Location: Brookside Gardens
Connect with nature through a forest bathing walk among the beautiful springtime blossoms and newly leafing trees. Stroll the grounds and neighboring forest at a measured pace that allows you to notice the small miracles of nature unfolding. We’ll close the walk by enjoying hot tea and healthy snacks.
Gardening for Dry Shade
Wednesday May 24, 2023 6:30pm to 8:00pm
Cost: $12
Kathy Jentz, editor of Washington Gardener Magazine
Kathy will evaluate design choices, soil amendments to increase moisture retention, and proven plant choices that work well in these tough garden conditions. We’ll also examine case studies of local gardeners who have not only conquered dry shade but made it a rewarding environment in which to grow.
https://montgomeryparks.org/events/gardening-for-dry-shade/
Rachel Carson Conservation Park Walking Tour
Wednesday May 31, 2023 10:00am to 12:30pm
Cost: $30
Meet at Rachel Carson Conservation Park
Tour guide: Ryan Colliton, vegetation ecology & management unit leader, Montgomery Parks
Rachel Carson was a pioneering environmentalist who called Montgomery County home. Explore her namesake park
to learn how Montgomery Parks’ restoration projects protect these natural habitats. Journey through colorful meadows housing rare plants and discover a prime example of a chestnut oak forest. Prepare for this active hike with sturdy shoes, a water bottle, and snacks!
This event will be held at Brookside Gardens
https://montgomeryparks.org/events/rachel-carson-conservation-park-walking-tour/
Backyard Gardening Zoom Sessions
Tuesdays at 12 noon
March 7 – May 16, 2023
- Gardening 101 – Mar 7
- Soil health for your garden – Mar 21
- Interplanting your vegetables with pollinators for better ecosystems – Apr 4
- Fruit talk – Apr 18
- Herbs of the world – May 2
- The garden pest game show – May 16
For details and registration visit: https://go.umd.edu/get_growing
Great American Gardeners Webinar Series
We are re-launching our Conversations with Great American Gardeners webinar series beginning with Doug Tallamy (May 10), Ira Wallace (June 14), and Lucinda McDade (August 23).
Don’t forget to register today!
MC Master Gardeners Children’s Event – May 13, 2023
University of Maryland Extension – Montgomery County
Sat, May 13, 2023
8:30 AM – 2:00 PM EDT
Location
Montgomery County Extension
Agricultural History Farm Park
18410 Muncaster Road
Derwood, MD 20855
Attend the University of Maryland, Master Gardeners, Children’s Event on May 13, 2022! The event will be held both indoors and outdoor. The rain date is May 14, 2023.
Children’s programs start at different times. See the registration links below for details.
Discover Nature! (K-1st-grade children)
Discover Bugs! (2nd & 3rd-grade children)
Discover Flowers! (4th & 5th-grade children)
Discover Gardening! (2nd to 5th-grade children)
Discover Trees! (4th to 8th-grade children)
Let’s Talk Gardens
Thursdays 12 to 1 p.m.
Smithsonian Gardens
“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. No matter your level of gardening knowledge, there’s always something new to learn!
Join us on Thursdays at 12:00 PM EST for this popular webinar series.
And we encourage you to watch videos in our Let’s Talk Gardens Video Library.
Upcoming Events
May 18 – America’s Victory Gardens: Reflections and Renewal
Speaker: Maggie Stuckey, a gardener who cooks, a cook who gardens, and a writer happily immersed in both arenas
Maggie Stuckey, bestselling garden author, tells a story on two levels in her new book, The Container Victory Garden. On one level is a detailed how-to guide to container vegetable gardens, written specifically for beginners and told with clarity and gentle wit. The second story pays honor to the Victory Gardeners of World Wars I and 2, and the many lessons present-day gardeners can learn from them. Their legacy is highlighted in 20 first-person stories from Americans alive today who remember helping in their families’ Victory Gardens – powerful stories of patriotism, sacrifice, and hope. Maggie’s presentation weaves the two together in a program that is both educational and heartwarming.
Horticulture Classes | MC Lifelong Learning Spring 2023
Annuals and Perennials for Your Garden
Learn how to select plants, where to purchase annuals and perennials, and plan a blooming garden for this growing zone. Explore vines and climbers-where to use them and how to maintain them. Discuss deer resistant plants, repeat blooming options, and support/ structure in an annual and perennial garden. Identify which garden items to avoid, what species make viable substitutions, and compatible plants. Determine how often to divide and how to maintain annual and perennial plants. Examine shade and sun loving plants as well as tropical species that can add special interest to a garden. Discuss which annuals are viable to winter over and how to integrate annuals and perennials into a full season of blooming color and design. TWA
Course: LLI579 8 Hours
$59 + $79 fee = $138; NMR add $120
Online: Structured Remote
CRN#: 40861 4 Sessions T
06/06/23 – 06/27/23 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Instructor: Janet S. Johnson
Garden Design
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. TWA
Course: LLI519 8 Hours
$59 + $79 fee = $138; NMR add $120
Rockville MK 102
CRN#: 10896 T
07/11/23 – 08/01/23 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Instructor: Janet S. Johnson
Decorative Trees and Shrubs
Do you know which trees and shrubs are successful in Mid-Atlantic garden spaces? Learn how to select woody ornamentals and plan a Mid-Atlantic region garden. Discuss deer resistant shrubs and the challenges of bamboo and other invasive plants in the landscape. Analyze which trees and shrubs to avoid. Explore general maintenance techniques. TWA
Course: LLP042 5 Hours
$39 + $59 fee = $98; NMR add $50
Online: Structured Remote
CRN#: 10904 2 Sessions T
8/8-8/15 6:30-9 p.m.
Instructor: Janet Johnson
