Peg’s Picks of Edible Gardening Events, August 2015
1, Saturday, University of Maryland Extension’s Grow It Eat It Open House, 9:00 am to 1:30 pm, Agriculture History Farm Park, 18410 Muncaster Road, Derwood, MD. Free but must register for some classes, check their brochure. http://extension.umd.edu/growit/montgomery-county-vegetable-gardening-classes-and-events
1, Saturday 11:00 am and Sunday August 2, 11:00 am. “Your Edible Garden: Harvesting, Storing, and a New Seed Season”, lecture by Carol Allen. Also, on Saturday, August 15, 11:00 am and Sunday, August 16, 11:00 am, “Cannin’ and Jammin’” with Carol Allen. Free but registration required. Behnke Nurseries, 11300 Baltimore Avenue, Beltsville, MD, (301) 937-1100. http://behnkes.com
8, Saturday, 9:00 to noon, “Saturdays in the Garden: What’s that Weed?” hosted by The Master Gardeners of Prince William County, at the teaching garden at St. Benedict Monastery, 9535 Linton Hall Road, Bristow, VA, free but must register, (703) 792-7747. http://www.mgpw.org
Arlington Central Library hosts the “Garden Talks” series of free presentations every Wednesday evening from 7:00 to 8:00 pm starting mid-March through end of October. The website lists the topics and provides gardening resources for gardeners in the area.1015 N. Quincy Street, Arlington VA; (703) 228-5990. http://www.library.arlingtonva.us/events/garden-talks/
- 5: Vegetables for the Fall
- 12: Composting: Why and How
- 19: Food Preservation: Canning, Drying, and Freezing
- 26: Tours of Central Library Garden
8, Saturday, 2:00 to 3:30 pm, Legumes: Life with Special Roots, lecture by Todd Brethauer, USBG Science Education Volunteer, U.S. Botanic Garden’s Conservatory Classroom, free; must register. U.S. Botanic Garden, 100 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington DC (202) 225-8333. http://www.usbg.gov
25, Tuesday, 7:00 to 8:30 pm, Extending the Harvest: Fall and Winter Crops. Also on Saturday 8/29, 10:30 am to noon, Fairlington Community Center, 3801 S. Stafford Street, Arlington, VA. sponsored by the Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia, free but registration required. Call (703) 228-6414; e-mail mgarlalex@gmail.com. http://www.mgnv.org
The DC Department of Parks and Recreation is offering over 50 free garden workshops from May through September, taught by the leaders of DC’s urban garden movement. Each class is 2 hours long, on Monday or Wednesday evening, and there are various Saturday field trips. Free but must register online. For a full list of classes and locations, check out http://dpr.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/dpr/publication/attachments/SummerGardenWorkshopSeries2015.pdf. For further questions, contact the DPR community garden specialist, Joshua Singer, e-mail: Joshua.singer@dc.gov. Here is a sample of August topics:
- Urban Garden Seed Saving
- Improving Urban Soils with Biosolids
- Cover Crops for Gardens
- Rainwater Harvesting for Backyard Gardens including Rain Barrel Installation Demonstration
