January 2023 UME Master Gardener Program Announcements

January 2023 UME Master Gardener

State Office Announcements

Happy New Year, Master Gardeners! It's time to start planning our gardens for the year as we await warmer weather. A new year always brings hope for new growth and new beginnings. We hope 2023 is a wonderful year for you!

Our January newsletter includes an opportunity to join the HGIC/MG team, new continuing education events, a citizen science opportunity, and other updates.

Photo by Edwin Remsberg

HGIC is Hiring a

Business Services Specialist!

This position supports the financial and operational aspects of both the Home & Garden Information Center as well as the Master Gardener Program. Apply to join our team or share with someone you know who may be interested in working with us!

Learn More & Apply Here

Buy Ticket

Winter Tree ID Walk

Continuing Ed Event | January 20, 2023 | 12pm-1:30pm | UMD Campus | $5

Did you know that the University of Maryland, College Park's campus is an arboretum? Join Karen Petroff, Assistant Director of Arboretum and Horticultural Services at the University of Maryland for a lunchtime winter tree ID walk around campus. You'll learn how to use features other than leaves to identify commonly used landscape trees in the winter.

If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Stephanie Pully in the State MG Office at pully@umd.edu or (410) 531-1754 before January 6, 2023.

Redbud Phenology Project

This is a citizen science project that seeks to answer the following questions: 1)When do eastern redbud trees flower and fruit across the tree's range? 2) How does the timing of these events vary across geography and elevation? 3) Has the timing of flowering and fruiting advanced in recent years?

You can support these efforts by reporting what your redbud tree is doing throughout the season. They will compare these observations to historical records of flowering and fruiting contributed to herbaria in the eastern U.S.

Learn More and Participate

VMS Demographics

In an effort to become an increasingly more diverse and inclusive program to better serve all Maryland communities, it is important that we understand who our program represents today. VMS will prompt each Master Gardener to complete or update their demographic information upon logging in. As always, sharing your demographic information is voluntary, but please consider filling this out so that we can continue to improve the Master Gardener program in alliance with the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR) Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Respect (DEIR) Strategic Plan.

AGNR's DEIR Strategic Plan

GreenScapes Symposium

February 17, 2023 | 9:30 am - 4 pm

$45 per person | Live Zoom Event

The GreenScapes Symposium is an annual program sponsored by Brookside Gardens since 2004. The symposium explores the latest topics related to landscape sustainability and the environment. This event appeals to a broad audience ranging from landscape architects and designers to master gardeners, horticulturalists, and urban planners. Environmental stewardship is a core value of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), Brookside Gardens’ parent organization. As such, we strive to provide timely information and viable solutions to environmental challenges that help create a healthy planet for all people, plants and living things.

More Information

Catch Up on Continuing Education

Did you miss any of our continuing education webinars last year?

Check out the recordings below! You can always see both upcoming continuing education opportunities and recorded webinars on the State MG Continuing Education webpage.

Hydroponic How-to

An introductory overview to hydroponic growing with a focus on home-scale gardening. Participants will learn the 3 main methods of growing hydroponically and see examples of each. The presenter will also explore hydroponics in the built environment, exploring ideas presented by futurists as well as the ‘here and now’ of hydroponic living walls.

Watch the Recording

Maryland Grows Blog

The Maryland Grows Blog is a wonderful place for new and experienced gardeners to read timely tips on food gardening, soil improvement, trouble-shooting plant problems, and supporting pollinators in your landscape.