OCTOBER 2020 VOL. 15 NO. 8
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gardener
the magazine for gardening enthusiasts in the Mid-Atlantic region
Growing Hops at Home
Selecting TroubleFree Roses
Tiger Eyes
The Best Time to Plant Garlic Meet Prince George’s Urban Agricultural Conservation Planner Ready Your Yard For Fall What to Do in the Garden this Month Mastering Perfect Bulb– Perennial Combinations
Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac
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Washington Gardener Magazine’s staff and writers are available to speak to groups and garden clubs in the DC region and ONLINE! Call 240.603.1461 or email KathyJentz@gmail.com for available dates, rates, and topics.
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Green Spring Gardens
www.greenspring.org
A “must visit” for everyone in the metropolitan Washington, DC, area. It’s a year-round goldmine of information and inspiration for the home gardener. It’s an outdoor classroom for children and their families to learn about plants and wildlife. It’s also a museum, a national historic site that offers glimpses into a long, rich history with colonial origins. Located at 4603 Green Spring Rd., Alexandria, VA. Information: 703-642-5173.
RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL PLANTS FOR THE DISCRIMINATING GARDENER AND COLLECTOR Barry Glick Sunshine Farm and Gardens 696 Glicks Road Renick, WV 24966, USA Email: barry@sunfarm.com
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FEATURES and COLUMNS
Dutch garden designer Jacqueline van der Kloet showcases magenta tulips in a sea of gold and green companion plants in late spring. “There’s great contrast between the bright flowers of lily-flowered Tulipa ‘Ballade’ and the dill-like foliage of Love in a Mist (Nigella) and the gold flowers and foliage of Yellow alexander (Smyrnium perfoliatum). After bloom, van der Kloet pulls the fading Smyrnium, which sometimes self-seeds excessively. The Nigella continues to bloom into mid-summer, then sets attractive seed heads. Photo courtesy of Jacqueline van der Kloet/Colorblends
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Plants gathered and ready to be loaded up at the end of the DC Plant Swap at the U.S. National Arboretum in September. While many local, in-person gardening events have been cancelled this year, a few are still possible when held outdoors and with proper social distancing and precautions.
Three generations of hops growers at the Green Diamond Hopyard in Shipman, VA. Since Thomas Jefferson’s time, hops has been grown in our region. The 2017 hop count conducted by the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service estimated that there were around 45,000 hop plants or just under 38 acres in cultivation across the state of Virginia.
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BOOKreviews 18-19 Garden Mindfulness, Royal Gardens, Japanese Style Companion Planting EDIBLEharvest 7-9 Hops Growing Basics GARDENbasics 20-21 Choosing Trouble-Free Roses HORThappening 6 DC Plant Swap 2020 NEIGHBORnetwork 14-16 Kim Rush Lynch, Urban Agricultural Conservation Planner, Prince George’s County, MD NEWPLANTspotlight 11 Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Love and Rockets’ PARTINGhumor 22 An Epic Poem PLANTprofile 17 Tiger Eyes Sumac TIPStricks 10 Garlic Timing, Combining Bulbs and Perennials, Fall Yard Prep
DEPARTMENTS
ADVERTISINGindex BLOGlinks EDITORletter GARDENcontest GARDENDCpodcasts LOCALevents MONTHLYtasklist NEXTissue READERreactions RESOURCESsources
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ON THE COVER
The fall foliage on Tiger Eyes Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac is stunning in a local garden just outisde Washington, DC.
In our November issue: Holiday Garden Gift Ideas Jumping Worms Bulb Planting Tips and much more . . .
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EDITORletter
Credits Kathy Jentz Editor/Publisher Washington Gardener 826 Philadelphia Ave. Silver Spring, MD 20910 Phone: 301-588-6894 kathyjentz@gmail.com www.washingtongardener.com Ruth E. Thaler-Carter Proofreader Lindsay Garbacik Nicole Noechel Interns Cover price: $4.99 Back issues: $6.00 Subscription: $20.00
Your editor enjoying some new outdoor sculptures in downtown Silver Spring, MD.
Slowly Getting Back to Normal
“Cancelled!” Oh, how I hate to see that notice popping up on event after event this year—must we give up so easily? I much prefer “rescheduled” or “postponed.” We humans are such inventive creatures, surely we can find a way! In the past few weeks, my schedule has exploded with garden talks via Zoom. “I even gave two in-person ones to local garden clubs. They took place outdoors with social distancing and lots of precautions. Both were interesting experiments in getting “back to normal.” They worked well, because the weather cooperated and the groups were relatively small. We were also able to host our annual DC Plant Swap at the U.S. National Arboretum (USNA) after weeks of emails and preparations. We were the first “public” event to return to the USNA and were a bit of a test case to see how that might work for them. (See story on page 6.) On the other hand, our annual Tomato Taste at the FRESHFARM Market in downtown Silver Spring, MD, did not take place. We made several efforts to figure how it might work logistically and safely in the limited space, but it was not to be. It is my intention to bring it back in late summer 2021, if at all possible. Happy gardening,
Kathy Jentz, Editor/Publisher, Washington Gardener, KathyJentz@gmail.com 4
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• Washington Gardener Blog: www.washingtongardener.blogspot.com • Washington Gardener Archives: http://issuu.com/washingtongardener • Washington Gardener Discussion Group: https://groups.google.com/g/ washingtongardener/ • Washington Gardener Twitter Feed: www.twitter.com/WDCGardener • Washington Gardener Instagram: www.instagram.com/wdcgardener • Washington Gardener Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ WashingtonGardenerMagazine/ • Washington Gardener YouTube: www.youtube.com/ washingtongardenermagazine • Washington Gardener Store: www.amazon.com/shop/wdcgardener • Washington Gardener Podcast: https://anchor.fm/kathy-jentz/ • Washington Gardener is a womanowned business. We are proud to be members of: · GardenComm (GWA: The Association for Garden Communicators) · Green America Magazine Leaders Network · Green America Business Network Volume 15, Number 8 ISSN 1555-8959 © 2020 Washington Gardener All rights reserved. Published monthly. No material may be reproduced without prior written permission. This magazine is purchased by the buyer with the understanding that the information presented is from various sources from which there can be no warranty or responsibility by the publisher as to legality, completeness, or technical accuracy.
READERcontt
Reader Contest
For our October 2020 Washington Gardener Magazine Reader Contest, Washington Gardener is giving away 2021 garden calendars from Workman Publishing (value $15, workman.com). Workman 2021 calendars are the perfect gift for the growing number of green thumbs since the pandemic hit. Workman introduces a whole new lineup of lively, garden-inspired calendars—along with new editions of old favorites. The Secret Garden wall calendar, with over 1 million copies sold, explores all the best-kept secrets gardens have to offer. The Birds in the Garden from Audubon features a gorgeous photo each month that is like glancing out the window and spotting a jewel-like songbird alighting on a flower. To enter to win a garden calendar, send an email to WashingtonGardenerMagazine@gmail.com by 5:00pm on Saturday, October 31, with “Workman Calendar” in the subject line and in the body of the email, tell us what your favorite article was in this issue and why. Include your full name and mailing address. The winner will be announced on November 1. o
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READERreactions
September 2020 Issue I appreciated the article “Fall is for Planting Perennials,” because I have several perennials that I want to plant in my yard soon, including some Paw Paw seedlings, Begonia grandis, and Black-eyed Susans. I will take your advice not to fertilize and wait until the spring. Thanks for your great publication and for hosting the plant swap at the National Arboretum a few weeks ago, I had a blast! ~ Jennifer Summers, Waldorf, MD I most enjoyed the article on how to grow onions since I failed at it this year! Thanks for making the magazine available online. ~ Marian B. Westley, Chevy Chase, MD
August 2020 Issue I really like the article “7 Garden Myths—Busted!” When searching for information about plants on the internet, these myths pop up everywhere. There is a long-winded discussion about plants that deer won’t eat on our club email list and the answer as to what they will and will not eat is of course, as with many things, “It depends.” Another myth is that adding mycorrhizal fungi to the soil is helpful. Plants form associations with specific fungi, and who knows what fungi are added to these soil mixes? The ones the plant needs will already be in the soil. ~ Anne Hardman, Silver Spring, MD My favorite article was the one about myth-busting in the garden and the myth I was most interested in reading about was the one about mosquito repellent plants—oh well! ~ Madeline Caliendo, Washington, DC
Plant a Row for the Hungry (PAR) is an easy program to participate in and really does not take any extra resources than what you may have in your garden. In normal times, about 35 million people wonder where their next meal will come from. Most of these are children. That’s where PAR steps in. PAR is such a simple program: It urges gardeners to Plant A Row (or a container) dedicated to feeding the hungry, and then take the harvest to someplace or someone that needs it. Once you have donated, send an email to KathyJentz@gmail.com with the total (in pounds and ounces) of what you gave. That is all there is to it. Easy. Effective. Adaptable and Helpful.
I loved the Crepe Myrtle article—pithy and packed with details. ~ Doris Warrell, Washington, DC I especially liked the article about the water features by Hadly Baker because I love ponds and fish. I grow lotus and waterlilies, so I found it interesting. I also liked the article about Crepe Myrtles. It is one of my favorite trees. I have planted several that were found seedlings. I just love them. Thank you for an interesting magazine. ~ Joanna R. Protz, Lynch Station, VA o OCTOBER 2020
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HORThaenings on rarity and exoticness, Washington Gardener editor-in-chief and event organizer Kathy Jentz opted for a more-inclusive process. Everyone who attended the event was able to choose plants during every round, regardless of what they initially brought to trade. “I had hoped for more outdoor plants, but there are more houseplants,” said gardener Claudia Isaacoff. “I came to the swap with a pretty open mind about what plants I might find,” Kaplan said. “I was hoping there might be some ostrich or cinnamon ferns, but wasn’t heartbroken when there weren’t any. I hadn’t even thought about adding more barrenwort (Epimedium), but someone brought a bunch and that works in my shade, too. But that’s how plant swaps usually work, unless you make pre-arranged trades.” There was a decent selection of plants up for grabs, with a few exotic plants hidden in the mix. “I’m excited about this pitcher plant— you don’t typically see them in stores,” said gardener Caroline Hooks. While plant swaps may look a bit different right now, there’s always a hidden treasure to be found. o
Plant Swapping in COVID Times By Lindsay Garbacik During the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be difficult to connect with neighbors and community members face-to-face while still following social distancing guidelines. However, this didn’t stop Washington Gardener Magazine from adjusting its annual Plant Swap to an updated, COVID-safe event, full of a wide variety of plants, from houseplants to edibles and everything in-between. The event took place on Sunday, September 20, at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, DC, with about 45 plant lovers coming out to swap. All participants were required to wear face masks, and were encouraged to stay 6 feet away from others. Between rounds of choosing plants, participants were able to use hand sanitizer in case of 6
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possible lingering germs on the plant containers. “I knew I was going to be careful about social distancing, even though I would be wearing a mask,” said Kim Kaplan, avid gardener. “COVID-19 did have an impact on the fun of swapping plants and meeting fellow gardeners, and hearing about their gardens, and often picking their brains for ideas.” Plants were divided into three groups: herbs and edibles, perennials, and houseplants. Swappers were invited to bring at least one plant to swap and were able to choose plants in more than four rounds. Rather than using typical plant swap methods, where each participant has their plant contribution rated based
Lindsay Garbacik is a junior journalism major, with a minor in art history, at the University of Maryland. She is interning this fall semester with Washington Gardener.
EDIBLEharvt
How to Grow Hops at Home
Hops Growing Methods
Hops photo by Randy Green, Green Diamond Hopyard.
By John Moorhead If you are a homebrewer, you know that self-sufficiency is part of the unique culture of that hobby. Now it’s time to take the next step and grow your own hops! You don’t need a green thumb, you’ll save a little money, and it’s one more ingredient you’ll have complete control over in your beer. The hop is a dioecious plant, which means they have separate male and female plants. The female plant produces the flowers that are used for brewing, while the male plant pollinates. The female hop (Humulus lupulus) is a hardy, perennial plant that gives beer some of its signature characteristics (bitterness, aroma, flavor, mouth-feel, flavor stabilizer). Hops also act as an anti-microbial agent, which helps preserve beer and aids with foam retention. Homebrewers can either use rhizomes (small roots cut from the main stem of a female plant) or a crown (an entire hop plant) when growing hops. Early European settlers began brewing their beers with wild hops from New England. In 1628, rhizomes were brought over from Europe and inter-
Noble (European) varieties such as ‘Hallertau’, ‘Tettnanger’, ‘Spalt’, and ‘Saaz’ do not do well here due to the shortened day length, soil conditions, and humidity.”
breeding soon created the wild tasting American ‘Cluster’ variety. As settlers moved westward, they brought their rhizomes. Wisconsin and Michigan saw brief periods of production, but the western states of California, Oregon, and Washington soon dominated the market. Today, Washington’s Yakima Valley leads the way in hop production, followed by Oregon and Idaho. However, homebrewers grow hops in all states. With careful planning, you could supply your whole hop bill for the year! With more than 120 varieties of hops currently available, you’ll need to decide which variety to plant. Ask yourself these questions: What varieties do I like to brew with? What varieties will grow best in my location? Where do I get rhizomes? What sort of yield do I want? “‘Cascade’, an aroma hop, is the most mildew-resistant variety and does well in this area,” said Randy Green of Green Diamond Hopyard in Shipman, VA. “It is often used in IPA style brews due to it’s pronounced citrus aroma. Other varieties that do well here are ‘Nugget’, ‘Perle’, ‘Chinook’, and ‘Zeus’.
Once you’ve chosen your desired varieties, many breweries, homebrew shops, and nurseries have rhizomes to purchase. Try to source them locally, if possible, in order to have a better understanding on the plant’s history, performance, and known diseases. Store slightly moistened rhizomes in a plastic bag in the refrigerator until you are ready to plant. Since hop plants can live 25-50 years, planning their grow space is crucial. They’ll need plenty of climbing space in a sunny location (south facing is ideal), with well-draining soil. Hops climb clockwise up a support system by using tiny hairs. To support the hop bines, you’ll need to use string (e.g. hemp, wire, fencing, and netting) that will allow the hop to shoot upwards. Many homebrewers run string down from the roof of their house, build a homemade trellis, or build a metal or wood framework for the hops to climb. For the horizontal approach, run the bine up eight to 10 feet, then take it horizontally along another twine or support for eight to 10 more feet. You can use this hop canopy as a shadeproducing element for a beer garden—a nice place to enjoy a homebrew and view your hops! Make sure to carefully monitor the bines from reaching over to other plants. Prior to planting, you’ll need to prepare your soil. Hops thrive in a loamy, well-draining soil with a pH between 6.0 and 7.5. The pH level directly affects the nutrients that are available to a plant. If the pH isn’t right, it can lock up the soil and inhibit growth. You can add sand to the soil to improve drainage and try deep irrigation to reduce saltiness. Try to aim for a slightly acidic soil (6.7-6.9 pH). You can purchase a pH testing kit from your local gardening store. If your soil pH is low, use a form of lime or wood ashes to reduce acidity. Likewise, if your soil pH is high, you can use aluminum sulfate and sulfur (found at your local gardening store or nursery) to OCTOBER 2020
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EDIBLEharvt reduce alkalinity. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions when manipulating pH to ensure the appropriate amounts and methods are used. Dig a one-foot deep hole and add a shovelful of compost, which makes the soil nutrients more available to the roots, then add two to three handfuls of mycorrhizal inoculum, a symbiosis of fungi and plant roots that aids in nutrient uptake and root growth of the plant. Plant three to six rhizomes two inches below the soil surface so the shoots point upward. When putting the rhizomes in the soil, make sure each area of rhizome varieties is three to five feet apart to avoid root mixing. After putting the rhizomes in the ground with your remaining dirt, put another inch of compost over top and then two inches of mulch, which will prevent weed growth and protect young plants from any late frost. Hops will absorb additional nutrients of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen through the air. Other helpful nutrients you can purchase are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (generally referred to as N-P-K). A common rate is five pounds of fertilizer per 100 square feet (one handful per plant). Fertilizer schedules vary, but in general you should fertilize on the first sprout, then three weeks later, then once in mid-summer and once at the beginning stages of flowering. Review the stages of growth and other pertinent information found in Stan Hieronymus’ book For The Love of Hops before planting: dormancy, spring regrowth, vegetative growth, reproductive growth, formation of cones, and preparation for dormancy. Properly identifying these stages will help you better understand the plant and determine what needs to be done to ensure ideal yield come harvest time. As the saying goes, first they sleep, then they creep, and last they leap. The first year’s growth likely will not yield many cones and is mostly devoted to establishing the crown and root system. As the years progress, your hop plants will mature into a mean, green, conegrowing machines. Mature plants over three years old require root pruning in early spring. Without it, rhizomes will spread 8
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throughout the year, hoarding nutrients and water from the crown needed by the shoots. In the first year of growth, let the plant grow without any pruning. In the following years, as the bines begin to grow, you can prune the first spring shoots to encourage more robust secondary shoot growth. Once these shoots are one to two feet tall, pick two or three shoots to train clockwise from the top. It’s tempting to keep all bines on your plant, but choosing a few will give you a more robust plant and better yield. Once you’ve picked your two or three shoots, begin training them to climb. Don’t disturb them on a cloudy or cool day because they are brittle and may snap. If it does snap, don’t panic, the next node down will grow. As the season continues, continuing training your hops by trimming back the untrained shoots to ground level and mulching to keep the weeds down. After the hop burrs (the beginning stage of flowering that shows white feelers budding off the tips of the plant) have appeared, you can cut away the lowest four feet of foliage and lateral branches to aid in air circulation and reduce disease development. The removal of the lower leaves must be done carefully to avoid breaking or kinking the main stem. In late summer, allow bottom growth to promote hardiness of the crown and the plant vigor for the following year. Hops require a lot of water, especially in their first year. The older the plant, the less frequent the watering. In areas where irrigation is necessary, never apply overhead water such as a sprinkler system. This will create a moist environment that is disease prone. A drip irrigation system is the most waterefficient method. Consider building this cheap drip irrigation system to keep your hops thirst quenched. “The hops requires irrigation throughout the growing season,” said Dixon Leatherbury, owner of Seaside Hops in Machipongo, VA, on the Eastern Shore. “We plan on 0.2" of water per day, either nature’s or our supplement. Soil and water in the Mid-Atlantic as well as the length of day effect our hops. Our days have about one hour less daylight than those in the traditional hops belt,
and these shorter days play a part in the terroir of our product. We simply do not have sufficient empirical data to link any one of the factors to results, but one of my brewers describes our ‘Zeus’ as being softer in flavor and more fruit-forward than those from the Pacific Northwest.”
Hops Harvesting Tips
You’ve planned, pruned, monitored, and cared for your hops all summer and now those little cones have arrived! Be patient. A common mistake is picking the cones too early. You want to pick over-ripe hops rather than under-ripe hops. Harvest occurs mid-August through September with aromatic varieties maturing first. As resins and oils develop, the cone will send water and nutrients from the bracts into the lupulin glands, leaving the cone slightly dull and papery. Look for the tips to become a little dry on the cone before picking and wear a long sleeve shirt! There are a few methods to check ripeness of your hops. • Give the cones a light squeeze occasionally and when they feel light and dry, and spring back after a squeeze, they’re ready. • Pick a cone, roll it in your hands, and smell it. If it has a pungent smell between cut grass and onion, it’s time to harvest. • Roll the hop next to your ear. If it makes a cricket sound, this also means they’re ready to harvest. If the lupulin turns orange and smells rancid, you’ve overshot your window. For first year bines, try to pick the cones and not cut down the bine until it dies off. This will lend necessary nutrients back to the roots for the winter. For following years, cut the bine down and be careful not to damage or dirty those precious lupulin glands. You should expect one to two pounds of dried hops per mature plant. Now, invite some friends over to help you pick the hops while enjoying some homebrew! Wait! You’re not finished yet. Freshlypicked hops can either go directly into the kettle for a fresh hop brew or onto a drying process. There are three factors you’ll want to remember when drying hops: time, heat, and moisture. To prevent oxidation and isomeriza-
EDIBLEharvt
Common Hops Diseases & Pests
• Downy Mildew: first spotted in Japan in 1905 and soon followed in America and Europe. It’s caused by the fungus Pseudoperonospora humuli. It will first appear in the spring as infected shoots emerge. Infected shoots will look stunted, brittle, and lighter in color and are unable to climb. Flowers often
Hopyard in full flower. Photo by Dixon Leatherbury.
tion, drying shouldn’t last more than three days. You can speed up drying by putting them in the oven, watching closely by checking on them every 20 minutes. The heat you use should never exceed 140° F. You can also use a drying screen to dry your hops. Place landscape fabric over the top to keep them in the dark and occasionally fluff the hops so moist inner cones are brought to the outside of the pile. Use a fan to expedite the process. The hops need a moisture content of eight to 10 percent by weight to prevent molding. A quick method to see if they’re dry enough is if the central stem of the cone is almost brittle enough to snap in half. Once the hops are dried, vacuum seal a bag and properly store them in the freezer. The old standard to estimate alphaacid percentage is to make an educated guess and then modify the guess after you brew a few times. Homegrown hops are fresher than those you’d buy in a store, and can have an estimated 50 percent higher alpha acid percentage than the average commercial hop. One method you can use, described by Patrick D’Luzansky, is to compare a same-cultivar hop of known alpha content with your unknown alpha hop. You compare the ratio of quantities of sugar needed to overcome the bitterness and infer that this ratio will equal the ratio of alphas. For example, if it takes five teaspoons of sugar to offset the bitterness of homegrown hops and three teaspoons of sugar to offset commercial hops, then the homegrown hops are fivethirds as strong, and our alpha-acid content is five-thirds the commercial alpha. So a commercial alpha of three percent would make the homegrown alpha five-thirds times three, or five percent.
become infected when blooming occurs during wet weather and young cones stop growing and turn brown. Roots and crowns may be completely rotted and destroyed. Remedy: Remove and burn infected tissues, sulfur-based fungicides. • Powdery Mildew: caused by the fungus Podosphaera macularis. First appears as powdery white colonies on leaves, buds, stems, and cones. Infected cones become reddish-brown as tissues die. Under cloudy, humid conditions the fungus can complete its life cycle in as little as five days. Remedy: Remove and burn infected tissues, sulfur-based fungicides. • Verticillium Wilt: caused by two related fungi, and the nonlethal strain is more common in the Pacific Northwest. The lethal strains cause rapid death of leaves, side arms, and the plant itself. Symptoms on the nonlethal variety include yellow veining of the leaves and wilting of leaves and vines. Remedy: Remove and burn infected tissues, sulfur-based fungicides. • Hop Stunt Viroid: sub-viral pathogen does just what its name implies: stunts the growth of the plants and can reduce alpha acid yield by as much as 60 to 80 percent per acre. Symptoms of infection may not appear for three to five growing seasons, which increase the danger of the propagation and distribution of infected plants. It is viewed as an increasing threat.
• Hop Aphid (Phorodon humuli): the hop aphid causes the most damage by feeding on developing cones, which turn brown. It secretes large amounts of sugary honeydew that causes a sooty mold fungi on leaves and cones, reducing productivity. It may also transmit plant viruses. Remedy: Lady bugs or insecticidal soaps. • Spider Mites (Tetranychus urticae): spider mites also suck plant juices from cells. A minor infestation causes bronze leaves, while a severe one results in defoliation and white webs. Spider mites are most dangerous during warm, dry weather and not usually a problem for well watered plants. Remedy: Phytoseiulus persimilis (predatory mite) or insecticidal soaps. Preventative measures and constant monitoring will help prevent any devastating outbreak. The idea is to be proactive by creating an environment that doesn’t favor disease or pests. If things become out of hand, consult your local nursery for more drastic measures.
Hops Forward
Relax, don’t worry, have a homebrew. After all your hard work, you can finally sit back and relax with a fresh, homegrown-hopped homebrew. Throughout the fall and into the winter, the bines will send nutrients down into the root system. All that’s left to do is to cut back the bines, cover with compost and mulch, and start planning for next year’s crop. “New or potential growers should be aware that the crop is challenging, requires a significant amount of hand labor during the growing months, is beautiful to watch growing, and a heck of a lot of fun!” said Leatherbury. If you really get big by the hops-growing bug, Green recommends joining the Old Dominion Hops Co-Op (ODHC, www. olddominionhops.com), a group of 40 growers scattered from North Carolina up through Delaware. “We see the local hops industry at the same place that the grape and wine industry was nearly 40 years ago,” said Green. “Just emerging.” o John Moorhead is Director of the National Homebrew Competition and AHA Special Projects Coordinator. See more at www. homebrewersassociation.org. OCTOBER 2020
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TIPStricks
Planting Garlic at the Correct Time in Fall
Garlic is one of the easiest and most rewarding crops you can grow. According to Barbara Melera of Harvesting History Heirlooms (https:// harvesting-history.com), one of the most frequently made mistakes in home garden garlic growing is planting the garlic too early or too late. Most garlic grows best when planted in the fall. Some softnecks can flourish when planted in the spring, but hardnecks must be planted in the fall in order to produce the largest, healthiest bulbs. In Hardiness Zones 5 - 7, too many people plant their garlic in September or early October. That is too early. The only objective you wish to accomplish when planting garlic in the fall is to get your garlic plants to put down enough roots to keep the clove buried in the soil throughout the winter. Frost heaves, when the soil experiences frequent freezing and thawing, will often spit the cloves right out of the ground. This is not good. When planted in late October, November, or December, the plant puts down enough roots to keep the clove in the ground and does not produce so much top growth that it weakens the plant. Garlic is not a community plant. It does not like or want neighbors, so leave at least 6 inches between plants and 18 inches between rows and you will produce large garlic bulbs. If you crowd garlic, it will not bulb. “Most soil, today, does not have enough potash (potassium) or phosphate (phosphorus) to produce large, healthy garlic bulbs, so amend your soil before you plant with each of these soil nutrients,” said Melera. “Also, garlic loves to be fed during the winter, and its favorite food is wood ashes from a wood-burning fireplace or woodstove. Just sprinkle the ashes over the soil where the garlic is sleeping during the winter and let Mother Nature do the rest.” The most important success factor in growing great garlic is to save your largest and best-tasting cloves and plant them. “Never eat your bet cloves,” advised Melera. By following this practice, year after year, you will build a collection of your own superior garlic. o 10
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Mastering Perfect Bulb– Perennial Combinations
Gardeners who want to up their plantpartnering game may find Colorblends’ collaborative BulbDesignNotes.com of interest. The online project was created to address one subject: What makes spring plant partnerships work? Launched last August and now newly reworked and expanded, the project takes visitors behind the scenes to explore how four talented garden design professionals create spring plant combinations that achieve their design goals. Project sponsor Colorblends Wholesale Flowerbulbs is a Connecticut-based flower bulb company that serves landscape professionals and home gardeners, nationwide. The four designers are: Jacqueline van der Kloet, garden designer and plant specialist, Weesp, the Netherlands; Janie McCabe, residential garden designer, Northford, Connecticut; Mark Konlock, landscape designer and director of horticulture at Green Bay Botanical Garden, Green Bay, Wisconsin and, new this year, Linda Vater, small-garden designer, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. “The Bulb Design Notes Project focuses on the thinking that goes into creating plant partnerships that work,” says Tim Schipper of Colorblends. “In sharing how they approach spring plant combinations, the four designers present varied points of view, plus many workable ideas. For home gardeners and landscape pros, it’s an unusual opportunity to see the design process through the eyes of different design professionals.” The expanded project now features 36 design scenarios, each a freestanding case study. The designers contributed photos of plant combos they designed or admire. Each photo depicts a mix of spring bulbs, perennials and/or annuals, biennials and flowering trees or shrubs. In their notes, they elaborate on how the combos achieve beautiful spring color followed by early summer interest. The four designers—each an active garden communicator—address everything from design concepts through practical details such as workarounds for bulb foliage dieback and dealing with foraging animals. o
Ready Your Yard For Fall
Every year, the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) provides tips and reminders to help families and backyard enthusiasts stay safe when using outdoor power equipment. This year is different, reports OPEI, as the world experiences a paradigm shift in how we live our everyday lives. “Due to the pandemic, we are all re-discovering the importance of connecting to the outdoors. We’re seeing record sales in yard and garden equipment and supplies, and more interest in working and living surrounded by green space,” says Kris Kiser, President of OPEI and the TurfMutt Foundation, which directs the TurfMutt environmental education and stewardship program. “People want their own section of the outdoors, and they see how a yard can both keep us safe and help us connect with one another.” • Be purposeful in how you maintain your landscape. Many people are sprucing up their yards for fall entertaining and adding trees and shrubs. If adding a tree or bush, consider location, maintenance, sunlight, and watering needs, as well as how it might support local pollinators in the spring and backyard wildlife over the winter. • Plan how to manage leaves. Mulching leaves and leaving them on the grass— rather than raking and bagging them—is good for the lawn and the environment. As shredded leaves decompose, they feed it naturally. • Keep your lawn healthy by aerating it. Aeration prevents soil from becoming compacted and covered with thatch, a thick layer of roots, stems, and debris that blocks water, oxygen, and nutrients from reaching the soil. • Get out equipment and assess your needs for fall yard work. Clean and inspect your mower, trimmer, leaf blower, pruner, or hedger. Get out attachments needed for fall like an aerator or mulching attachment. Take any equipment that needs it to an authorized service representative. • Continue to mow during the fall season. You should cut the grass until the first hard frost. Find the just-right length for your yard’s species, typically between 2-3 inches, to keep the grass healthy when it turns cold. o
GARDENnews
Quick Links to Recent Washington Gardener Blog Posts • Re-blooming Bloom Day • DIY: Pumpking-Succulent Arrangement • Plant Profile: Figs • Spring Publication Interns Sought See more Washington Gardener blog posts at: WashingtonGardener.blogspot.com o
October–November Garden To-Do List
New Plant Spotlight
Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Love and Rockets’ PPAF After 19 years breeding Pennisetum, Intrinsic Perennial Gardens, Inc. introduces ‘Love and Rockets’ a new hardy dwarf red fountain grass close in size and stature to ‘Hameln’. It combines nicely with the dark green foliage with red tips. Red-purple colored flowers bloom in August and end in October on 24"+ stems. It requires full sun. It is happy in most any soil, but wet. It hardy to USDA Zones 5-9 You can learn more at http://www. intrinsicperennialgardens.com/. o
Photos courtesy of Intrinsic Perennial Gardens.
• Cover pond with netting to keep out fallen leaves and debris. • Harvest sweet potatoes. • Plant garlic. • Force the buds on Christmas Cactus by placing in a cool (55–60 degree) room for 13 hours of darkness. • Apply deer-deterrent spray. • Prevent the spread of disease by cleaning up all infected plants and disposing of them in your trash—not your compost pile. • Plant cover crops in your vegetable gardens and annual beds (i.e., rye, clover, hairy vetch, winter peas). • Set up a cold frame, then plant lettuces, radishes, and carrots from seed. • If you have a water garden, clean out the annual plants and compost them. Cut back the hardy plants and group them into the deepest pond section. • Leave seedheads on Black-eyed Susans, Echinacea, Goldenrod, Sunflowers, and Thistles for the birds to enjoy over the winter. • Check for bagworms; pick off, bag, and dispose of them. • Dig up and store potatoes in a cool, dark spot. • Continue to divide and transplant perennials. • Rake leaves and gather in compost piles. • Pick pumpkins at a local pick-your-own farm or visit a local farmer’s market. • Cut garden herbs and hang to dry in a cool, dry place indoors. • Start feeding birds to get them in the habit for the winter. • Attend a local garden club meeting. • Mulch strawberry beds for winter. • Turn your compost pile weekly and don’t let it dry out. Work compost into your planting beds. • Plant evergreens for winter interest. • Weed. • Plant spring-flowering bulbs. • Sow wildflower seeds, such as California Poppies, for next spring. • Collect dried flowers and grasses for an indoor vase. • Clean, sharpen, and store your garden tools. • Lightly fertilize indoor plants. • Pot up Paper Whites and Amaryllis for holiday blooming. • Check that all vines are securely tied against winter’s cold winds. • Collect plant seeds for next year’s planting and for trading. • Pull out spent summer annuals. • Plant hardy mums and fall season annuals. • Water evergreens and new plantings to keep them hydrated this winter. • Fertilize your lawn and re-seed if needed. • Dig up bulbs from your Gladioli, cut off foliage, dry for a week, and then store for the winter. • Transplant trees and shrubs. • Gather seeds and label them carefully. Store in dry location. • Keep an eye out for the first frost date and insulate plants as needed. In Zone 6, it is expected for September 30–October 30; in Zone 7, it is predicted for October 15–November 15. o OCTOBER 2020
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GARDENDCpodcast
GardenDC Podcast Episode Guide
The GardenDC podcast is all about gardening in the greater Washington, DC, and Mid-Atlantic area. The program is hosted by Kathy Jentz, editor of Washington Gardener Magazine, and features guest experts in local horticulture.
Episode 1: A discussion with garden writer Marianne Willburn about the Philadelphia Flower Show, rose pruning, Edgeworthia, March gardening tasks, and more. Episode 2: A chat with Kit Gage, a Chesapeake Bay landscape professional, about the recent Green Matters Symposium, the novel The Overstory, and Doug Tallamy’s Nature’s Best Hope. The Plant Profile is the cool-season annual Sweet Alyssum. Episode 3: A chat with Kim Roman of Square Foot Gardening 4 U (SFG4U) about Square Foot Gardening techniques, microgreens, and what cool-season edibles you can start right now. The Plant Profile in this episode is about Forsythia. Episode 4: A talk with Doug Oster all about tomatoes—from the earliest varieties to ripen to combating blight issues—along with Doug’s best tips and tricks. Our Plant Profile in this episode is Heuchera. Episode 5: A talk with Abra Lee of Conquer the Soil, who is a horticultural storyteller and Longwood Fellow. The Plant Profile focuses on the Pussy Willow and we add a new segment about what is growing in our community garden plot and home garden this week. Episode 6: A chat with David Ellis, editor of The American Gardener, the magazine of the American Horticultural Society, about favorite spring flowering trees and shrubs. The Plant Profile is about pansies/violas and we reflect on the late, great Henry Mitchell. Episode 7: A chat with returning guest Marianne Willburn about chickens in the garden, her fuzzy ducklings, and her new hugelkultur installation. The Plant Profile is about lilacs and we vent about leaf blowers. Episode 8: A chat with Heather Zindash about IPM and best practices for diagnosing and treating issues in your garden. I share 12
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why gardening is not canceled and the Plant Profile is Kale. Episode 9: An in-depth talk with Barbara Bullock about all things azalea—from planting tips to pruning to favorite selections. She is the recently retired curator of the U.S. National Arboretum’s azalea collection. We also reminisce a bit about Behnke Nurseries, and Barbara talks about what gardening in retirement is like. Episode 10: A chat with Peter Pepper about growing Peppers, I describe my visit to Rachel Carson’s home a few years ago, and I discuss what is blooming in my garden. The Plant Profile is fothergilla. Episode 11: A chat about Lotus with Kelly Billing of Water Becomes a Garden, and I answer a listener question about harvesting Asparagus. I share what is blooming in my garden and the Plant Profile is Calamintha. Episode 12: A chat with Eva Monheim about her new book on Shrubs and Hedges. I opine about gardening in movies and the Plant Profile is Hakone Grass. Episode 13: A chat with Connie Hilker of Hartwood Roses about Heritage (aka Old or Heirloom) Roses. I share my love of Crocs and the Plant Profile is Hardy Waterlily. Episode 14: A chat with Niraj Ray of Cultivate the City about unusual edibles, including Papalo, Malabar Spinach, and Megberries. I share my Confessions of a Plant Killer and the Plant Profile is Daylilies. Episode 15: A wide-ranging conversation with plantswoman Carol Allen about Orchids, insects, hummingbirds, and more. The Plant Profile is Common Milkweed, and I share why gardening has real value. Episode 16: A talk with Tony Sarmiento about all things Garlic. The Plant Profile is Lavender and I share my lessons in Nostress Gardening. Episode 17: An in-depth conversation with Mike Whalen about garden photography. The Plant Profile is Hardy Geranium, and I share my “Confessions of a Plant Hoarder.” Episode 18: A chat with Jenny Rose Carey about shade gardening. The Plant Profile is Clematis and we provide tips for “Logging Offline in the Garden.” Episode 19: A talk with Holly Heider Chapple about floral design. The Plant Profile is Black-eyed Susans, and I share my thoughts on “Gardening by Rules.” Episode 20: A talk with Shari Wilson about native plants. The Plant Profile is Sunflowers and I share my thoughts on “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Garden.” Episode 21: A talk with Drew Asbury of Hillwood Estate, Museum, and Gardens about cutting gardens. The Plant Profile is Monarda and I share my Adventures in Garden Speaking.. Episode 22: A talk with Michael McConkey of Edible Landscaping about Fruit Tees. The Plant Profile is Crape Myrtles and I share “Low-Maintenance Lawn Alternatives.” Episode 23: Returning guest Marianne
Willburn chats about summer cocktails and makes a case in defense of the lawn. The Plant Profile is cucumbers and I share my love for the ‘Green Cloud’ container lotus. Episode 24: A talk with Peggy Cornett of Monticello about their historic plant collection. The Plant Profile is Echinacea and I share tips for Guerilla Gardening. Episode 25: A chat with Michael Judd of Ecologia Design about all things related to growing Paw Paws. The Plant Profile is on Cup Plant. Episode 26: A talk with Craig LeHoullier, author of Epic Tomatoes, about Heirloom Tomatoes and Straw Bale Gardening . The Plant Profile is on Cannas. Episode 27: A talk with Jay Hutchins of Brent and Becky’s about Gardening with Bulbs. The Plant Profile is on Tiger Eyes Sumac and I share my top Tulip picks. Episode 28: A talk with Wendy Brister of Cavano’s Perennials about Preserving: Canning, Freezing, and Drying. The Plant Profile is on Great Blue Lobelia. Episode 29: A talk with Smithsonian Gardens’ horticulturist Sarah Dickert and entomologist Holly Walker about butterfly gardening and Monarch Waystations. The Plant Profile is on Radishes and I share my Autumn Daffodils blooming in my garden. Episode 30: A talk with Debby Ward of Prior Unity Garden about all aspects of Seed Saving. The Plant Profile is on Figs and I share about the ‘Sheffield Pink’ Mums blooming in my garden. Episode 31: A talk with Claire Jones of the Garden Diaries Blog about all aspects of Beekeeping. The Plant Profile is on Asters. Episode 32: A talk with Carolyn Mullet about her Garden Tours and upcoming book on private European gardens, Adventures in Eden. The Plant Profile is on Goldenrod. Episode 33: A talk with Saharah Moon Chapotin, Susan Pell, and Devin Dotson about the US Botanic Garden’s 200th Anniversary. The Plant Profile is on Mexican Feather Grass.
Listener Support Needed You can become a listener-supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! We will give you a thank you shout-out on the next episode. See how at: https:// anchor.fm/kathy-jentz/support.
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We welcome your questions and comments. You can leave one at https:// anchor.fm/kathy-jentz/message
Find Our Podcast
You can listen online at https://anchor. fm/kathy-jentz/ or at our blog: https:// washingtongardener.blogspot.com/. We are available on Spotify, Apple, RadioPublic, Breaker, PocketCasts, Overcast, and Google Podcasts. o
TOP AREA GARDENING EVENTS DC-Area Gardening Calendar ~ Upcoming Events Listing Classes and Webinars • Wednesday, October 21, 12n–1pm Trends in Sustainable Landscaping The webinar will feature speakers from the Catholic University of America, which recently unveiled a new sustainability plan; Moody Graham, a leading landscape architecture firm in DC with a focus on sustainability; and DC Water, whose Blue Plains facility generates green energy while recycling nitrogen and other nutrients back into local soils. Register at bloomsoil.com/ webinar-registration/. • Friday, October 30, 1:30–2:30pm From the Ground Up: Starting Community Gardens Tools, tips, and tricks to start a community garden, including at a school or faith-based institution run by volunteers. Moderated by: David Sachs, Friends of Urban Agriculture. Registration: https://virginiatech. zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIpceqrjwsG9Gb_ijquKL3rIVfFt9PTxSt. • Sunday, November 1, 2–3pm Small Tree (and Large Shrubs) for Urban and Small Gardens We will explore the possibilities of what small trees and large shrubs you can plant in small urban lots. Tailored to the greater Washington, DC/MidAtlantic region (Zones 6-7) and what grows best here. The choices will cover natives, edibles, and ornamentals - from full sun to full shade. For every place there is a tree that is a perfect fit. Speaker: Kathy Jentz, Washington Gardener Magazine. Fee: $10. Register at: https://py.pl/6HkgAJ21d3A. • Monday, November 2, 10–11:30am Rock Gardening Master Gardeners share how to design and plant a beautiful display with fabulous small and dwarf perennials and evergreens. Large, small, or even in a container, you will get great enjoyment! Location: Zoom. Cost: Free. Registration link: https://forms.gle/ W2Y7xyoZnrggUY9k7. • Saturday, November 7, 10–11:30am Getting Your Garden Ready for Winter
Brookside Gardens hosts this online talk for beginner and intermediate gardeners who are often overwhelmed by the long pre-winter to-do list of garden tasks. Learn what chores are essential and which you can safely skip as you prepare your garden for winter while making a big difference to the success of next year’s garden. Discover cost-saving tips and tricks and how to “batten down the hatches” in case we have a bad winter. Speaker: Kathy Jentz, Washington Gardener Magazine. Fee: $10 (FOBG: $8). Register at https://apm. activecommunities.com/montgomerycounty/Activity_Search/getting-your-garden-ready-for-winter/82655. • Friday, November 13, 1:30pm Curb Appeal for Fall Beauty Your home’s front entry provides guests with the first impression of your space. Extension Master Gardeners show you how to create a warm and inviting entry with colorful berries, dazzling leaves, beautifully structured branches, stunning grasses, standout seed heads—even blooming flowers. Find a new favorite to add beauty and vibrance to your fall and winter landscape. Fee: $10. Register at https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/green-spring/gardentalk-curb-appeal/111320. • Saturday, November 14, 11:30am Fall Floral Centerpieces Demo Interested in bringing seasonal life and color indoors? Join Arrin Sutliff, owner of Tint Floral, online as she demonstrates how to create a naturally styled arrangement reflecting seasonal plants. During this class, Sutliff will focus on creating a low arrangement as the centerpiece of your holiday table. As she designs with locally grown plant material, Arrin will discuss vessel varieties, color, and technique. Free. Pre-registration required. Register at www.USBG. gov/OnlinePrograms. • Sunday, December 6, 2–3pm A Truly Green Holiday: A Talk on Seasonal Plants and a Bulb Forcing Demo Have you ever given or gotten a beautiful blooming poinsettia or amaryllis and then slowly watched it decline? What a New Year’s bummer! This talk will teach
you how to care for classic seasonal plants. She’ll also cover some unique holiday plant choices as well that make great gifts and additions to your home decor. Finally, she’ll teach you bulb forcing basics--tricking spring-blooming bulbs like tulips into flower earlier to enjoy during those seemingly endless gray days of late winter when we crave green the most. Speaker: Kathy Jentz, Washington Gardener Magazine. Fee: $10. Register at: https://py.pl/ 4oRnjFT9Xc0.
Garden Tour • Saturday, October 24, 9–11am
School Victory Garden Tour: Thomas Jefferson Middle School 30-minute tours limited to 6 visitors each. Registration and masks are required. Led by garden coordinator Reidy Brown. Held at 115 S. Old Glebe Rd., Arlington, VA. Registration: https:// docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc HBieUx6KNKrsduWU3Wj8jKoAvRU1EOt DoTaxclDJf7xtCSQ/viewform.
Garden Book Club • Thursday, November 12, 6:30–8pm For the next Garden Book Club selection, we will discuss Two Gardeners: Katharine S. White and Elizabeth Lawrence—A Friendship in Letters. You can order it new or used at the Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3mo1SSv. The Washington Gardener Magazine’s Garden Book Club is free and open to all. RSVP to washingtongardenermagazine @gmail.com, to receive the Zoom link.
Event Listing Updates See updated event listings on the Washington Gardener discussion list. Join the list at https://groups.google. com/g/washingtongardener/.
How to Submit Local Garden Events To submit an event for this listing, email washingtongardenermagazine@gmail. com with “Event” in the subject line. Our next deadline is November 5 for the November 2020 issue, for events taking place after November 15. o OCTOBER 2020
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NEIGHBORnetwork
Kim Rush Lynch
Bringing Healthy, Sustainable Food Practices to Prince George’s County, MD
By Nicole Noechel
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NEIGHBORnetwork Kim Rush Lynch has spent more than 25 years in the food industry, working in areas ranging from nutrition and food education to production agriculture and farm policy advocacy. Currently, she is the Urban Agricultural Conservation Planner for the Prince George’s Soil Conservation District, assisting urban farmers with building and maintaining environmentally conscious agricultural landscapes. Lynch also works with a number of food-related organizations throughout Prince George’s County; apart from cofounding the Greenbelt Farmers Market, she co-chairs the Prince George’s County Public Schools Environment, Agriculture and Natural Resources Program Advisory Committee, where she helps high school students learn about potential careers in agriculture and environmental science. She is also a member of the Prince George’s Food Equity Council, which works to help Prince George’s County residents grow, sell, and choose healthy food. Lynch does it all, but still finds time to tend to her own home garden and teach her children about the benefits of environmental conservation and growing your own food. When it comes to agriculture, she is truly a Renaissance woman. What drew you to a career in food and agriculture-related services? “Basically, I like to eat. The other part is I really enjoy having my hands in the soil. I really love growing things, and I like sharing that passion with other people.” You work for the Prince George’s County Soil Conservation District. What would you say this organization does for the community? “I feel like soil conservation districts are one of the country’s best-kept secrets. People don’t realize that a lot of counties or provinces or zones—whatever you call it in your particular state—have a soil and water conservation district that is looking at your natural resource concerns, which primarily are soil and water (at least in our region). They’re mandated with helping landowners design and implement soil health practices, water conservation, and water quality practices to help keep
the Chesapeake Bay clean by reducing sediment, phosphorus, and nitrogen. And, of course, conserving our water resources is really important as well. “That’s our primary mandate, but many of our conservation districts also have an urban development conservation side. We have engineers in our office who will review sediment and erosion control plans when a developer wants to put in a new development. They need to have best management practices implemented before they even start digging, to help keep that soil erosion from happening and stormwater runoff from ending up in our watershed.” What is urban farming compared to traditional rural farming? “Usually it’s done on a much-smaller scale. Oftentimes, crops can be very intensively planted to make somewhat of a profit. A lot of our urban farms differ in that their primary focus is economic development, like a side hustle or a primary job to make money for themselves. It also may be a food access piece—helping to feed people in their community. Some people are doing it as an education experience, as well, to help people in the community better understand where their food comes from. I think sometimes they’re very similar to rural farms from the economic development standpoint and from a feeding standpoint, but sometimes their missions are slightly different. “Depending on where you are, urban farming can be defined as ‘farming in the city,’ for example, but in Prince George’s County, we define it as farms that are less than 5 acres that are in our peri-urban parts of the county. Our rural farms are out in parts of the county that were traditionally called the ‘rural tier,’ but now they’re the areas that are considered priority preservation areas for ag land.” What is your specific role as Urban Agricultural Conservation Planner? “I’m essentially doing similar things to our traditional ag conservation planners. I will meet with urban farmers and find out a little bit more about their operations and what they’re planning to grow, and then based on that and the
unique site and environmental features of their property I will work with them to decide what conservation practices they can use. Our Natural Resources Conservation Service actually has a whole list of conservation practices that farmers use, so I’ll go through those— some might be mulching, a cover crop, crop rotation, irrigation, or high-tunnel systems. There’s a whole series of things that we can look at and decide how we might help those work together on the farm to promote soil health, reduce soil loss, slow runoff, and that kind of stuff.” Do you enjoy working for the soil conservation district? “I absolutely do. It’s really fun to work with some of our rural conservation planners who interface with our rural farms and learn a little bit more about how these practices are used on a larger scale. Also, it’s really fun because you get to see the diversity of operations in the county and the people who are growing the product or raising the product. I also enjoy my counterparts on the urban development conservation side, because it’s interesting to hear about more development projects in the county and how they’re working with those developers to reduce soil erosion and stormwater runoff. “With the urban farm program, it’s awesome because a lot of our urban farmers were initially gardeners who just had this passion and knew that there was a particular product that they wanted to launch. A lot of our urban farmers do value-added products—for example, we have one urban farm in the county that does nothing but hot pepper products and hot pepper sauces from the peppers they grow. We have other urban farmers who are growing different herbs and perennial crops and using those in body care products. And then we have one major urban farm in the county that’s doing an education program—a beginning-farmer training program specific to urban farmers. It’s really cool just to see the diversity in the kinds of operations that people are running.” You helped to found the Greenbelt Farmers Market. Was there a need that you saw for a farmers market in OCTOBER 2020
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NEIGHBORnetwork the community? “Greenbelt is a community that really loves supporting local [businesses], and they’re also a community that really likes to engage with their neighbors. Some of them even grow their own food—we have community gardens in Greenbelt—so it just seemed like a nice synergy to bring people in Greenbelt together for the purpose of socializing, but also connecting more with their local food sources and supporting local farmers. At the time, I had also started a health coaching practice, and I was working with people in Greenbelt, so I wanted to be able to send them someplace where I knew that they could buy food from local farmers and get those high-quality, nutrient-dense foods. My cohort [neighbor Kim Cash] had opened a yoga studio in Greenbelt, and she had authors who were looking to explore healthier lifestyles and really wanted to support local farms. That’s kind of how we came up with it.” How have you seen the farmers market grow since you started it? “It’s been awesome to see. When we started it, we mainly had farmers and maybe a few artisans who were doing consumable products and soaps and things of that nature. But I would say that now, it seems like we have a lot more people who are doing value-added products, so it’s really interesting to see more folks making products using what they’ve grown. Also, it’s interesting to see that there seem to be more organic operations and certified naturally grown operations. Some of the farms you see now have some younger farmers who are coming to the market as well, which is kind of fun—people are still interested in growing food for other people and taking on agriculture as a career. “Also, the board has gotten a really cool lineup of vendors, and they have vendors rotating in and out, which is exciting. They’re hosting the Maryland Market Money Program, which is the double-value coupon program for people who are on food assistance benefits. That’s really exciting because people can go to the market and spend 10 dollars, and then they get an extra 10 dollars from the market. That’s funded through the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission, 16
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but the funding is from the county, which is really cool.” What do you like to do in your free time when you’re not working or volunteering? “One of my favorite things is rollerskating—I love to get on my quads and go out and skate with friends. I enjoy cycling; I haven’t done that as much as I would like to. Yoga, too—I should mention that I love yoga. Obviously, I like getting in my garden and growing food. We have a little fire pit in the front yard, and hanging out there with our neighbors and enjoying a glass of wine in the garden is always a fun thing. I also spend a lot of time with the little ones, so I have all kinds of hobbies.” Do you have any specific goals for the future in terms of food and where you want to go with that? “I just want to continue to help elevate the consciousness of agriculture in Prince George’s County as a food security strategy, but also as an economic
development strategy. I would really love to see farms everywhere. I really want to do all that I can to support urban farmers, and even our traditional farmers in the county, so we have more places for people to purchase food. I mean, it was really prevalent with COVID-19, lots of people were looking for CSA [community-supported agriculture]. “I just think it’s really important to continue to support gardeners and farmers and our urban farmers alike. In the county, I think it’s a growing movement—there’s a lot of interest. I think working collectively with organizations like Washington Gardener and the Food Policy Council and other urban farms to connect folks and support folks will be really instrumental.” o Nicole Noechel is a senior multiplatform journalism major and history minor at the University of Maryland. She is interning this fall semester with Washington Gardener. This interview has been edited for grammar and clarity.
PLANTprofile
Tiger Eyes
Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac By Kathy Jentz
Tiger Eyes® Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac is a beautiful shrub with a tree-like form. This selection was discovered in a nursery back in 1985 as a whole-plant mutation of Rhus typhina ‘Laciniata’ and is considered an improvement on the native Staghorn Sumac straight species, because of its dwarf form and that it spreads less aggressively. The foliage on this plant is a traffic-stopper—literally. I have it planted in the sidewalk median and passing motorists and pedestrians regularly ask me to identify and write down the name of this stunning plant for them. The new growth each spring is a bright chartreuse shade of green that changes quickly to a golden yellow. The leaf stems are a rosy pink and the leaves themselves are deeply cut, giving them a fern-like and lacey appearance. Then, each autumn, comes the real show! The leaves take on the colors of a brilliant sunset. (See inset photo.) From peachy oranges to scarlet reds, the fall foliage is unparalleled. The cone-like flowers are followed by deep-red fruit that are attractive to wildlife. This is a great plant for use as an accent or in mass plantings. It needs full sun, but tolerates a wide range of soils as well as urban conditions. It is also drought-tolerant once established. It is hardy from Zones 4 through 8. There is no need for fertilizer or pruning. It will send out some suckers from the base; simply dig them up and transplant them where you like. Kathy Jentz is the editor and founder of Washington Gardener.
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BOOKreviews
RHS Gardening for Mindfulness Author: Holly Farrell Publisher: Mitchell Beazley/Octopus List Price: $16.99 Order link: https://amzn.to/3dxPzza Reviewer: Nicole Noechel With all the stress that 2020 has brought, this fall is the perfect time to take a deep breath and focus on what is important. Practicing mindfulness— learning to pay full attention to the world around you, instead of running on autopilot through habitual tasks—is a great way to center yourself and think calmly through any anxiety you may harbor. RHS Gardening for Mindfulness is the perfect introduction for those who want to learn more about the mindfulness practice without taking time away from their gardens. Author Holly Farrell, who spent two years working at the U.K. Royal Horticultural Society’s garden in Wisely, England, has laid out an easy-to-follow guide full of helpful tips and colorful, eye-catching photography. The book is separated into five basic chapters: “What is mindfulness?,” “Mindfulness and gardening,” “Designing a mindful garden,” “Mindful garden practice,” and “Mindful garden projects.” The first chapter is an introduction to the concept of mindfulness and its background, ending with a simple flower-study exercise to give the reader some initial practice. This section also discusses the benefits of both mindfulness and gardening, such as improved physical and mental health. The next chapter goes over the com18
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patibility between gardening and mindfulness, as well as how to get started. There is guidance for how to take a mindful walk or practice meditation in the garden, for example. Chapter 3 includes design tricks for creating a mindful garden, such as lists of both ornamental and edible plants that stimulate the five senses and plants that draw in wildlife like birds, bees, butterflies, and moths. You don’t even need a traditional outdoor garden, since there is a section about indoor plants as well. Finally, chapters 4 and 5 cover how to apply mindfulness to everyday gardening tasks. If you’re an experienced horticulturist, chapter 4 discusses typical garden practices such as weeding, composting, and harvesting based on the season. If you’re more of a novice, the next chapter has small projects with specific growing instructions, like collecting seeds or making a terrarium. The book also includes a “shed reminder sheet,” which is meant to be placed somewhere in the garden so readers can look at its simple tips as they work. Although there is no wrong way to practice mindfulness, these reminders ensure you won’t be overwhelmed. Whether you’re an avid gardener, an expert on mindfulness, or a beginner in both areas, I recommend picking up a copy of RHS Gardening for Mindfulness to help get you thinking more calmly, especially during the stressful pandemic. The dazzling pictures of plants, animals, flowers, and gardeners throughout the book complete the guide, making it a great coffee table piece. o Nicole Noechel is a senior multiplatform journalism major and history minor at the University of Maryland. She is interning this fall semester with Washington Gardener.
Royal Gardens of the World: 21 Celebrated Gardens from the Alhambra to Highgrove and Beyond Author: Mark Lane Publisher: Kyle Books/Octopus List Price: $45.00 Order Link: https://amzn.to/357OdqT Reviewer: Lindsay Garbacik For the wanderlust-having, likely housebound at this point, traveler, Royal Gardens of the World: 21 Celebrated Gardens from the Alhambra to Highgrove and Beyond is the perfect book. Author Mark Lane compiled
some of the most-stunning gardens of royalty from around the world, with the intent of proving that these gardens are living works of art. Lane argues that this collection of photos and the histories of these impressive royal gardens and their accompanying buildings are artworks that bring fulfillment and inspiration, just as people would experience by viewing any piece of great artwork. One of the huge benefits of the book is that Lane covers gardens and architecture from England to Sweden to Japan and many countries in between, but only includes gardens that are open to the public. There are numerous royal gardens in the world, but many are privately owned or access is limited to their owners. These are all gardens that can be judged and enjoyed by the public, which was Lane’s goal for such a compilation. The book features royal gardens from England, Scotland, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Russia, India, Bali, and Japan. Each page includes a large, colorful landscape picture of the royal garden, accompanied with a brief history of the garden and its royalty. This collection of pristine gardens offers readers a chance to learn about the origination of and reasoning behind each garden’s features. Each garden has about 10 pages dedicated to its story, with half of those being full-page photos. There also is a strong architectural focus on the castles and buildings that stand with these gardens. Ever wonder what the sprawling grounds of Versailles or the Royal Palace of
BOOKreviews Caserta look like? The book offers small blueprints of the grounds and maps of each building’s important features. There is a lot more history behind these gardens than I ever expected! As an art history minor, I was excited about this book because of its close attention to detail of these architectural and horticultural wonders. Lane has done some serious research into the histories of these royals, and it shows. The book is comprehensive and offers a good amount of information about both the history and artistic interpretation of each site. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in landscaping, architecture, or art or who just enjoys seeing a fantastical collection of gardens. o Lindsay Garbacik is a junior journalism major, with a minor in art history, at the University of Maryland. She is interning this fall semester with Washington Gardener.
Japanese Style Companion Planting: Organic Gardening Techniques for Optimal Growth and Flavor Author: Toshio Kimima Publisher: Tuttle Publishing List Price: $16.99 Order Link: https://amzn.to/355gEGc Reviewer: Beth Py-Lieberman Plants, like people, need and want the company of good friends. They are also easily irritated by the non-compatible. A tomato plant responds to the presence of its companion—the peanut plant—with sweeter fruit. Root nodule bacteria on the peanut’s roots process the atmosphere’s nitrogen to hand over healthy mineral nutrients to the tomato plant. Peanuts planted adjacent to eggplants and green peppers will also foster healthier production. But do remember that although they rhyme, the tomato and the potato will have no truck with each other. Planted together, they slow each other’s growth and bring ruin to any earnest effort. The incompatibles are few: cabbage and sesame, carrots and green beans, cukes and green beans, eggplant and corn, potatoes and cabbage, for example. The myriad combinations of compatible vegetable plants, and why they work together, is the enticing subject of a new book, Japanese Style Companion Planting, by Toshio Kijima from Tuttle Publishing. Kijima is a renowned Japanese agronomist, scholar, and practitioner of
natural farming who heads up the biotechnology department of the Tochigi Prefectural Agricultural Experiment Station, north of Tokyo. He is best known for the 1990 classic film Life in the Soil (find it on YouTube, and enjoy). Vermont’s Tuttle Publishing is a small firm that specializes in Asia’s cultures, arts, cuisines, languages, and literatures. Kijima’s Companion Planting is certain to become a pocket guide and fine companion for any small-space gardener seeking to accomplish efficiencies in mixed and relayed planting as well as intercropping for better yields. Writes Kijima, “If plants can grow well together, you can grow them in the same space. This follows an old Japanese principle that you can fit so many walnuts in a bowl, but the spaces between the walnuts can hold grains of mullet.” Tomatoes are quickly becoming one of the most-difficult plants to grow in the evolving climate around Washington, DC. Lately, our springs are filled with temperature dives and peculiarities that often end with a surge of escalating summer blazes that inhibit blossoms and encourage pests. Many of us already know the trick of placing basil between our tomatoes to repel pests and sweeten the fruit, but Kijima offers a few other neat combos. The roots of garlic chives, for instance, form a protective barrier around the tomato’s roots, offering up antibiotic compounds to combat the bacteria that cause wilt disease. Eggplant will appreciate the company of a ginger plant at its feet. The pair dance well together, providing each other with compatible nitrogen combinations as fertilizer, while the eggplant’s leaves shade the ginger and beneath the soil, its antibacterial roots offer still-more friendly protection. Scallions will protect cucumbers, pumpkins, and melons in this same way. Edamame will do heroic work to protect corn as a banker plant that will attract the corn plant’s pests while, below ground, the pairs’ roots network together to feed each other nutrients. If you plant green bean seeds along with arugula seeds at 4-inch intervals and at the same time, the two will grow in tandem, with arugula providing mulch for the bean and its scent offering much-needed pest protection. The ancient traditions of Japan’s small-space gardening studied and made scientific by the work being done
at the Agricultural Experiment Station is made all the easier to consume and to practice by the lush illustrations in this guide. Brilliantly executed graphics will make expert gardeners out of beginners with easy-to-follow measurements and tips for success. In this global pandemic, where food supply chains are being stressed, people are seeking to quickly learn the art of gardening. Families are suddenly seeing backyard sunny spots as places to grow food, and sunny zones in urban areas are now being seen as places to drop in a community garden for apartment dwellers. In the lexicon of the day, small-space gardening is trending. I’m thinking particularly of all of our new community gardeners in our area, who come earnestly at the start of the gardening season and look to those of us who have been trying hard to grow something in our 10 by 10-foot-square plots. How to begin? What should I plant? Where does it go? How do I encourage pollinators? Is this a weed or something beneficial? The answers, my fresh, new gardeners, can be found in the rewarding pages of Kijima’s onestop gardening shop. o Beth Py-Lieberman is Smithsonian magazine’s museums editor. She gardens at home with visiting deer in Silver Spring, MD, and is the volunteer liaison for the Fenton Street Community Garden.
Note: These book reviews include links to Amazon.com for ordering them. Washington Gardener Magazine may receive a few cents from each order placed after clicking on these links. OCTOBER 2020
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GARDENbasics
Yes! You Can Grow Roses! By Joan M. Kasura
Roses have a checkered history with home gardeners, many of whom have judged roses to be more trouble than they’re worth. “That’s because for years, the rose industry focused on the perfect bloom and forgot all about drought resistance, disease, and fragrance,” explained Chris Van Cleave, who is known as the Redneck Rosarian and is one-half of the Rose Kings, a gardening partnership with Brian Puckett, who is curator of the first municipally sponsored Earth Kind Rose trial in Helena, Alabama. Together, they “have launched a national tour to educate the public and how they can achieve the rose garden of their dreams without using harmful chemicals.” On Leap Day, that tour landed at this year’s Maryland Home & Garden Show, where Van Cleave and Puckett gave a talk with tips about how to plant and care for roses in your garden along with a second talk, which included suggestions for rose varieties that work well in the Mid-Atlantic region. The Rose Kings emphasized that successful rose growing depends on making critical decisions before you even buy the plants, including determining whether your garden has the right conditions to grow roses. Those conditions include three critical components: location, drainage, and soil. For location, most home gardeners are probably aware that roses like sun. In fact, “roses like a lot of sun,” Puckett explained, “as they use it to get the energy they need to put out their bloom.” Roses also need good drainage. “Roses love water, but cannot swim,” said Puckett. He noted that if your soil doesn’t drain adequately, you will have 20
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to put in organic additives to soak up the water and facilitate that good drainage. Puckett then described a simple test to determine whether the location you’ve picked out for your roses has the requisite drainage they’ll need. First, dig a hole at least the size of the pot you anticipate using and pour enough water into the hole to soak it well. Then, pour a gallon of water in the hole. If that water is gone after 15 minutes, then your chosen location has the requisite good drainage. If there’s still water in the bottom of the hole after 30 minutes, then you should either move on and consider another location, or decide whether you can put in enough organic additives to soak up the water. Last, of course, is soil. The Rose Kings suggest that you test your soil not only initially, but also every couple years afterward. “The cool thing about soil tests,” said Van Cleave, “is you tell them what you’re growing and they’ll tell you what you need to do. It’s like a soil course by mail.” To get a soil test, check with your state extension service to find out what you need to do. For instance, in Maryland, the Maryland Department of Agriculture works in cooperation with the University of Maryland Extension’s Home & Garden Information Center to facilitate information about soil testing. (Go to extension.umd.edu/hgic/soils/ soil-testing for soil test information.) Even with those three critical elements in place, “I tell all the gardeners I work with, you cannot expect a rose to grow without any care or any problems at all,” said Beulah Bonneville, who lives on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and is a Consulting Rosarian for the
American Rose Society. “You need to know what they delight in and what they don’t.” For instance, in addition to reiterating the Rose Kings’ advice about a sunny location, Bonneville recommended home gardeners in the Mid-Atlantic region look for a location where the rose can dry off quickly in the mornings. She also pointed out that home gardeners should consider the mature spread of any particular variety. Toward that end, Van Cleave reminded home gardeners that the term “‘miniature’ refers to the size of the bloom, not the size of the shrub.” Finally, along with the Rose Kings, Bonneville suggested that home gardeners “don’t plant a monoculture of roses, but a balance of plants so you have good bugs taking care of the bad bugs.” To facilitate that balance, Van Cleave’s Home Show talk also elaborated on a number of flowering perennials that both bring “extra color into the garden to complement your roses, and attract beneficials that eat the bad guys.” “The culture of any plant is learning what it needs and providing it,” said Bonneville. “With a little bit of reasonable effort, a rose will reward you with a full season of bloom.” o Joan M. Kasura, J.D., M.S., is a freelance feature writer. She is also a professor in the Communications Mass Media Department at Towson University A previous version of this article appeared in Shore Home & Garden magazine.
GARDENbasics
Pictured on page 20, Beulah Bonneville, a Consulting Rosarian from Maryland’s Eastern Shore, examines some of the roses growing in her garden. The red rose in the background to the left of her is ‘Linda Campbell,’ a true red hybrid rugosa. Pictured above, ‘Zephirine Drouhin,’ a medium pink from the class of Bourbon Old Garden roses, is Beulah Bonneville’s favorite rose. Photos courtesy of Beulah Bonneville.
Roses without Chemicals
If you’re looking for an additional resource for growing sustainable roses, Beulah Bonneville, who lives on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and is a Consulting Rosarian for the American Rose Society, recommends Peter E. Kukielski’s book, Roses without Chemicals: 150 Disease-free Varieties That will Change the Way You Grow Roses. A former curator of the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden at the New York Botanic Garden, Kukielski began to research disease-resistant roses when New York City banned pesticide use on public lands. In addition to the 150 roses referenced in the title and an in-depth discussion of the various classes of roses, Kukielski provides a list of “50 Great Rose Companions,” which includes several of the flowering perennials suggested by Van Cleave, such as yarrow (Achillea), daylilies (Hemerocallis), and ‘Becky’ Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum superbum ‘Becky’). o OCTOBER 2020
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PARTINGhumor In the middle of August, While trimming a tree, I found yellowjackets— Er, well, they found me. The first stung my cheek, And I turned tail and ran, But inside the house I got stung once again. The one on the cheek Didn’t really much hurt, (hah!) But the second one did— Where my pants met my shirt. All in all there were seven That followed me in, All itching to get to Some nice, exposed skin. As they all left my clothing, Which I had let drop, Dan broke out the vacuum And vacuumed them up. When a nest’s in the grass And the mower goes past, And I SEE where the nest is, I can poison that nest. But when I can’t see them On their missions of terror, I’m not going to do things By trial…. and error. So about three days later, As my swellings went down, And the pain died to itching, Then Dan went online, And found us a wonderful Wasp extirpator-A bee-suited, local Exterminator. He got in his suit And he put on his mask, Over that went his veil, And he bent to his task. “What they lock on”, he said, As he started to look, “Is carbon dioxide; The breath of a crook Like a bear or a skunk That happens along, And digs up their nest To devour their young.” So saying, he went To his hands and his knees; “I see them,” he said, Just as calm as you please, “They are coming out here, At the edge of your bed; Where two timbers are butting. I’ll spray them.” he said. “When I dig up the nest 22
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Poem by Jim Dronenburg Photo by Daniel Weil I see nothing to gain By letting them go And get airborne again.” I had gotten our digging ironWonderful friend: Six feet of cold steel With a chisel tipped end. And David (his name) Put the end in, and he Levered the railroad tie So he could see. He dug around under— “Nothing”, he said, “So I’ll lever the other And check it instead.” And he levered it up, Far more than the first; Dan and I standing And fearing the worst, But Dan was a pro, And the camera kept clicking, Until of the nest There was nothing left kicking. For the second huge timber Was rotten inside; And the wasps found a cavity All ready made. So they built up their nest In the rot-hollowed tie,
With an outer shell just like Wasps’ nests in a tree; And inside the shell, As wide as my palm, You can see in the photo, The brood bearing comb. Then he sprayed and he powdered The upside down tie, And he put it back down In the same ground to lie. He said, “All the workers That weren’t with the rest, Come the sundown, will enter The site of their nest, Hit the poison, and die. Give it twenty four hours, And you can go back To tending your flowers.” So he took the nest remnants And bagged them up tight, Unsuited, and put things Entirely to right. And we paid him. And tipped him. Because in the end, The man in a bee suit Is everyone’s friend. . o Jim Dronenburg is a retired accountant and now gardens full-time in Knoxville, MD.
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MARCH/APRIL 2005 • Landscape DIY vs. Pro • Prevent Gardener’s Back • Ladew Topiary Gardens • Cherry Trees
MAY/JUNE 2007 • Roses: Easy Care Tips • Native Roses & Heirloom Roses • Edible Flowers • How to Plant a Bare-root Rose
MAY/JUNE 2005 • Stunning Plant Combinations • Turning Clay into Rich Soil • Wild Garlic • Strawberries
JULY/AUGUST 2007 • Groundcovers: Alternatives to Turfgrass • How to Pinch, Prune, & Dead-head • William Paca House & Gardens • Hardy Geraniums
JULY/AUGUST 2005 • Water Gardens • Poison Ivy • Disguising a Sloping Yard • Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2007 • Succulents: Hardy to our Region • Drought-Tolerant Natives • Southern Vegetables • Seed Saving Savvy Tips
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2005 • Container Gardens • Clematis Vines • Sponge Gardening/Rain Gardens • 5 Insect Enemies of Gardeners
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007 • Gardening with Children • Indoor Bulb-Forcing Basics • National Museum of the American Indian • Versatile Viburnums
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2005 • Backyard Bird Habitats • Hellebores • Building a Coldframe • Bulb Planting Basics
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2008 • Dealing with Deer • Our Favorite Garden Tools • Delightful Daffodils
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2006 • Garden Decor Principles • Primroses • Tasty Heirloom Veggies • U.S. Botanic Garden MARCH/APRIL 2006 • Top 10 Small Trees and Large Shrubs • Azaleas • Figs, Berries, & Persimmons • Basic Pruning Principles MAY/JUNE 2006 • Using Native Plants in Your Landscape • Crabgrass • Peppers • Secret Sources for Free Plants JULY/AUGUST 2006 • Hydrangeas • Theme Gardens • Agave • Find Garden Space by Growing Up SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2006 • Shade Gardening • Hosta Care Guide • Fig-growing Tips and Recipes NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2006 • Horticultural Careers • Juniper Care Guide • Winter Squash Growing Tips and Recipes • Layer/Lasagna Gardening
SUMMER 2009 • Grow Grapes in the Mid-Atlantic • Passionflowers • Mulching Basics • Growing Hops
MARCH/APRIL 2008 • Patio, Balcony, Rooftop Container Gardens • Our Favorite Garden Tools • Coral Bells (Heuchera)
T!
U MAY/JUNE 2008 DO SOL • Growing Great Tomatoes UT! O • Glamorous Gladiolus LD ! SO • Seed-Starting OUT Basics D L •SFlavorful Fruiting Natives O
JULY/AUGUST 2008 • Landscaping with Ornamental Grasses • Edible Grasses to Graze On • Slug and Snail Control • Sage Advice: Sun-Loving Salvias SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2008 • Autumn Edibles — What to Plant Now • Beguiling Barrenworts (Epimediums) • Best Time to Plant Spring-blooming Bulbs • 14 Dry Shade Plants Too Good to Overlook NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008 • Outdoor Lighting Essentials • How to Prune Fruiting Trees, Shrubs, Vines • 5 Top Tips for Overwintering Tender Bulbs • Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2009 • Compost Happens: Nature’s Free Fertilizer • Managing Stormwater with a Rain Garden • Visiting Virginia’s State Arboretum • Grow Winter Hazel for Winter Color
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2007 • Indoor Gardening • Daphne Care Guide • Asparagus Growing Tips and Recipes • Houseplant Propagation
MARCH/APRIL 2009 ! OUT Tips D • 40+ Free and Low-cost Local Garden SOL ! T • Spring Edibles Planting Guide OU LDfor a Fresh Start • Testing YourSO Soil ! Selection and Care UTTree • Redbud O LD Viewing Spots for Virginia Bluebells • SOBest
MARCH/APRIL 2007 • Stormwater Management • Dogwood Selection & Care Guide • Early Spring Vegetable Growing Tips • Franciscan Monastery Bulb Gardens
MAY/JUNE 2009 • Top Easy Summer Annuals for DC Heat • Salad Table Project • Grow and Enjoy Eggplant • How to Chuck a Woodchuck
FALL 2009 • Apples • How to Save Tomato Seeds • Persimmons WINTER 2009 • Battling Garden Thugs • How to Start Seeds Indoors • Red Twig Dogwoods • Unusual Edibles to Grow in Our Region SPRING 2010 • Community Gardens • Building a Raised Bed • Dwarf Iris • Broccoli SUMMER 2010 • Fragrance Gardens • Watering Without Waste • Lavender • Potatoes FALL 2010 • Vines and Climbers • Battling Stink Bugs • Russian Sage • Garlic WINTER 2010 • Paths and Walkways • Edgeworthia • Kohlrabi SPRING 2011 • Cutting-Edge Gardens • Final Frost Dates and When to Plant • Bleeding Hearts • Onions SUMMER 2011 • Ornamental Edibles • Urban Foraging • Amsonia/Arkansas Blue Star • Growing Corn in the Mid-Atlantic FALL 2011 • Herb Gardens • Toad Lilies • Sweet Potatoes • Cool Weather Cover Crops WINTER 2011/EARLY SPRING 2012 • Green Roofs and Walls • Heaths and Heathers • Radishes SPRING 2012 • Pollinator Gardens • Brunnera: Perennial of the Year • Growing Yacon SUMMER 2012 • Tropical Gardens • Captivating Canna • Icebox Watermelons SPRING 2013 • Great Garden Soil • All About Asters • Squash Vine Borer SUMMER/FALL 2013 • Miniature/Faerie Gardens • Beguiling Abelias • Growing Great Carrots WINTER/EARLY SPRING 2014 • Ferns for the Mid-Atlantic • Chanticleer Gardens • Beet Growing Basics
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Jentz Prints
Antique Botanical Prints for the decorator, collector, connoisseur, and art lover. Jentz Prints can be purchased on most Saturdays at the Eastern Market, and most Sundays at the Georgetown Flea Market.
Antique prints are affordable — most in the $10-$30 range — and they are the perfect gift idea for that plant lover in your life. And don’t forget to buy a few for yourself! For more information, to make a private appointment, or to get a detailed show schedule, please contact Jentz Prints by email at UllrichJ@aol.com. You can also find Jentz Prints on eBay.com under the seller ID: printyman. 24
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