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Peg’s Picks: December 2016 Gardening Events in the Washington DC Metro Area

Posted on November 29, 2016 | Leave a comment

The holidays are here: visit public gardens to see winter lights, conservatories to see orchids and poinsettias, and historic estates to see mansions decorated with greens. Register for wreath making workshops, attend indoor gardening lectures, and pop into a few open houses for hours of holiday merry making.

1, Thursday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

2, Friday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

2, Friday, Illuminated London Town, 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Fee and register in advance, dress for weather, also offered on December 9 and 16. Historic London Town and Gardens, 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater, MD.  http://www.historiclondontown.org

2, Friday, Fabulous Wreaths Workshop, 10:00 am to noon and 1:00 to 3:00 pm. Fee and must register. Also offered on Saturday, December 3 and Sunday, December 4. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

3, Saturday, Fabulous Wreaths Workshop, 10:00 am to noon and 1:00 to 3:00 pm. Fee and must register. Also offered on Friday, December 2 and Sunday, December 4. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

3, Saturday, Winter Wreath Workshop, 10:00 am to noon, fee and must register. Green Spring Gardens, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, VA 22312; (703) 642-5173. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/

3, Saturday, Deck the Halls: A family at Christmas, 1:00 to 4:00, Fee and must register. Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

3, Saturday, Fresh Greens Workshop, Merrifield Garden Center, Fair Oaks location, 12101 Lee Highway, Fairfax, VA. 10:00 am, Free. Learn how to make holiday wreaths, garlands and arrangements with fresh flowers, pine, holly, cedar, boxwood, magnolia and adornments. http://www.merrifieldgardencenter.com

3, Saturday, Wreath Workshop, 10:00 to noon, fee and register in advance. Historic London Town and Gardens, 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater, MD. http://www.historiclondontown.org

3, Saturday, Wreath Workshop, Merrifield Garden Center, Gainesville location, 6895 Wellington Road, Manassas, VA. 10:00 am. Fee and must register. http://www.merrifieldgardencenter.com

4, Sunday, Fabulous Wreaths Workshop, 10:00 am to noon and 1:00 to 3:00 pm. Fee and must register. Also offered on Friday, December 2 and Saturday, December 3. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

4, Sunday, Gardeners Holiday Open House, noon to 4:00 pm, free admission and puppet show for kids, advance registration for puppet show recommended, Green Spring Garden, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, VA 22312; (703) 642-5173. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/

6, Tuesday, Lewis Ginter: Garden Fest of Lights, bus trip to Lewis Ginter in Richmond, 2:00 to 10:45 pm. Fee and must register. Green Spring Garden, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, VA 22312; (703) 642-5173. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/

6, Tuesday, Candlight Tour, 6:30 to 7:30 pm, Fee and must register. Also available on December 8, 20, and 21. Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

7, Wednesday, Lecture: Deer Resistant Plants by Ruth Rogers Clausen, 7:00 pm, St. Anne’s Parish Hall, 199 Duke of Gloucester Street, Annapolis, MD. Annapolis Horticultural Society, free and open to the public. http://www.annapolishorticulture.org

7, Wednesday, Tudor Nights: Home for the Holidays, 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Fee and must register. Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

7, Wednesday, Wreath Making Workshop, 11:00 am, Fee and reservation required. Also on December 9 and 12. (Mansion decorated for the holidays). Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

8, Thursday, Candlight Tour, 6:30 to 7:30 pm, Fee and must register. Tudor (also available on December 6, 20 and 21). Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

8, Thursday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

9, Friday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

9, Friday, Wreath Making Workshop, 11:00 am, Fee and reservation required. Also on December 7 and 12. (Mansion decorated for the holidays). Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

9, Friday, Illuminated London Town, 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Fee and register in advance, dress for weather, also offered on December 2 and 16. Historic London Town and Gardens, 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater, MD.  http://www.historiclondontown.org

10, Saturday, Candlelight Tours of Mansion, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Fee but reservation not required. Also on December 11, Sunday, and December 17 & 18. Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

10, Saturday, Wreath Making Workshops: herbal wreaths from 10 to noon and pine cone wreaths from 1:30 to 3:30. Fee and must register. Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

10, Saturday, Natural Holiday Ornaments Workshop, 9:30 to 11:30 am, fee and must register, Green Spring Garden, 4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, VA 22312; (703) 642-5173. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/

10, Saturday, Holiday Open House, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, American Horticultural Society’s River Farm, free. Also from December 1-23 is the Indoor Holiday Display at River Farm, 7931 East Boulevard Drive, Alexandria, VA. http://www.ahs.org

11, Sunday, Candlelight Tours of Mansion, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Fee but reservation not required. Also on December 10, Saturday, and December 17 & 18. Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

11, Sunday, Floral Workshop: Creating a Williamsburg Centerpiece, 2:00 to 3:30, fee and must register. Green Spring Garden, 4603 Green Spring Rd, Alexandria, VA 22312; (703) 642-5173. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/greenspring/

12, Monday, Wreath Making Workshop, 11:00 am, Fee and reservation required. Also on December 7 and 9. (Mansion decorated for the holidays). Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

13, Tuesday, Lecture: The Art of Gardening by William Thomas, executive director and head gardener at Chanticleer Gardens, 7:30 pm. Hosted by the Horticultural Society of Maryland, lecture is free for HSM members, non-members pay fee at door. Vollmer Center Auditorium, Cylburn Arboretum, 4915 Greenspring Avenue, Baltimore, MD (410) 821-5561. http://www.mdhorticulture.org

13, Tuesday, Holly Daze, 7:00 to 9:00 pm, Enjoy the Garden of Lights and then come inside for paired wine and cheese, create festive holiday air plant ornaments to take home. Fee includes refreshments, air plant ornament, and admission to Garden of Lights. See last paragraph for information about Brookside Gardens’ Garden of Lights. Fee and must register. http://www.brooksidegardens.org

13, Tuesday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

14, Wednesday, Festive Fresh Greens, 10:00 to 11:30 am, fee and must register. Also offered on December 15, Thursday. Brookside Gardens, 1800 Glenallan Avenue, Wheaton, MD. http://www.brooksidegardens.org

15, Thursday, Festive Fresh Greens, 10:00 to 11:30 am, fee and must register. Also offered on December 14, Wednesday, Brookside Gardens, 1800 Glenallan Avenue, Wheaton, MD. http://www.brooksidegardens.org

15, Thursday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

16, Friday, Gardener’s Focus: Seasons Greetings, 12:45 to 1:15 pm, free but limited tickets available. Tour of mansion’s holiday décor by staff horticulturist on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays in December. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

16, Friday, Wreath Making Workshop using boxwood, is offered in partnership with the Georgetown Presbyterian Church, 10 to noon and 1:30 to 3:30, fee and must register with Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org Workshop is one block away from Tudor at Georgetown Presbyterian Church, 3115 P Street NW Washington DC

16, Friday, Illuminated London Town, 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Fee and register in advance, dress for weather, also offered on December 2, and 9. Historic London Town and Gardens, 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater, MD. http://www.historiclondontown.org

17, Saturday, Candlelight Tours of Mansion, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Fee but reservation not required. Also on December 10 & 11 and December 18. Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

17, Saturday, Wreath Workshop, mixed greens, 10 to noon and 1:30 to 3:30. Fee and must register. Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

17, Saturday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

18, Sunday, Candlelight Tours of Mansion, 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Fee but reservation not required. Also on December 10 & 11 and December 17. Oatlands Historic House and Gardens, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, VA. http://www.oatlands.org

20, Tuesday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

20, Tuesday, Candlight Tour, 6:30 to 7:30 pm, Fee and must register (also available on December 6, 8, and 21). Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

21, Tuesday, Candlight Tour 6:30 to 7:30 pm, Fee and must register (also available on December 6, 8, and 20). Tudor Place, 1644 31st Street, NW Washington DC. http://www.tudorplace.org

23, Friday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

24, Saturday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

27, Tuesday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

30, Friday, Gardener’s Focus: Bones of the Winter Garden, 11:00 to 11:30 am, free walking tour but limited tickets available. Tour given on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Avenue, NW Washington DC. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

 

And there is more…….

Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens has a new attraction this season in addition to its holiday decorations and events. The contemporary American artist and filmmaker Philip Haas has large sculptures in the garden inspired by the series The Seasons by Guiseppe Arcimboldo (1526-1593). These will be on exhibit through March 31, 2017. Haas’s re-creations transform Arcimboldo’s intriguing works, greatly enlarging the scale, altering the materials, and adding dimensionality to shed a contemporary perspective on the popular paintings.  Arcimboldo, an Italian renaissance painter born in Milan, created the series The Seasons comprising spring, summer, autumn and winter. These portraits depict faces composed of plants associated with each season. Admission fee. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org

U.S. Botanic Garden’s Season’s Greenings: National Parks and Historic Places is open until January 2, 2017. Immerse yourself in the sights, scents, and sounds of the season with wreaths, garland, trees, and thousands of blooms from exotic orchids to a showcase of heirloom and newly developed poinsettia varieties. Throughout the Conservatory, the U.S. Botanic Garden will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service and the 50th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act. In this year’s model train show, the trains will chug around, below, through, and above re-creations of iconic national parks and sites in the National Register of Historic Places. See the Grand Canyon, the Gateway Arch, Old Faithful Inn and Geyser, Mount Vernon, Mount Rushmore, a 7-foot-tall Statue of Liberty, and many more representing 48 different national parks and historic sites, all made from plants and other natural materials. 100 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington DC. Free. http://www.usbg.gov

Winter Walk of Lights at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens is open until January 18, 5:30 to 10:00 pm. Admission fee and dress for weather, tickets are sold online or at door but best to buy online for timed entrance. 9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court, Vienna, VA.  http://www.novaparks.com/parks/meadowlark-botanical-gardens

Garden of Lights at Brookside Gardens is a winter walk-through light display open until January 1, but closed December 24 and 25. Open on Sunday through Thursday 5:30 to 9:00 pm and Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 10:00 pm. Cash at entrance or advance sale tickets. Garden of Lights info line is (301) 962-1453. Brookside Gardens also has a garden railway exhibit and a winter display in their conservatory. 1800 Glenallan Avenue, Wheaton, MD. http://www.brooksidegardens.org

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Master Plan for 2015 Gardening Season

Posted on February 17, 2015 | 5 comments
cilantro seedlings, last spring

cilantro seedlings, last spring

During this past three-day weekend, when I experienced my first “squall” and several inches of snow, I was able to make a dent in my master plan for the 2015 gardening season. We live in a typical Northern Virginia suburban area; we have been in this 50-year old house for 12 years. In the beginning I grew a lot of ornamentals and herbs. Recently, I have been growing more edibles and as the kids grow up and out of the backyard, I am able to carve out more lawn to create new beds for my veggies. This results in a patchwork of small beds and containers, not the traditional long rows of vegetables found in a farm. Thus, my garden plan is complex because I am fitting edibles into a small, but established garden.

The master plan is more like a road map, it gets me started in the spring to where I want to go this year. As the summer heats up, I tend to make detours, slight modifications: buy a plant here, move a plant there. By autumn, I feel like I have traveled an exciting and rewarding journey — I learned a lot, I grew and harvested a lot –and now it is time to create road map II for  the fall/winter seasons.

So in February I create a list, in alphabetical order, of the seeds I have and then I put the seed packets in paper bags, each labeled with a letter of the alphabet. Then I create a chart of when to start the seeds, whether indoors under lights or outdoors, depending on if they are cool or warm season and how long it takes from seed to fruit. I list where I would eventually grow the plants outdoors depending on sunlight, soil moisture, insects/pests/disease, etc. I also allow for succession planting. For example, I want to sow lettuce, spinach, and scallions several times because as we eat them, I want more to be growing. Also, in one area I want to grow peppers when it is warm after the initial sowing of lettuce has bolted.seeds

Right now March looks like this: sowing seeds of eggplant, bulbing fennel, leaf fennel, lovage, and sweet peppers under lights in mid-March. I don’t much care for cole crops (broccoli, cabbage, Brussell sprouts) so I don’t grow those.  I will start snap peas indoors, not under light, but soaking in water overnight, then placing in plastic bags to initiate germination so can be planted outside in cold soil. At the end of March, I will sow seeds of spinach, radish, pak choi, kale, lettuce, and scallions outdoors directly in soil or in containers.

April gets busier: I will sow seeds of cilantro, dill, parsley, alyssum, nigella, and chives outside as our average last frost date is mid-April. I will sow more seeds of kale, lettuce, scallions, and spinach in order to have a continuous harvest.  Indoors, under lights, I will start the warm season tomatoes, melon, and cucumbers. Instead of seed, I will buy plants that do not over winter here like lemon verbena, lemon grass, and pineapple sage.

May of course is the beginning of warm weather and anything goes. It will be warm enough to plant seeds of basil, lemon basil, beans, Swiss chard, marigolds, yellow summer squash, zucchini, and trombetta squash directly outdoors. I will continue to sow the seeds of cool season greens such as kale, lettuce, spinach, scallions again until it gets too hot in July.

This does not mean that these are the only plants or the only edibles in the garden. I already have other plants such as parsley, alpine strawberries, raspberry, blackberry, thyme, rosemary, oregano, goji berry, shallots, lemon balm, hardneck garlic, and mint.

By May I will have started to deviate off course a bit as I will have attended a few plant sales, visited a few nurseries, and traded with my gardening friends. My plans will have altered with new additions but the journey has begun!

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