Gardening Symposium - March 24th-25th, 2012

The Loudoun County Master Gardeners present their Third Annual Gardening Symposium - two days packed with gardening inspiration and practical information from knowledgeable and engaging speakers. This year's line-up of speakers and topics offers something for every gardener and lover of the landscape. Network with others, pick-up new ideas and get in gear for spring. Speakers:

• Dr. Jeff Kirwan, Professor, Department of Forestry. Virginia Tech, Remarkable Trees Two, An Update
• Nancy Hugo , Gardener, author and lecturer, Seeing Trees
• Chip Osborne , President, Osborne Organics LLC, Simple Steps to Organic Lawn Care
• Mary Stickley , Manager of Gardens and Grounds, Museum of Shenandoah Valley, The Lazy Gardener
• Donna Williamson , Garden designer, teacher, Seven Strategies for Garden Success
• Adria Bordas , Urban Horticulturalist, Fairfax County Extension Office, IPM is Like a Green KISS for Your Garden
• Karen Rexrode , Horticulturalist and teacher, Why Challenge Yourself?
• Peter Deahl , Arborist, the Pruning School, Pruning Woody Plants Naturally
• Jeffrey Pfoutz , Loudoun County Beekeepers Association, Pollination Under Pressure
• Paul Gibson , Organic gardener, Prince William County Master Gardener, Organic Sustainable Vegetable Gardening
• Debbie Dillion , Urban Horticulturalist, Loudoun County Extension Office, It's a Small World -- Small Fruit that is!

Prices include the conference, lunch and trade show. Lunches include vegetarian options. One day: $37.50 Two days: $65 Holiday Inn Leesburg at Carradoc Hall For more information and to register, visit the Loudon County Master Gardeners website.

The right way to love your garden

"Love is the ability and willingness to allow those that you care for to be what they choose for themselves without any insistence that they satisfy you." — Wayne Dyer

A few years ago, I wrote a post entitled The 12 Relationship Rules for Gardeners. In it, I mentioned that many of the same “rules” that work in human relationships also apply to our relationships with our gardens.

This week, in honor of Valentine’s Day, I will be going over some of those rules.

To get things rolling, I will start with what I think is the number one rule in both relationships and gardening, and that is “Don’t try to change the object of your affection.”

In human relationships, no matter how much we think we love someone just the way they are, eventually we come up with something that we think needs to be changed about them. Perhaps we want them to go on a diet or to drink less. Maybe we think they should be more affectionate or more talkative or less opinionated. Whatever the change may be, we think, for some reason, that we should be able to modify this human being that has already been existing just fine on their own, to better suit our desires. And we expect them to be happy about it. Or at least to accept our version of the new and improved “them” without protest. But this rarely works. And so the secret to a happy long-term relationship with another human is to get to know as much about them as you can, before you commit to them, to make sure that you can live with them just the way they are. And then instead of trying to change them, spend your life encouraging them to be the best of what they already are.

The same theory holds true of our landscapes. To have the most successful relationship with a landscape, you have to get to know as much about it as you can before you start trying to co-exist with it. You need to learn how it has been living up until the time it met you. How much does it like to drink? What does it like to eat? Is it showy and flamboyant or is it more laid back and natural?

Sure, we have a lot more control over modifying a landscape than we do another human being. But the result in both cases is the same. To have the happiest, most successful, maintenance-free relationship with a person or a garden, learn to work with and bring out their natural beauty rather than trying to change them into something else.

So, the number one rule for successful gardening is: Get to know your site conditions and learn to Work With Mother Nature, Not Against Her

Getting to know your landscape and its needs and wants will help you chose the right plants which are properly adapted to your site conditions. It will help you conserve water and will reduce the need for unnecessary and unhealthy garden additives such as chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides.

There are way too many beautiful people and beautiful pieces of land in the world that are suffering because someone is trying to make them into something they are not. And when any of that natural beauty fades away and dies, the whole world suffers for it.

Green Living Expo

Saturday, March 17^th, 10 AM – 4 PM.  

The Green Living Expo will feature green products and suppliers, exhibits and seminars presented by green building experts, activities for kids, raffles, and more!

Learn practical ways to green your lifestyle and lighten your carbon footprint with a focus on energy conservation, solid waste reduction, eco-friendly transportation, green home remodeling, sustainable landscaping, and healthy homes.

Washington-Lee High School, 1301 N. Stafford St. For more information: www.arlingtonenvironment.org

Community Gardening 101 Workshop - Feb. 28th

What: Community Gardening 101 Workshop for Community Groups When: Tuesday February 28th, 8:30 am– 12:00 noon Where: Fairlington Community Center 3308 S. Stafford St. Arlington VA. 22206 Cost: Free

CONTACT: Kirsten Conrad Buhls, Agriculture Natural Resources AgentVirginia Cooperative Extension Arlington County VA703-228-6423 mailto:VA703-228-6423kbuhls@vt.edu

Representatives of non-profit organizations, neighborhood associations, and community and volunteer groups are invited to attend this seminar on Community Garden Development. Sponsored by Virginia Cooperative Extension and Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, the workshop will cover Checklists for Successful Garden Startups, local resources for community garden leaders, an overview of local, regional, and internet resources for community garden leaders, and materials from the American Community Garden Association.

The day will also give participants a chance to hear from established community garden leaders about the trials, successes and planning that goes into a successful garden and will allow attendees to network with other garden leaders.

To Register: Call 703-228-6414 or email mgarlalex@vt.edu

Why We Plant – A great post on one of the blogs I love

I know that I probably bandy the word “love” around a bit too much. I have the habit of emailing people like Richard Louv and telling them how much I love them, and I think they might fear I am some sort of obsessed fan. In the future, perhaps I’ll work on finding a more appropriate word to use -- “admire”, perhaps. But for now, with Valentine’s Day on the way, I’m going to just keep dropping the “L” bombs.

With that being said, I just LOVE Thomas Rainer’s blog, Grounded Design. It’s not that he just writes great things about gardening. It is HOW he writes that really has me hooked. There is nothing boring or superficial about this blog. Rainer digs deep into the human aspects of gardening. Here are some excerpts from his recent post “Why We Plant”.

We can survive without gardens, yes, but the question is, can we live without them? What I love about plants, in particular, is their ability to reveal the invisible world. The way a grass moves in the wind, or the way a seedhead glows when backlit by the setting sun. The goal of great planting design is not simply to arrange pretty plants in pretty patterns. When garden design becomes another form of interior decorating, it loses its soul. No, what interests me is creating landscapes that are more alive than we are, but in a completely different way. When we enter into a landscape brimming with life and let that life enter into us, let it move through us, then we get a glimpse of the horizon we were created for.

…..Designers don’t create beauty. To believe otherwise makes us guilty of forgery and blasphemy. But what we can do is create the conditions where people can have an experience of beauty.

…..This is why the goal of planting design is to make people see again, to make them remember. We arrange plants in ways that will enable people to have an experience of the ephemeral. It is not the plants themselves as objects that have power. But it is their patterns—particularly archetypal patterns—and that can become animated as light and life pass through it.

We do not create beauty. But we can create thresholds through which people enter and have an experience of beauty.

It’s a fantastic post from a fantastic blog and I encourage you to read the whole thing. My guess is that you’ll LOVE it as much as I do.

Snow and Ice on the way? Learn about de-icers

I mentioned the other day that one of the great environmental benefits of this mild winter is that there hasn't been much need for the use of de-icers. Most de-icing products contain high levels of salt, which can be detrimental to the environment. But with the prediction of snow and ice on the way, now may be a good time to think about the use of de-icers and how they affect our environment. What kind of de-icers do you use?

Here's a great document about chemical deicers and how they affect the Chesapeake Bay.

Today is Laugh and Get Rich Day

Did you know that today is Laugh and Get Rich Day? Well, according to Chase’s Calendar of Events (and the other resources that I use to see what’s happening each day), it is. But it took me awhile to find out the origin of the “holiday”. And in the process, I found another great blog to follow to keep me “up-to-date” on the dates.

The blog Lisa Loves Holidays has this explanation for a day that I plan to take full advantage of! Here is an excerpt from the Lisa Loves Holidays blog about:

Laugh and Get Rich Day

Celebrated every year on February 8th. Laugh and Get Rich Day is predicated upon the principal that, in the business world, if you have a good sense of humor it can have a positive influence on your success. Laugh and Get Rich Day is based on the teachings of the best selling book Laugh and Get Rich, How To Profit From Humor in Business written by retail expert and marketing guru, Rick Segel. In an article on the Rick Segel and Associates website, Mr. Segel says, "Many times the biggest thing that differentiates our business is the 'Likeability Factor' of our business. The fastest way to likeability is with the use of Fun, Humor, and Playful Behavior."

We all know that being around a person who can make people laugh (especially one who uses humor in good taste) makes us feel good inside, and we feel more positive toward that person, which could potentially be good for that person's bottom line.

Ending Nature Deficit Disorder – Richard Louv coming to Virginia

I’ve mentioned Richard Louv on this blog before. He is a best-selling author whose book Last Child in the Woods helped sparked an international movement to reconnect children with nature. Mr. Louv offers a vision  of the future, in which our lives are as immersed in nature as they are in  technology. This future offers better psychological, physical and spiritual  health for people of every age.

The Piedmont Environmental Council, in celebration of their 40th anniversary, is bringing  Louv  to the Piedmont for two exciting presentations.

The first program will be  March 14th at 7pm at Tuscarora High School in Leesburg

The second is March 15th at 7pm at The Paramount Theater in Charlottesville

Tickets are only $12.00 for adults and $8.00 for students and they are expected to sell quickly, so reserve yours today and  mark your calendar!

For more information and to Order Your Tickets, visit the Piedmont Environmental Council website.

10 Ways that the mild winter might make spring and summer a bummer

Are you enjoying this mild winter? I know I am. Lower heating bills, fewer car accidents, less damage caused to the environment from the use of de-icing products. And there are plenty of gardeners out there taking advantage of these mild temperatures to get an early start on their spring gardens.

But if you are like me, you are probably wondering what this mild spring might mean for the rest of the year. And since I found quite a few NEGATIVES that might result from the beautiful days we have been experiencing for the past few months, my advice to you is Seize the Day! Get out and enjoy.

10 ways the mild winter might make spring and summer a bummer

1. A mild winter could mean more rats in the spring. A mild winter means that fewer rats and mice die from natural causes, so more will be seen in the spring. Follow this link for tips on rat control.
2. Mild winters could bring more insects in the spring - Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, a professor of entomology and a specialist with the New York State Integrated Pest Management Program says,“If the winter of 2011-12 continues in the mild pattern that most of the U.S. has seen, I think 2012 will be a very buggy year.”
3. Mild winters affect food crops (which could mean higher priced produce)- Fruits such as peaches require “chill hours” for trees to bloom and produce good fruit.
4. Mild winter could mean earlier allergy season - a mild winter may cause trees to pollinate earlier and bring an early start to the allergy season, and potentially a longer season (American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 2007).
5. Mild winter may bring more deer to your garden in the spring - David W. Wolfe, a professor of plant and soil ecology in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the chair of the Climate Change Focus Group in the Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future says, “A mild winter will mean bigger deer populations in the spring because the deer have more to eat with less snow cover and more vegetation exposed for them to feed on all winter.”
6. More invasive weeds – “It also will benefit some insect pests and invasive weeds like kudzu that normally are killed back during winter because of severe cold.” (Wolfe)
7. More fungi - Over 80 percent of our plant diseases are caused by fungi. A mild winter allows those fungal spores and structures to live on more, decaying moist plant parts.
8. Warm winters can confuse our plants - “Warmer winter temperatures can also confuse our plants that are expecting to get cold and stay cold until spring,” Richard Hentschel, U of Illinois Extension horticulture specialist. “We often see this in early spring bulbs and tender perennials that try to start to grow too early and damaged by frosts and drops in temperatures below freezing.”
9. Warm winter can actually make plants deacclimate to the cold, so they are weaker for subsequent winters.
10. Less natural new plant life - with stratification officially on hold with this nice weather its very possible that nuts and some wild plant seeds will simply not germinate well.  It won't be the end of the world but if you've put something in the ground with the hopes that it will stratify I hate to say it but you might want to dig it up and use your freezer instead.

Recovering the Native Lupine Population in Maryland - AWS Lecture Series

Interested in protecting native wildflowers? Join the Anacostia Watershed Society (AWS) on Wednesday, February 15, for their next Lecture Series event and learn about the unique habitats where Maryland's remaining lupines (Lupinis perennis) grow, the factors responsible for their decline, and the successful efforts that are being made to save them. Presenter Sara Tangren is an instructor of Soils and Environmental Policy at Johns Hopkins University, and founder of the native gardening effort at the University of Maryland campus in College Park. AWS Lecture Series: Recovering the Native Lupine Population in Maryland Date: Wednesday, February 15, 2012 Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm Location: AWS Office 4302 Baltimore Avenue Bladensburg, MD RSVP to: The Anacostia Watershed Society Office: (301) 699-6204 E-mail: info@anacostiaws.org Website: http://www.anacostiaws.org/ Information provided by Kathy Jentz, Editor, Washington Gardener Magazine