Extension Master Gardeners are ready for another fun and productive year educating the public on sustainable gardening practices. Where to find EMGs in 2011 Returning are the popular “Ask a Master Gardener Days” on Saturdays at local farmers markets. Bring your gardening ques- tions and join us at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, the Davidson Farmers Market, or Matthews Community Farmers Market on these dates. Also find “Ask a Master Gardener” at many green community events, including: The Charlotte Green and Clean Festival, Southern Spring Home & Garden Show, the Reedy Creek Hum- mingbird Festival, and Festival in the Park. Find Extension Master Gardener-grown vegetables, perennials, herbs, shrubs and trees at two Spring Plant Sales: - April 30 at Charlotte Regional Farmers Market - May 7 at Matthews Community Farmers Market Proceeds from these sales help fund our public education pro- grams and provide scholarships at UNCC and CPCC. Join one of the hands-on workshops at a Park and Recreation center and learn about sustainable gardening practices, including vegetable gardening, using native plants, landscape basics, improving your soil, pruning, and more. Visit the EMG monthly Wednesday Lecture Series for presenta- tions on in-depth garden topics. Find topics, dates and times, and how to reserve your seat—all posted on our website. Introducing our new Charlotte Mecklenburg community gardening resource: Ready to garden when you are . . . Rain or shine, day or night…. www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org Extension Master Gardeners of Mecklenburg County 2011 Community Events 2011 Successful Mecklenburg GARDENERS Visit our NEW community gardening resource website Ready to garden when you are . . . rain or shine, day or night…. www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org Garden and Horticulture Articles How-to Garden Topics and Resources Current Local Garden News and Events Monthly Tips in “The Gardener’s Calendar” Garden Advice in “Got Questions? Get ANSWERS” Dig in to “A Gardener’s Forum—Fresh DIRT” Grow What You Eat - Our Community Gardens & Vegetable Gardening: From Planting to Harvest Saturday, February 26, 2011, 10:00am- 12:00pm at William R. Davie Park Community Building Already a community gardener lease holder? Interested in a plot in one of Meck- lenburg County’s 8 community gardens? Want to grow some of your own food at home? Have questions about your veggie garden? Need information about organic and sustainable gardening? Community gardeners and the public are invited to join Don Rosenberg, Mecklenburg Extension Master Gardener, an expert on organic garden- ing, for all the answers on planning and planting your spring crops: from soil preparation and weed, pest, and disease control, to details on what, where, and when to plant. Q&A session follows the presentation. Ad- vance registration requested at www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org. 2011 Successful Mecklenburg GARDENERS 2011 Successful Mecklenburg GARDENERS 2011 Successful Mecklenburg GARDENERS Cooperative Extension Service is located at: 1418 Armory Drive Charlotte, NC 28204 704.336.2082 http://mecklenburg.ces.ncsu.edu/ Extension Master Gardeners participate in a great variety of projects around Mecklenburg County to actively carry out our mission to educate county residents about safe, effective, and sustainable horticultural practices that build healthy gardens, landscapes, and communities by providing unbiased, research-based knowledge to the public. To learn more about EMGs, gardening in Mecklenburg County, and programs offered to the public, visit: www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org
Transcript
Extension Master Gardeners are ready for another fun and
productive year educating the public on sustainable gardening practices.
Where to find EMGs in 2011
Returning are the popular “Ask a Master Gardener Days” on
Saturdays at local farmers markets. Bring your gardening ques-
tions and join us at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, the
Davidson Farmers Market, or Matthews Community Farmers
Market on these dates.
Also find “Ask a Master Gardener” at many green community
events, including: The Charlotte Green and Clean Festival,
Southern Spring Home & Garden Show, the Reedy Creek Hum-
Wednesday & Saturday, March 2 & 5, 2011 "Ask a Master Gar-dener" at the Charlotte Southern Spring Home & Garden Show : Visit the Master Gardener booth and NC Cooperative Extension exhibit at the 2011 Southern Spring Home & Garden Show at The Park (formerly Charlotte Merchandise Mart) and celebrate "A Novel Idea" in garden design. Mecklenburg Extension Master Gardeners will staff the booth from 10:00am-9:00pm on Saturday, along with NCSU Extension Agents Mark Blevins and Scott Ewers for Wednesday's opening night from 7:00pm-10:00pm.
Visit www.southernshows.com/sss for detailed information.
Saturday, April 16, 2011 10:00am-3:00pm, GROWING GREEN $AVE$ GREEN, "Ask a Master Gardener" at the 2011 Charlotte Clean and Green Festival: For information on going green in your garden and answers to your gardening questions, visit the Master Gardener booth at this premier Earth Day Celebration on CPCC's Main Campus. See www.charlottegreenandclean.com/ for more information.
Monday, May 2, 2011, Garden Club of NC Annual Convention "Ask a Master Gardener" at the 2011 Garden Club of NC Annual Convention: Extension Master Gardeners will answer horticultural questions and talk gardening with NC Garden Club members from around the state at their 2011 "Queen City" themed convention. Location: Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel. This is a statewide conference; reservations are required.
Saturday, August 27, 2011, 10:00am-4:00pm, Reedy Creek Nature Preserve Hummingbird Festival: Reedy Creek Nature Preserve, 2900 Rocky River Road, Charlotte, NC 28215. Plants Humming-birds Love and "Ask a Master Gardener" will present information on gardening to attract hummingbirds and butterflies, and provide answers to your general gardening questions.
September 23-25, 2011, 47th Festival in the Park at Freedom Park : Tour the Master Gardener Demonstration Garden and "Ask a Master Gardener." Visit the Demonstration Garden located near the Mahlon Adams Pavilion at Cumberland and Lilac Roads, Char-lotte, NC. Visit www.festivalinthepark.org for detailed Festival information, daily hours and directions.
Ask a Master Gardener Days at Farmers Markets
Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, 1801 Yorkmont Road, Char-lotte NC, www.ncagr.gov/markets/facilities/markets/charlotte/, “Ask a Master Gardener Day”: Look for Master Gardeners in the Greenery Shed, 7:30am-1:00pm to answer your gardening questions and present topics.
Saturday, April 9, 2011, Soil – Where It All Begins: Learn about Pied-mont soil types and how to build healthy soil for healthy plants; free soil test kits available on request.
Saturday, April 23, 2011, Go Native: Learn the benefits of using native perennials, trees and shrubs in your yard; receive advice on plant selec-tion for your garden; plant lists available on request.
Saturday, April 30, 2011, SPRING PLANT SALE: Spring is the time to plant edibles and ornamentals, so shop early for your Master Gardener-grown herbs, perennials, plants, shrubs and trees.
Saturday, May 14, 2011, Home Grown & Local Produce: Learn about growing some of your own food, and about benefits of locally and home-grown produce. Meet our expert Kristen Davis, Mecklenburg County Cooperative Extension Agent, Local Foods, Food Safety & Food Preserva-tion.
Saturday, May 28, 2011, Go Green in Your Garden: Learn easy, cost-effective practices for being more organic and sustainable in your yard and garden.
Saturday, June 11, 2011, Worms - Nature’s Royal Recyclers: Learn all about vermiculture (composting kitchen scraps with worm bins), includ-ing how to start your own bin with fun, hands-on activities for the kids, including demonstration bins.
Saturday, June 25, 2011, Got Bugs, Get Answers: Meet Scott Ewers, Mecklenburg County Cooperative Extension Agent, Consumer & Com-mercial Horticulture, our expert on integrated pest management and disease control.
Saturday, September 10, 2011, Lawn Care 101: Learn cost-effective, earth-friendly techniques for planting a new or renovating an old lawn, and keeping it healthy and beautiful.
Matthews Community Farmers Market SPRING PLANT SALE and “Ask a Master Gardener Day” Saturday, May 7, 2011, 7:15am-noon, at the Matthews Farmers Market on North Trade Street, Matthews, NC. Shop for Master Gardener-grown edible and ornamental plants, including herbs, perennials, shrubs and trees. Mecklenburg Master Gardeners will also be available to answer questions on organic gardening; companion plants for vegetables; plant selection; composting and vermiculture; native plants; lawn care; garden pest, weed and disease control; basic landscape and garden planning; and more!
Davidson Farmers Market “Ask a Master Gardener Day” These dates: Saturday, April 16; Saturday, May 21; Saturday, June 18; Saturday, July 16; Saturday, August 20; Saturday, September 17, 2011, 120 S. Main Street, Davidson, NC. Got questions on organic garden-ing, companion plants for vegetables, plant selection, composting and vermiculture, native plants, or lawn care? Get answers here from your Extension Master Gardeners, 8:00am-noon. Visit www.davidsonfarmersmarket.org/for details.
BackYard Gardening Programs
Mecklenburg Extension Master Gardeners Present a Series of Backyard Gardening Programs at McDowell Nature Center, 15222 York Road, Charlotte: Presentations will include hands-on demon-strations where appropriate and offer open Q&A sessions. Each program is free and open to the public. The beautiful McDowell Nature Center is the gateway to the spectacular 1108-acre McDowell Nature Preserve. Please register in advance. Thursday, March 17, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, Vegetable Gardening 101: Spring is time to plant what you eat, and Mecklenburg Extension Master Gardeners Carol Carraux and Don Rosenberg have the scoop on growing your own food. Come learn the basics of home vegetable gardening; what to plant and when; and good, easy problem-solving and maintenance practices. Thursday, April 21, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, Easy Techniques to Improve Your Landscape: Mecklenburg Exten-sion Master Gardener Carol Carraux teaches basic landscaping principles to improve your yard visually and environmentally, including steps to reduce lawn size to minimize costs associated with mowing and ongoing chemical treatments.
Thursday, May 19, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, What to Do with All That Clay? Hear an in-depth discussion on enhancing native Piedmont clay soils and other soil conditions in our yards. Extension soil test boxes will be available on request. Thursday, August 18, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, Native Plants: Our Piedmont region is home to a wide variety of native trees and shrubs. Make the best choices for your backyard from a long list of hardy natives that will thrive and enrich your landscape and the environment. In addition to discussing indigenous plants, the problems created by invasive plants, and the over use of alien plants will also be addressed. Thursday, September 15, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, Gardening for Birds & Butterflies: Learn natural, ecologi-cally-friendly techniques for attracting birds and butterflies into your yard, including discussion of specific flowers, shrubs, trees, and feeders that attract these beautiful garden denizens. Thursday, October 20, 2011, 6:00pm, at McDowell Nature Center, Fall & Winter Gardening: Learn how to brighten your garden with plantings in autumn, including plants for winter interest. The growing season slows in late fall and winter, but your garden offers plants, wildlife and tasks that keep you close to nature throughout the winter months into spring.
“Ask a Master Gardener” at these Events and Farmers Markets in Charlotte , Matthews & Davidson, NC Seminars & Workshops
Printed with EMG funds version Feb2011 Please recycle
Learn more about Mecklenburg County gardening and horticultural topics:
Rain or shine, day or night…. www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org
Got Questions? Get ANSWERS! Call the HOTLINE at 704.336.4011.
Or visit our website at: www.mastergardenersmecklenburg.org
