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Vol. 3, No. 3 — March 15, 2007
In This Issue:
Consulting the Tulip Library
Magazine Excerpt: Delightful Dogwoods
March To-Do List
Spotlight Special: Stepables
Reader Contest: Passes to the MoCo Home Show
Local Gardening Events
Welcome to the
Washington Garden Enews!
This is the free sister publication of Washington Gardener magazine.
Both the magazine and enewsletter share the same mission and focus — helping Washington DC area gardens grow — but our content is different.
In this monthly enewsletter, we will:
address timely seasonal topics and projects; post local garden events; and, include a monthly reminder list of what you can be doing now in your garden.
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The March/April 2007 Washington Gardener magazine is now out. If you subscribe by April 25, you can start your subscription with this issue. Single copies of this issue can be purchased directly from Washington Gardener. The issue is also on sale at area Borders and B. Dalton book stores. This issue's cover story is "Water Issues: Stormwater Management & Bayscaping." Also in this issue: dogwood selection and care guide; native plants for wet locations; a trip to the Franciscan Monastery; early spring vegetable growing tips and recipes; and, much, much more.
Consulting the Tulip Library
Have you ever ordered tulip bulbs from a mail-order catalog, planted them in the fall, and when they came up in the spring been surprised by their color? Wouldn’t it be great to have a “library” of tulip bulbs that you could view in person and then make your selections from them for ordering next season’s bulbs? The National Park Service (NPS) has provided just such a place right hear in Washington, DC.
We lucky Washingtonians get to stroll downtown each spring to one of the most spectacular tulip gardens and it is all free. The NPS changes their bulb selection every year and rotates their beds so it is worth making the annual trip to see what is new and noteworthy. Outstanding choices this year include Violet Beauty, Black Parrot, Princess Irene, and my personal favorite the double-flowered, peony-like Angelique.
You can see live and without photo-retouching or special lighting whether that “midnight black” is truly dark enough for you, if that “peach” is orange enough, and if that “lipstick pink” stands up to the bright yellows and reds. I know I’m not the only one to put a bulb color combination t color using catalog photos only to be disappointed by the actual real-world results.
The Tulip Library was created in 1969 and is located near the Tidal Basin at Independence Avenue and Maine Avenue. Each fall gardeners from the NPS prepare the floral beds for hand-planting over 10,000 tulip bulbs flown in from Holland. After blooming the bulbs are removed, and the beds are prepared for planting a display of annuals. In order to achieve uniform results in flower size, height, and blooming period, new tulip bulbs are imported from
the Netherlands and planted each year. The NPS asks visitors to please refrain from picking the tulips so others may enjoy them. But do take photos and notes!
What good is a library without a reference? The NPS has provided Washington Gardener’s readers with a tulip library guide. It is posted here in PDF form for you to print out and make notes on for your own bulb orders.
Happy Growing!
Kathy Jentz
Editor/Publisher
Washington Gardener
P.S. We have discontinued our "What's Blooming" regular column and replaced it with our new monthly "Reader Contest." If you want to discuss "What's Blooming" in your garden, feel free to join and post to ourWashington Gardener yahoo discussion list. To join the discussion group, just send an email to: WashingtonGardener-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
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Local Gardening Events
Here is a selection of upcoming events (March 15-April 15) in the greater DC area of interest to gardeners:
DC
Shore to Ship: The Enduring Plant Discoveries of the U.S. Exploring Expedition
March 31-June 3, 10:00am-5:00pm
United States Botanic Garden Conservatory, 100 Maryland Avenue, SW, foot of the U.S. Capitol
Every spring the U.S. Botanic Garden and the Smithsonian’s Department of
Botany, National Museum of Natural History -- the “Botanical Partners on the Mall” -- celebrate the U.S. Exploring
Expedition and the legacy of its leader, Charles Wilkes. Through a series of
plant stories and a plant hunt, the exhibit shows how these specimens still inform current plant research and directly
lead to a better understanding of the natural world. As in past years, a highlight of the Shore to Ship exhibit will be the
Wilkes Festival on Saturday, April 14, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Visitors and their families will enjoy live musical
performances, exploring the plant hunt trail, joining in children’s activities, and meeting modern-day plant explorers.
Fee: $0/Free. Registration is not required.
For more information: call 202.226.4082 or www.usbg.gov
2007 National Cherry Blossom Festival
March 31- April 15
Washington, DC
An annual two-week, citywide event featuring daily cultural performances, sporting events, arts & crafts demonstrations, fireworks display, and other special happenings.
Fee: $0/Free. Preregistration is not required.
For more information: call 202.661.7596 or go to: www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org.
Gardening Galore!
April 4, 10:00-11:30pm
Tudor Place, 1644 31st St. between Q and R Streets in Georgetown, Washington, DC
Children will engage in a multi-sensory learning experience in Tudor Place’s five-and-a-half acre historic garden. Children will take an interactive tour of the garden and landscape while observing a variety of flowers, trees, plants, and wildlife. Following the tour, children will learn about key principles of gardening and create a small flower garden to take home!
Supplies included in price. Ages 6-10. Meet at Visitor Center.
Fee: $7 members ($12 nonmembers) per adult/child pair. Additional adults and children: $5. Registration is required.
For more information: visit: www.tudorplace.org or call 202.965.0400, ext. 109.
MD and PA
Small Trees for Small Gardens
March 19th, 8:00-10:00pm
Brookside Gardens, 1800 Glenallan Ave., Wheaton MD
The Silver Spring Garden Club hosts Gene Sumi of Homestead Gardens, who will give targeted tree choices for those of us with postage-stamp-sized gardens.
Fee: $0/Free. Registration is not required.
For more information: www.brooksidegardens.org
Attracting Birds and Butterflies to Your Garden
March 21, 7:30-9:00pm
Azalea Room, Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, MD
The Takoma Horticultural Club meeting hosts Montgomery County Master Gardener Marie Rojas, who will describe the best trees, shrubs, and plants to use in attracting wildlife to your garden.
This event is open to all. Please be on time and bring a snack to share.
Fee: $0/Free. Preregistration is not required.
For more information: wwww.takomahort.org or call 301.891.7100.
13th Annual Hagerstown Community College Alumni Association Flower & Garden Show
March 17, 9:00am-5:00pm and March18, 10:00am -5:00pm
Hagerstown Community College Athletic, Recreation & Community Center, Hagerstown, MD
“Flowers and Veggies and Gifts . . . Oh My!,” includes garden club displays, talks by area garden experts, children’s activities, vendor sales, and much more.
Fee: $4 for adults, free for children. Preregistration is not required.
For more information, go to www.hagerstowncc.edu or call 301.790.2800, ext. 346.
VA and WV
Nikolai Antuychin Art Exhibit
March 5 through June 28, Monday through Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm
George Washington’s River Farm, 7931 East Boulevard Drive, Alexandria, VA
View the impressive floral artwork of Russian artist Nikolai Antuychin. Ranging in style from the traditional realistic mode of the Moscow School of Art to the Russian Impressionists, Antuychin’s pastels and oil compositions have caught the attention of collectors around the world. Antuychin has also served as graphic arts instructor at the Moscow Pedagogical Institute and is a current member of the Russian Union of Arts.
Visitors will also have the opportunity to meet the artist during three receptions: April 14, May 24, and June 14.
Fee: $0/Free. Registration is not required.
For more information: www.ahs.org or call 703.768.5700, ext. 114.
An Intentional Garden
March 18, 1:30-3:00pm
Green Spring Gardens, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, VA
Former Green Spring Gardens director, Don Humphrey, comes back to share his latest garden design, a mixed border of tall perennials, a wildlife garden filled with fruit for the birds, a vegetable garden for the humans, a garden for the hummingbirds, a berm with shrubs and shade plants and …whew, a patio to rest.
Fee: $11. Preregistration is required.
For more information: www.greenspring.org or call 703.642.5173.
Invasive Species Pull
March 24, 12:00noon-3:00pm
3104 Russell Road, Alexandria, VA
The Kust property borders Monticello Park and is one of the top 50 spots in the nation for migratory birds every spring and fall, according to the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. The owners permanently protected their property from development in 2005, and now want your help to maintain the ecological quality of this stopover point by coming out to remove English Ivy. Dress appropriately for the weather and for working outdoors: wear boots, heavy pants, and long sleeves, and work gloves. Bring clippers and loppers. Refreshments will be available.
Fee: $0/Free. Registration is not required.
For more information: www.nvct.org or call 703.354.5093, ext. 25.
Special Event: Washington Gardener Photo Contest Art Show Opening Reception
Washington Gardener Photo Contest Art Show Opening Reception
March 23, 7:00-9:00pm
World Building, 8121 Georgia Ave, downtown Silver Spring, MD
You are invited to view the winning images of the first annual Washington Gardener Photo Contest at an art show in downtown Silver Spring, MD. All 17 stunning photos were taken in DC-area gardens. Both inspirational and educational, this show represents the best of garden photography in the greater DC metropolitan region.
Many of the winning images are on sale and are quite affordable with prices ranging from $50-$100. The winning photos are also published in the March/April 07 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine along with additional details on the entrants and their images.
Fee: $0/Free.
For more information: www.washingtongardener.com or call 301.588.6894.
For even more area garden event notices than we can't possibly squeeze in here, become a member of our free online discussion group. To join the email list serv, just send an email to: WashingtonGardener-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
To submit an event for this listing, please contact: editor@washingtongardener.com and put "Event" in the email subject head.
Our next deadline is April 12 for the April 15 edition of this enewsletter featuring events from April 15-May 15.
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Spotlight Special: Stepables
Under a Foot Plant Co. is the company behind the Stepables brand of groundcovers. This line of landscaping plants is being marketing especially for tough to fill spots in your yard. If you are looking for plant suggestions for a high-traffic area, you can use their plant search page on the Stepables.com web site to give you over 120 choices to browse.
Isotoma fluviatilis 'Blue Star Creeper' is the top-selling STEPABLE brand plant. Touted as perfect as a lawn substitute, excellent between stepping stones, under roses, and around ponds and decks. It is easy to grow, can bloom spring to frost, and is easy to maintain. You can order directly from Stepables.com or locate a local garden center using their web site’s store search function.
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Reader Contest
We have five sets of two passes each (worth $16 per set) to The Montgomery County Home Show for our March Washington Gardener Reader Contest. This new show takes place March 31-April 1 at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Gaithersburg, MD. Home and garden exhibits will be both indoors and out. Local garden celebrity, Mike McGrath of WTOP News Radio, is one of the event’s featured speakers.
To enter our contest, send an email to editor@washingtongardener.com before 12 Midnight on March 23 with “MoCo Home Show” in the subject line. Include your full name and address in the email body. We will select the winners at random from among all the entries on March 24 and mail the passes that day.
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March To-Do List
Here is our combined garden task list for March 15-April 15 compiled from the previous March 2005 and March 2006 issues:
- Avoid walking on wet soil in the garden.
- Prune grapevines.
- Set out traps for mice, moles, and voles.
- Get a soil test.
- Soil preparation -- add lime, compost, etc. as needed.
- Mulch beds with a light hand.
- Repot root-bound houseplants and start fertilizing them.
- Clean leaves and debris from your water garden.
- Do not be alarmed if your pond turns green from algae bloom, this is natural until your water plants fill the surface area. Add a barley ball to combat it for now.
- Cut back ornamental grasses.
- Water during dry spells.
- Cut your Daffodils for indoor bouquets, but do not combine daffs with other flowers in one vase. They give off a toxic substance they may kill your other blooms off prematurely.
- Weed by hand to avoid disturbing newly forming roots.
- Walk your garden -- look for early signs of fungal disease.
- Divide perennials and herbs.
- Fertilize new growth.
- Plant and prune roses.
- Transplants small trees and shrubs.
- Buy or check on your stored summer bulbs (such as dahlias and caladiums). Pot them and start to water, if you want to give them an early start on the season.
- If you started seeds last month, thin them and start the hardening off process.
- Start some more seeds -- especially try flowering annuals like impatiens and petunias.
- Prune fruit trees as their buds are swelling. Check for dead and diseased wood to prune out. Cut a few branches for indoor forcing, if desired.
- Build a raised bed for vegetables. Add lots of manure and compost.
- Buy an indoor plant to liven up your office space. Try an orchid or African violet.
- Cut back and clear out the last of your perennial beds.
- Feed birds and provide nesting materials (try dryer lint) as well as houses for the start of their family season.
- Plant a tree for Arbor Day. Arbor Day comes on different dates in different states. In our area it is the first Wednesday in April for Maryland, Virginia has it on the second Friday in April, and DC has it on the last Friday in April. In addition, many local groups and towns have their own celebrations.
- Read a good gardening book.
Have a wonderful 2007 growing season!
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Magazine Excerpt: Delightful Dogwoods by Kate Tyndall
Our native flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) is cherished by gardeners and rightly so. Being undemanding small trees with short, crooked trunks, they have beautiful, four-petaled white or pink flowers (bracts, actually), a full, spreading crown and grayish-tan bark that becomes alligatored with age.
Spring is not C. florida’s only season of glory; the flowering dogwood also flaunts a spectacular autumn wardrobe of purple and red foliage, and its well-branched silhouette is handsome year round. The tree’s elliptical, bright red berries, which ripen during the summer, are a major draw for wild birds.
C. florida (zones 5 to 9) grows to an eventual height of 25 to 30 feet with a similar or even wider spread. It typically blooms in May, and the flowers last two to three weeks. Good cultivars include the white flowered ‘Cloud 9’; ‘Plena,’ a double-flowered white; ‘Pendula,’ a weeping white; pink flowered ‘Red Cloud’; and ‘Cherokee Chief,’ with reddish-pink bracts.
A tree of the woodland in its native habitat, the flowering dogwood is usually an understory tree. In the home garden, it does best when...
Read the rest of this article including sidebar columns on Dogwood Cultivation Notes and Dogwood Sources and Resources in the March/April 2007 issue of Washington Gardener magazine.
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Next Issue
The April 2007 issue of Washington Gardener Enews will cover Final Frost Dates and Just WHEN to Plant.
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Edited by Kathy Jentz
Contact: editor@washingtongardener.com or 301.588.6894.
©Washington Gardener 2007
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