Gardening Tools and Books: Perfect Gifts for Gardeners
Stumped on what to give your favorite gardener? Check out these articles on a variety of gifts, recommended over the past few years by Extension Master Gardeners.
SHRUB: Ilex verticillata (Winterberry)
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
This native deciduous holly produces prodigious quantities of red, berry-like fruits, which decorate the plant mid-fall into early spring. Female cultivar ‘Red Sprite’ needs male ‘Jim Dandy’ to make fruit. Purchase at least two females and one male for a “berry” good show.
Between the Rows – A Guide to Vegetable Gardening:
December 2024
Vegetable gardening information and events for December.
GRASS: Schizachyrium scoparium (Little Bluestem)
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
Common through most of the Mid-Atlantic Region, native Little Bluestem gives a brilliant landscape performance. Tight, erect, spiky bluish-green stems and leaves transition to a sizzling fall display of oranges, reds, yellows and purplish-browns topped by fluffy seed heads that persist into winter.
Invasive Plant Video: Leatherleaf Mahonia
The Glencarlyn Library Community Garden coordinators have created a new series of short videos about locally invasive plants and native alternatives. This month's post is on Leatherleaf Mahonia (Mahonia bealei).
TREE: Quercus alba (White Oak)
Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
Often dominant in the canopy, the State Tree of Maryland supports 80 birds/mammals and about 534 Lepidoptera species. The largest recorded US specimen, the 500-year old Wye Oak, was felled in Maryland in 2002. VNPS honored White Oak as Wildflower of the Year in 2011.