February Meeting: Project Showcase

A PowerPoint of slides of Anne Arundel County Master Gardener projects will begin at 7:00 on Tuesday, February 8. When each project’s slide appears, the Project Chair or representative will take 2-3 minutes to introduce themselves and the project. We have a couple of projects with changes in leadership, a new project and other projects with new initiatives. 

Registration Zoom Link for the February meeting

https://umd.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIodO6qpzgrGNDaq0m4UICgJZf6Z4SmNhoq





Coordinator's Corner

Nancy Allred, Interim Master Gardener Coordinator

I am starting the New Year with much hope. Hope for opportunities to interact with the public and provide education about sustainable gardening practices. Hope for the hiring of a Master Gardener Coordinator so I can be relieved of my extension duties to spend more time with family and gardening activities. Hope for more volunteer opportunities so Master Gardeners can get their service hours and cultivate their horticultural experience and knowledge. Hope that everyone will jump in and get their required education and volunteer hours completed and reported early. 

Administratively we are tweaking our local web pages to make finding resources easier and visually cleaner. We are updating project descriptions, the 2022 Master Gardener Project and Contact List and the Executive Advisory Board (EAB) list.  The tentative 2022 schedule of monthly meetings and topics is on the website. Please remember to bookmark https://extension.umd.edu/locations/anne-arundel-county/master-gardener-program/just-master-gardeners

I look forward to seeing everyone at the February 8 virtual zoom meeting for our annual Project Showcase. Following the meeting, you will need to contact project chairs and signup. Project chairs will notify you of project activities and work events. 

I hope everyone is staying safe, warm and rested before the start of the gardening season.



Take care, Nancy



Master Gardener Project Reports



Apprentice Gardens

ARE YOU A MASTER GARDENER WHO ENJOYS VEGETABLE

GARDENING AND WORKING WITH FAMILIES?

Planning has begun for the Apprentice Garden 2022 season. The eight family spaces have been offered first to the eligible families who participated in the 2021

Apprentice Garden. Available spaces will be offered to families on our wait list.  Master Gardeners will open the garden in mid-March, and plant potatoes, lettuces and greens. April 6 is the date for our first meeting with the families, and we expect to meet in the Harvest Hall at Kinder Farm Park. If covid protocols permit, the children will paint signs to adorn their garden spaces, and parents will sign paperwork and receive project information.

There is a new layout in the Apprentice Garden this year, and we are looking forward to trying new ideas. The center of the garden will be dedicated to common spaces for tomatoes, peppers and squash, etc., and to the Mediterranean garden for herbs - sage, rosemary, chives and thyme. The vegetables and herbs will be shared by all the families.

In 2021, the strawberries thrived in their new location in the southwest corner of the Apprentice Garden, and lots of runners were potted for transplant and for sharing.

Master Gardeners can participate by helping the families, or you can “adopt” part of the perennial gardens on the “outside of the fence” and maintain it on your own schedule.  Native goldenrod, mint and chives on one side, and brown-eyed Susans on the other. Milkweed, tall phlox, iris, BES, mountain mint and a peony grow on front, garden gate side.

The Master Gardener volunteers and families meet at 6:30PM every Wednesday at the community gardens at Kinder Farm Park in Millersville, from April through September. 

Please consider volunteering in the Apprentice Garden. Occasional volunteers, and interns are welcome anytime. Volunteers who can do non-Wednesday garden checks and watering would be much appreciated as well. Your children are welcome to join you. There is always a sign-in sheet in the garden mailbox for noting your participation and recording your hours. Many thanks.

Hope you can join us in the Apprentice Garden in 2022!

If you would like more information, please contact Janet or Deb.

Co-chaired by Janet Clauson and Deb Fritz

janetclauson301@gmail.com, 410.987.2027

debfritzdesign@gmail.com, 410.279.1077

Presentation Project

Our last meeting was December 1 with a combined December / November meeting. Jane made a few changes to her woodland garden and will continue to work on the slopes presentation. The fall garden clean up presentation was ready for review. The Presentation Project will be meeting virtually on Wednesday January 26 from 1:00-3:00. Presentations will be reviewed and the status of others will be updated. Several presentations were reviewed by Nancy Allred and Ginny Klocko at the extension office for readability and with a projector in anticipation of uses at an in person venue. It was decided that several were ready for prime time. Several more presentations are ready for an extension office for review. As several presentations are completed, we will look to the new year anticipating several new members joining us and new presentations will be worked on.

Ginny Klocko (bgklocko@verizon.net)

Seed Swap Project

2022 Seed Swap Update: due to the recent COVID restrictions, the January Seed Swap was canceled. At the end of February, we will reassess the public health situation. If things have greatly improved, we will hold the See Swap on Saturday, March 26th, with setup on Friday, March 25th at the Crofton Library. If things have not improved, we will repeat last year’s process—packaging all the seeds and distributing them to the public through the public library branches. Many thanks to the Seed Swap committee volunteers who are graciously rolling with our changing plans!



Tawes Garden

January was a rough month for the Tawes Garden with the heavy snow early in the month causing considerable tree and limb damage. Luckily, one advantage of having a garden in the midst of the Annapolis DNR building complex is that it benefits from state assistance in maintenance and repair. The Maryland Conservation Corps were on the scene soon after the storm, clearing pathways and trimming broken limbs. There will be some residual damage but trees and plants are very resilient and spring will bring new growth. Nature has a wonderful way of recovering from seasonal traumas. Tawes Garden is beautiful in all seasons but winter is especially peaceful, with few visitors and different views that open up with the loss of leaf cover. It's a good time to make a visit if you haven't already been.

Cindy Wells & Kathy Devine, co-chairs





Mark Your Calendar

Turf Troubleshooting

Live Zoom Event

February 25, 2022

1:30 PM

Registration link - https://umd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DyDvF0hAQlC9lGHJXmkJ5g

Organic Lawn Care

Live Zoom Event

March 3, 2022

12:00-1:30 PM

Registration link - https://umd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_xu4fCWBwQ2aGxTGsBOuG2w

Grow It Eat It Statewide Meeting

Live Zoom Event

March 10, 2022

10:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Registration link - https://umd.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DyDvF0hAQlC9lGHJXmkJ5



Answer: Antique handheld corn planter