Last List... for now

Here is the online link to this week's The List: Top Gardening Events for the week ahead on page 39 of today's print edition in the Washington Examiner. You can find the Examiner in the many red street-boxes around town. I saved a screen capture of the listing as a JPG and posted it here at left -- you can click on it to read at 100%.

Notice in the print edition, the only thing showing of my list is the cherry tomato picture I took at last year's Penn Quarter farmer's market. To read the actual list you are instructed to go online. I've copied and pasted it here:

Gardening

1. Washington Gardener Magazine’s Tomato Tasting: Sample the multitude of tomatoes at market and vote on your favorites. Stop by for tomato recipes, growing tips and much more.Details: 10 a.m. to noon Saturday; FreshFarm Market; Ellsworth Drive between Fenton Street and Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring; free, registration is not required; 202-362-8889; http://www.freshfarmmarkets.org/.
2. Native Plant Seminar/Sale: The seminar, in its 17th year, features three dynamic speakers as well as post-seminar workshops. Throughout the day the Native Plant Sale, featuring 13 native nurseries, is open to the general public.Details: 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday; Irvine Nature Center; 11201 Garrison Forest Road, Owings Mills; $70, $60 for members, workshops are $25, sale alone is free; 410-484-2413, ext. 25; http://www.explorenature.org/.
3. Invasive Plant Identification and Removal: Join The Nature Conservancy for a volunteer workday removing invasive plants from the Potomac Gorge, in the national parks just upstream from Georgetown. Children over the age of 5 are welcome.Details: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 23; Potomac Gorge Park; free; 202-225-1116; www.usbg.gov/education/events.
4. Rain Gardens — Learn How to Manage Storm Water Beautifully: Learn the five types of rain gardens that are easiest for homeowners to install. Get tips on how to design, plant and maintain your rain garden. After the talk, participants will have the chance to view the Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council’s demonstration “RainScape” garden on the USBG grounds to check out some beautiful landscape elements that also control storm water runoff. Details: noon to 1 p.m. Friday; U.S Botanic Garden; National Mall, Washington; free, registration is not required; 202-225-8333; http://www.usbg.org/.
5. Tropical Sensations Art Show: The Brookside Gardens Visitors Center exhibitions showcase affordable original works or giclee prints of original works on horticultural themes by area artists.Details: Through Oct. 10; Brookside Gardens; 1800 Glenallan Ave., Wheaton; 301-962-1400; http://www.brooksidegardens.org/.

— http://www.washingtongardener.com/

This will likely be my last list for the Examiner. I was doing it for the past year-and-a-half without direct compensation and just in exchange for the link and credit line -- many times which were missing. I did not feel for the time investment Imade in this that we were really getting much out of it. Instead, I hope to launch in early September our own event listing on our web site or here. Still tinkering as to format, frequency, etc. Right now we do a selection of events in our monthly Washington Gardener Enewsletter where we list a sort of top 10 for the month, but I get several hundred submissions and would like to do something more comprehensive. The Washington Post Home section dropped their garden event listings awhile back too and I say I can't blame them. The listings are a real chore and time-suck. Will see what I can come up with that will be manageable.

Meanwhile, you may have noticed that event #1 in this week's list is our Tomato Tasting. Here is the blurb from FRESHFARM Markets E-News issue of August 20, 2008:

>>SILVER SPRING

Saturdays, 9 am to 1 pm, downtown on Ellsworth Dr.Market is OPEN now through November 15, 2008.

Saturday, August 23: Tomato Tasting at Market!

Kathy Jentz, editor of "Washington Gardener" magazine, is coordinating the tomato tasting at market so you can sample the best of our farmers' tomatoes and vote for your favorites. We'll have tomato recipes and tomato seeds galore! Kathy will also give away copies of the current "Washington Gardener" and Renee Catacalos, editor of "Edible Chesapeake," will distribute the most recent issue which features Kathy's article on tomatoes. For kids, there's a "Mr. Tomato Head" activity table where tomato "toys" or "artwork" can be made and/or eaten. We'll also raffle off a basket full of garden and market goodies. Join us for the first "Purple Cherokee Heirloom Tomato Days of Summer!"

At market this week: Tons of sweet corn, peaches, nectarines, melons, apples and raspberries. Tasty pastries at Praline; breads and more at Atwaters. Chicken at Groff's Content and Evensong; beef at Tomatoes, Etc.. Firefly's goat cheeses pair nicely with summer fruits and vegs. Welsh Gardens and Suttler Post have cut flowers; Four Seasons Nursery has potted plants and herbs. Lots of fresh cut herbs at Evensong. Charlie Koiner has figs--these fly out of the market! Charlie and Lynn will also have their 130+ ribbons (including 4 Grand Champions) from this year's Montgomery County Fair and photos too!<<

So THAT explains where all my first and second prizes ribbons went too. Darn those Koiners and their winning ways! Kidding! Can't wait to see their display. I'll have to pick their brains for prize-winning entry tips.