Fall Fest at Duncan Library Garden – THIS SATURDAY! #mgnv #mastergardeners #fallfestival #duncanlibrarygarden Join MGNV for our 2nd annual Fall Festival! We will have an “Ask the Master Gardener” table, kids' activities, a plant sale, free saplings, hand-crafted pottery, a food truck, tool sharpening, and more.

Fall Fest at Duncan Library Garden – THIS SATURDAY!

#mgnv #mastergardeners #fallfestival #duncanlibrarygarden Join MGNV for our 2nd annual Fall Festival! We will have an “Ask the Master Gardener” table, kids' activities, a plant sale, free saplings, hand-crafted pottery, a food truck, tool…

Annuals, Bulbs, & Corms: Impatiens capensis (Orange or Spotted Jewelweed) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic The showy flowers of this native annual dangle on slender stalks mid-summer to early fall throughout the Mid-Atlantic. Water droplets glistening on its leaves and ripe capsules violently dispersing seeds when touched, give rise to its common names, #Jewelweed and #Touch-me-not, respectively.

Annuals, Bulbs, & Corms: Impatiens capensis (Orange or Spotted Jewelweed)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic The showy flowers of this native annual dangle on slender stalks mid-summer to early fall throughout the Mid-Atlantic. Water droplets glistening on its leaves…

Between the Rows – A Guide to Vegetable Gardening:October 2025 #veggiegardening #vegetablegardening #mgnv #urbanagriculture Vegetable gardening information and events for October.

Between the Rows – A Guide to Vegetable Gardening:October 2025

#veggiegardening #vegetablegardening #mgnv #urbanagriculture Vegetable gardening information and events for October.

50 Plants that Changed the World #renting #gardening #mgnv #book review Discover the intriguing history of 50 plants that shaped civilization, from tomatoes to barley, and their impact on our world in Stephen Harris's book, 50 Plants that Changed the World.

50 Plants that Changed the World

#renting #gardening #mgnv #book review Discover the intriguing history of 50 plants that shaped civilization, from tomatoes to barley, and their impact on our world in Stephen Harris's book, 50 Plants that Changed the World.

Plants and People Thrive at the Small Space Garden #mgnv #mastergardener #smallspacegardening The Small Space Garden, tucked into a courtyard at the Fairlington Community Center, is a hub of activity on Sunday mornings from May to November. This petite demonstration garden, overseen by Master Gardener volunteers, and its associated plant clinic draw adults and children who are shopping at the adjacent Fairlington Farmers Market at 3308 S. Stafford St., Arlington, VA 22206.

Plants and People Thrive at the Small Space Garden

#mgnv #mastergardener #smallspacegardening The Small Space Garden, tucked into a courtyard at the Fairlington Community Center, is a hub of activity on Sunday mornings from May to November. This petite demonstration garden, overseen by Master…

TREE: Benthamidia florida (Flowering Dogwood) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Commonly found in the forest understory or as a landscape ornamental, this high wildlife value native with four-season interest is both official floral and arboreal emblems of Virginia. The Virginia Native Plant Society honored #FloweringDogwood as Wildflower of the Year in 2018.

TREE: Benthamidia florida (Flowering Dogwood)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Commonly found in the forest understory or as a landscape ornamental, this high wildlife value native with four-season interest is both official floral and arboreal emblems of Virginia.…

New to the Glossary: Elliptic, Ellipsoid, Oval, Ovate, Obovate, Ovoid, Obovoid #MasterGardener #MGNV In everyday conversation, when a form resembles an egg, we simply say it is egg-shaped. In botany, the terms ovate, obovate, ovoid, and obovoid describe egg-shaped plant parts. Similar shapes are oval, elliptic, and ellipsoid. Can you distinguish among these shapes when describing a leaf or fruit?

New to the Glossary: Elliptic, Ellipsoid, Oval, Ovate, Obovate, Ovoid, Obovoid

#MasterGardener #MGNV In everyday conversation, when a form resembles an egg, we simply say it is egg-shaped. In botany, the terms ovate, obovate, ovoid, and obovoid describe egg-shaped plant parts. Similar shapes are…

Bringing Fall Color Inside #mgnv #mastergardener #fallcolorshouseplants Bring houseplants with fall-colored foliage into your home to extend the season and enjoy the warm shades of red, orange, and yellow year-round.

Bringing Fall Color Inside

#mgnv #mastergardener #fallcolorshouseplants Bring houseplants with fall-colored foliage into your home to extend the season and enjoy the warm shades of red, orange, and yellow year-round.

PERENNIAL: Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This lovely wildflower, a hummingbird favorite, shines with brilliant scarlet flowers. Its natural habitat is floodplain forests, swamps, and wet meadows throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region. The Virginia Native Plant Society honored #CardinalFlower as Wildflower of the Year in 1991.

PERENNIAL: Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This lovely wildflower, a hummingbird favorite, shines with brilliant scarlet flowers. Its natural habitat is floodplain forests, swamps, and wet meadows throughout the Mid-Atlantic…

Join the Fall Fest at Duncan Library Garden! #mgnv #mastergardeners #fallfestival #duncanlibrarygarden

Join the Fall Fest at Duncan Library Garden!

#mgnv #mastergardeners #fallfestival #duncanlibrarygarden

PERENNIAL: Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver’s-root) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Elegant, easy-to-grow #Culver’s-root inhabits stream banks and moist meadows in the eastern U.S. and around the Great Lakes. Striking, candelabra-like inflorescences add vertical structure, and whorled leaves horizontal lines, to landscapes. Flowers attract myriad pollinators for a month in summer, followed by seed capsules.

PERENNIAL: Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver’s-root)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Elegant, easy-to-grow #Culver’s-root inhabits stream banks and moist meadows in the eastern U.S. and around the Great Lakes. Striking, candelabra-like inflorescences add vertical…

Making Wise Plant Choices, Part 3:  Cultivars & Hybrids #mgnv #mastergardeners #nativeplants #nativeplantcultivars Native plants, especially those identified as “keystone” species, may be best suited to changing environmental conditions and provide critical support to wildlife but cultivars of native plants don't always offer these same benefits.

Making Wise Plant Choices, Part 3:  Cultivars & Hybrids

#mgnv #mastergardeners #nativeplants #nativeplantcultivars Native plants, especially those identified as “keystone” species, may be best suited to changing environmental conditions and provide critical support to wildlife but cultivars of…

PERENNIAL: Monarda fistulosa (Wild Bergamot) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This showy mint family member boasts a fragrance similar to bergamot oranges. Its aromatic leaves are used in herbal tea. Flowers attract myriad pollinators, especially native bees. The Virginia Native Plant Society named #WildBergamot Wildflower of the Year in 1993.

PERENNIAL: Monarda fistulosa (Wild Bergamot)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This showy mint family member boasts a fragrance similar to bergamot oranges. Its aromatic leaves are used in herbal tea. Flowers attract myriad pollinators, especially native bees. The…

Join the Fun at Pepper Fest 2025 in Organic Garden Join us for the Open House & Pepper Fest at the Organic Vegetable Garden on Sept 13, 2025! Sample fresh peppers and learn gardening tips.

#mgnv #mastergardener #vegetables #peppers

Come tour the Organic Vegetable Garden and sample the many kinds of peppers on Saturday, September 13 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at Potomac Overlook Park. And check out our cool new resource - A Pepper Primer!

mgnv.org/demonstratio...

Between the Rows: Vegetable Gardening September 2025 #mgnv #mastergardener #vegetable gardening #donateproduce OVG Pepperfest, donate your produce, Wednesday library talks and vegetable gardening to do lists!

Between the Rows: Vegetable Gardening September 2025

#mgnv #mastergardener #vegetable gardening #donateproduce OVG Pepperfest, donate your produce, Wednesday library talks and vegetable gardening to do lists!

Making Wise Plant Choices, Part 2: Keystone Plants, 2025 Studies have shown that the particular selections gardeners make can have a tremendous impact on the diversity of life in our yards. Years of observations and research by University of Delaware entomologist Dr. Douglas Tallamy and his assistants have revealed that certain species of native plants, which he terms “keystone plants,” are especially supportive of a garden’s food web.

Making Wise Plant Choices, Part 2: Keystone Plants, 2025

Studies have shown that the particular selections gardeners make can have a tremendous impact on the diversity of life in our yards. Years of observations and research by University of Delaware entomologist Dr. Douglas Tallamy and his…

VINE: Clematis virginiana (Virgin’s-bower) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic In eastern North American lowlands, the vigorous vine of native #Virgin’s-bower quickly climbs by twining or trails along the ground in twisted fashion. A prolific bloomer, its white flowers attract pollinators late summer into fall, followed by showy seed heads on female plants.

VINE: Clematis virginiana (Virgin’s-bower)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic In eastern North American lowlands, the vigorous vine of native #Virgin’s-bower quickly climbs by twining or trails along the ground in twisted fashion. A prolific bloomer, its white…

New State Law Aims to Educate Consumers About Invasive Plants for Retail Sale Learn about Virginia's new law requiring signage for invasive plants, effective 2027, to protect local ecosystems and promote alternatives.

New State Law Aims to Educate Consumers About Invasive Plants for Retail Sale

Learn about Virginia's new law requiring signage for invasive plants, effective 2027, to protect local ecosystems and promote alternatives.

GROUND COVER: Heuchera villosa (Hairy Alumroot) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Although Hairy Alumroot’s native habitat in Virginia is mostly in the southwestern mountains (it is not native to NoVA), its five-inch wide, semi-evergreen leaves and late-season flower plumes make it a species worthy of consideration for a woodland garden.

GROUND COVER: Heuchera villosa (Hairy Alumroot)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Although Hairy Alumroot’s native habitat in Virginia is mostly in the southwestern mountains (it is not native to NoVA), its five-inch wide, semi-evergreen leaves and late-season…

2025 March-July Public Education Classes – Now Online! #mgnv #mastergardener Public ed classes offered from March through June, 2025 are now online. Each video has been edited and captioned, and each page includes multiple resources.

2025 March-July Public Education Classes – Now Online!

#mgnv #mastergardener Public ed classes offered from March through June, 2025 are now online. Each video has been edited and captioned, and each page includes multiple resources.

Come to the Annual Pepper Fest at the Organic Vegetable Garden #mgnv #mastergardener #vegetables #peppers Pepper Fest! Come celebrate the end of summer at the Organic Vegetable Garden! Sunday September 13 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at Potomac Overlook Park.

Come to the Annual Pepper Fest at the Organic Vegetable Garden

#mgnv #mastergardener #vegetables #peppers Pepper Fest! Come celebrate the end of summer at the Organic Vegetable Garden! Sunday September 13 from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at Potomac Overlook Park.

VINE: Passiflora incarnata (Purple Passionflower, Maypop) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Found naturally along roadsides, pastures, and open woods, the exotic flowers and edible fruit of Purple Passionflower make this unique vine a striking ornamental plant for the garden. The common name, Maypop, refers to the fruit, which makes a popping sound when stomped.

VINE: Passiflora incarnata (Purple Passionflower, Maypop)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic Found naturally along roadsides, pastures, and open woods, the exotic flowers and edible fruit of Purple Passionflower make this unique vine a striking ornamental plant for…

How to Garden When You Rent #renting #gardening #mgnv #book review Back in the day, when I was renting, it never occurred to me that with relatively little effort I could make my small townhouse patio anything other than the uninviting space it was. Fortunately, that is not a problem for today’s renters. In How to Garden When You Rent, author Matthew Pottage presents renters with a variety of gardening ideas with solid advice on how to undertake them.

How to Garden When You Rent

#renting #gardening #mgnv #book review Back in the day, when I was renting, it never occurred to me that with relatively little effort I could make my small townhouse patio anything other than the uninviting space it was. Fortunately, that is not a problem for today’s…

Arlington County Fair: Competitive Exhibits Registration Deadline! Have you had a spectacular garden this year? Are your beans beautiful and your zinnias amazing? Come to the Arlington County Fair and enter the Competitive Exhibits for Fruits and Vegetables or Flo…

mgnv.org/event/county...

#countyfair #mgnv #mastergardeners

PERENNIAL: Helianthus divaricatus (Woodland Sunflower) New in 2025! #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This native of open woodlands is a truly high-value wildlife plant. Showy fall flowers draw myriad pollinators to nectar, seven species of specialized bees to pollen, and birds and small mammals to seeds. It is a larval host for about 70 lepidopteran species.

PERENNIAL: Helianthus divaricatus (Woodland Sunflower) New in 2025!

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic This native of open woodlands is a truly high-value wildlife plant. Showy fall flowers draw myriad pollinators to nectar, seven species of specialized bees to…

Meet the Farmers at Your Farmers Market #farmersmarket#vegetables#fruit#farmers When you meander through a farmers market, do you ever think about where that colorful cornucopia of vegetables and fruit comes from? The first week of August is National Farmers Market Week (Aug. 3-9 in 2025), an opportunity to learn more about the actual farmers at your farmers market.

Meet the Farmers at Your Farmers Market

#farmersmarket#vegetables#fruit#farmers When you meander through a farmers market, do you ever think about where that colorful cornucopia of vegetables and fruit comes from? The first week of August is National Farmers Market Week (Aug. 3-9 in 2025), an…

GRASS: Eragrostis spectabilis (Purple Lovegrass, Tumblegrass) #MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic An important native species for soil stabilization along roadsides, Purple Lovegrass is a lovely ornamental in home gardens. Its reddish-purple clouds of airy flowers are stunning in summer when backlit or sparkling with raindrops.

GRASS: Eragrostis spectabilis (Purple Lovegrass, Tumblegrass)

#MGNV Tried and True #NativePlant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic An important native species for soil stabilization along roadsides, Purple Lovegrass is a lovely ornamental in home gardens. Its reddish-purple clouds of airy flowers are…

Garden Myth Busters! Pine Needle Mulch THE MYTH: Using pine needles as mulch will cause your soil to become significantly more acidic. THE REALITY: False! Read on to learn more!

Garden Myth Busters! Pine Needle Mulch

THE MYTH: Using pine needles as mulch will cause your soil to become significantly more acidic. THE REALITY: False! Read on to learn more!

Between the Rows – A Guide to Vegetable Gardening:August 2025 Vegetable gardening information and events for August

Between the Rows – A Guide to Vegetable Gardening:August 2025

Vegetable gardening information and events for August

Arlington County Fair 2025: Enter Competitive Exhibits Now Registration Deadline - August 11, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. Have you had a spectacular garden this year? Are your beans beautiful and your zinnias amazing? Come to the Arlington County Fair and enter the Competitive Exhibits for Fruits and Vegetables or Flowers! Entries will be judged by Extension Master Gardeners and there are prizes galore to give you bragging rights in your neighborhood.

Arlington County Fair 2025: Enter Competitive Exhibits Now

Registration Deadline - August 11, 2025 at 11:59 p.m. Have you had a spectacular garden this year? Are your beans beautiful and your zinnias amazing? Come to the Arlington County Fair and enter the Competitive Exhibits for Fruits and…