It's National Pursuit of Happiness Week

“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” -Abraham Lincoln.  

Apparently, the second week of November is National Pursuit of Happiness Week. I found several articles about it online, none of which provided any explanation for how or why the week was designated.

But as far as I’m concerned, no explanation is needed. Some people believe that you can never be too rich or too thin. I believe that you can never be too happy. There is always room for MORE!

So if you feel you need to add a little more happiness to your life, here are some suggestions:

1) Go outside. Aristotle is credited as saying “In all things of nature, there is something of the marvelous”. No matter what the weather is like outside, there is always something beautiful and amazing if you take the time to look close enough. If you need a happiness boost, take a closer look at nature.

2) Take time to smell the flowers. If you don’t have anything blooming in your own yard, spend a few dollars and buy yourself a bouquet to put on your desk today. It will help you to visualize the beautiful eco-friendly garden you plan to work on next Spring.

3) When it comes to conversation, DIG DEEP. Did you know that deep conversation can bring happiness? I’m not talking about the short quips and tweets people exchange on twitter and Facebook these days. I’m talking about deep, heart to heart talks. So open up and share!

4) If you aren’t already a “green” gardener, pick up the trowel and dig in. Science seems to point to the fact that being eco-friendly and taking care of the planet helps make people happier.

5) Try some Bare Naked Gardening. No explanation needed.

6) Think happy thoughts. As obvious as it sounds, it is pretty easy to “think yourself happy.” Professor Richard Wiseman, from the University of Hertfordshire, conducted a mass-participation experiment online, with more than 26,000 people joining to try recognize mood-boosting techniques. Participants were given several different techniques that they were supposed to practice for a week, to determine which one made people the happiest. The result: participants who were asked to recall a pleasant event from the previous day were given an immediate 15 per cent boost in happiness

7) And remember, Happiness is contagious. New research shows that in a social network, happiness spreads among people up to three degrees removed from one another. That means when you feel happy, a friend of a friend of a friend has a slightly higher likelihood of feeling happy too.

So what makes you happy? Do you have any quick happiness tips to share with our readers?

Butterflies help remind us to be good environmental stewards

As delicate and fragile as they appear, I think that butterflies have tremendous super-powers. In fact, I think that they can help save the world! Why? Because they are so beautiful and magical that, once they start hanging around, they can influence gardeners to quit using pesticides and plant more native plants, both of which are positive steps for the planet.

If you don't already garden for butterflies, fall and winter are the perfect times to start learning about how to attract these beautiful "flying flowers" to your gardens. Once spring arrives, you will have the knowledge AND the enthusiasm to get out there and start planting your nectar and host plants to attract butterflies.


 Here are some links to butterfly information for the DC, Maryland and Virginia areas.

• Create a Butterfly Garden - Metro DC Lawn and Garden Blog
•  Butterflies of Virginia Butterflies of Maryland
• Butterflies of DC
• Butterflies of Maryland – Maryland Department of Natural Resources
• Backyard Butterfly Bonanza – Fairfax County
• Using Native Plants to Attract Butterflies pdf file (From Green Spring Gardens)

There are also several butterfly groups in the area that will help you get started on this great hobby.

The Washington Area Butterfly Club emphasizes education about and appreciation and conservation of butterflies in the Washington, DC, area including Maryland and Virginia. Meetings are free and open to the public, although occasional events are only for members and their guests. Members also conduct various other butterfly-related activities including butterfly gardening, butterfly counts, conservation, and field trips.

Butterfly Society of Virginia promotes butterfly and moth conservation, including conservation of habitat and host and nectar gardens.

Post Halloween Treats

One again, I have way too many goodies to keep to myself, so I need to share them before they get stale.

In blogger jargon, that mea ns that I have a huge pile of things that I would LOVE to write about, but I just don’t have time.

Here are some great articles (and photos) that are worth sharing:

Treat #1: Photo of my sweet little great-nephew (or is it grand-nephew?) Alex, in his Halloween costume. Gotta love those dimples!

Treat #2: Planting Memories of her Dad across the City - This is a beautifully written piece about what sounds like a wonderful man, and his daughter, Sandy. Since her father passed away in May, Sandy has planted over 2800 bulbs throughout DC in his memory. One of my personal mottoes is "Life is your garden. Plant something good." It sounds like both Ted and Sandy have done their part to "plant something good."

Treat #3: Here’s another great article. This one, entitled Fall Leaves are Nature’s Free Gift to Homeowners, reminds us of the value of mulching and composting our fall leaves to keep all of those great, natural nutrients in our landscapes.

Treat #4: An article from one of my favorite compost bloggers: Six Rules of Composting

Treat #5: Want to conserve more energy? There’s an app for that. New Facebook App the 'Farmville' of Energy Conservation? The app will combine the competitiveness of a game with real-world data. Facebookers can benchmark their home’s energy usage against a national average of similar homes, compare their energy use with friends, enter energy-saving competitions, and share tips on how to become more energy efficient.

Treat #6: Exciting news for Virginia – Fort Monroe becomes National Monument - Today is truly an historic day for America as President Obama is announcing the establishment of Fort Monroe National Monument -- a historic fort in Virginia’s Tidewater region that was integral role to the history of slavery, the Civil War, and the U.S. military -- as the 396th unit of the National Park System.

Treat #7: Alex again. This time, rooting on his favorite football team!

Treat #8: FANTASTIC November to-do list on the Behnke's Garden Blog. Hints and tips for trees, shrubs, edibles, lawns and so much more. Great job, Susan!

Treat #9: ANOTHER cute Halloween baby. My good friend Kathy's new granddaughter, Autumn, dressed like a pink shrimp. Which I'll use as a reminder that eco-friendly gardening helps protect our waterways!

I have lots more treats in store, so be sure to subscribe to the Metro DC Lawn and Garden blog.

Protecting Watersheds: Rain Gardens in our Landscapes

What: Protecting Watersheds: Rain Gardens in our Landscapes

When: November 4th, 4:00pm – 5:00 pm

Where: Common Good City Farm, V Street NW between 2nd & 4th Sts NW

Visit Common Good's rain garden and learn how to design your own as an attractive way to prevent water run-off from polluting our watersheds. Dean Hively, a scientist from the US Geological Survey, will talk about the relevance and importance of diverting water run-off, and plants that thrive in rain gardens. They will have bergamot, liatrus blazing star, blue flag iris, and calamus for sale. This workshop is free, but if you earn more than minimum wage, they are requesting a $25 suggested donation. 

Register for this Free Workshop

Getting Your Garden Ready for Winter

What: Getting Your Garden Ready for Winter 

When: Thursday, November 10th at 7pm 

Where: Takoma DC Public Library, 5th and Cedar Streets 

Kathy Jentz, editor and publisher of Washington Gardener Magazine, will be presenting a free talk on Thursday, November 10 at 7 pm, at the Takoma DC Public Library about how to prepare your yard and gardens for the next growing season in an eco-friendly way. 

Kathy will share her secrets on how to grow a beautiful garden filled with flowers and foliage and still honor the earth by using sustainable gardening practices.

The talk marks the donation of 18 new garden books to the Takoma DC library by the Takoma Horticultural Club. They will be on display at the talk. For information, call the library at 202 576-7252.

More Flakes than Usual this Halloween as Mother Nature gets into the act

Halloween always brings out the flakes. Although most people opt for the predictable costumes like witches, werewolves and pirates, there are always a few flakes who go for something extreme that is sure to elicit a few groans. I've heard that a Casey Anthony mask is big this year. Grooooaannn.

Mother Nature is even getting into the act this weekend by dressing up as winter, bringing a few groans and even some possible flakes (snow, that is) of her own to much of the Northeast.

Low temperatures, howling wind and precipitation will put a chill on your Halloween fun AND can cause damage to your gardens. So before you dress up for the festivities, take some time to bring in your hanging or potted plants, dig up and store your tender bulbs, and lay a little mulch to protect the roots of your shrubs.

And don't get mad at Mother Nature. Everybody likes to get a little wicked for Halloween!  

Common Good City Farm Harvest Festival

What: Common Good City Farm annual Harvest Festival

When: Saturday Oct. 29, 11am-2pm

Where: Common Good City Farm, V Street NW between 2nd & 4th Sts NW

This free event open to the public will offer an afternoon of activities to include: pumpkin carving and painting, costume contest, scarecrow making, face painting and more! Food and drink will be served.

Stay for Oktoberfest on the same day happening in the neighborhood and hosted by the LeDroit Park Civic Association.

RSVP at http://bit.ly/2011HarvestFest

Promoting Native Bee Abundance

What: Promoting Native Bee Abundance and Diversity with Native Plants

When: Thursday, November 10, 2011, 7:30 pm  

Where: Green Spring Gardens, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, Virginia 

Join Maria Van Dyke, the Program Coordinator for Virginia Working Landscapes for a slide lecture about the importance and habitat requirements of native bees. Maria will discuss ongoing academic research which is identifying which native plants best support healthy and diverse native bee populations. Learn how you can best use native plants in your garden for this important part of our ecosystem.
Maria Van Dyke is the Program Coordinator for Virginia Working Landscapes and is also the Secretariay for Virginia Food System Council. She holds an MS in Ecology and Environment Sciences from UVA with work at Blandy Experimental Farm. Her talk will draw on native plant research she has participated in through Rutgers University, the NRCS Plant Research Center in Cape May and the Xerces Society.

Virginia Native Plant Society Programs are free and open to the public. No reservations are necessary.

For more information related to this press release please contact Alan Ford, VNPS Potowmack Chapter President at 703-732-5291.

Information received from: Kathy Jentz , Editor/Publisher , Washington Gardener Magazine

Rainscaping at the Coolidge High School Garden

What: Rainscaping at Coolidge Highschool Garden

When: Saturday, November 12 , 8:30 am to noon

Where: Calvin Coolidge Garden 6315 5th St NW, Washington DC

Please join the Friends of the Garden and Coolidge High School students in restoring 3600 sq ft of beds after last summer's drought. Gardening experts from the area's Watershed Stewards Academy and the American Society of Landscape Architects will explain how and why rainscaping (also known as riverscaping) helps local waterways and the Chesapeake Bay stay healthy, while making neighborhoods more attractive. The Native Species you will plant are drought resistant and hardy, and will attract birds and desirable insects like butterflies for years to come.

Tools and Gloves: Provided but bring along your favorite weeding tool if you have one. 

Coffee, tea, juice and snacks provided.
RSVP by Wednesday, November 9 to James Proctor at jproctor@cchs-aa.org or 202-652-9423

Information provided by Kathy Jentz, editor of Washington Gardener Magazine

Are you tired of the rich getting all of the gold? It's time to occupy "fall" street

Are you tired of the tree-rich landscapes hoarding all of the gold (and red, and yellow) of autumn’s splendor while your plant-devoid landscape does without? Well, be part of the 99% who appreciate Autumn color! Get outside and go occupy “fall” street.

There is plenty of fall foliage in Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia to go around. So take some time this weekend to “go for the gold”. Take a tour around DC, visit a park or take a little drive to one of the other great locations for Fall Foliage in Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia that I found on dc.about.com

Before you head out, I encourage you to read the post (with gorgeous photos) on Casey Trees blog, which lists some trees to look out for, including:

• American beech trees (Fagus grandifolia) - at the U.S. Capitol grounds, Dumbarton Oaks and along the Capital Crescent trail.

• Red maples (Acer rubrum) - in front of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian and on the White House grounds.

• Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) - Check it out near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, at the National Zoo and in West Potomac Park.

• White oak (Quercus alba) - The white oak can be found all over D.C., including at Dumbarton Oaks, Tudor Place, Logan Circle, Cedar Hill and the Capital Crescent Trail. Most white oak leaves turn red, but some turn a gorgeously rare deep-wine.

• Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum) - Find these simple oval-leafed trees at Glenwood Cemetery and the U.S. Botanic Garden on Maryland Ave SW.

Now don’t despair. You, too, can grow your own gold! October – December are great times to plant trees, since they enter their dormancy during this period. And best of all, there are rebate and incentive programs to help cover the costs of tree planting in your Metro DC yard.

Casey Trees and the DDOE now offer rebates of up to $100 for having qualified trees planted in your landscape.

Montgomery County Maryland’s website lists rebates of up to $150 per tree ($600 per lot) for residents who plant trees.

There is a coupon for $25.00 off the purchase price of a tree on the Marylanders Plant Trees website.

So get started on your own tree-rich landscape. Just make sure that you are committed to the regular investments of time and care needed to watch your new treasure grow!