Saturday, September 23, 2023

GardenDC Podcast Episode 166: Figs

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we chat with Jon Traunfeld, Program Director of the UMD Home & Garden Information Center, all about growing figs. The plant profile is on Cleome and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out Dr. Allan Armitage**, who returns to share the Last Word on Critters.

**Dr. Allan Armitage is offering GardenDC listeners a discount for free domestic shipping when ordering his books through June 2024 at allanarmitage.net, simply enter the code LASTWORD at checkout.

If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Episode 22: Fruit Trees, Crape Myrtle, and Low-Maintenance Lawn Alternatives
https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2020/08/gardendc-podcast-episode-22-fruit-trees.html

~ GardenDC Episode 25: Growing Paw Paws

~ GardenDC Episode 82: Persimmons


BTW, YOU can become a listener supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! 
See how at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/support.

Show Notes: 01:18 Welcome Jon Traunfeld, Program Director of the UMD Home and Garden Information Center 01:56 Were you born with chlorophyll in your veins and a green thumb? 03:07 Traunfeld’s education background 03:48 Traunfeld’s life and career 05:56 The relationship between USDA to the extension and the agricultural based colleges like University of Maryland 07:16 What is the Master Gardener program? 09:27 What is in Traunfeld’s personal garden like… 10:17 Traunfeld’s Fig tree 12:00 Confirming Fig Varieties 12:54 Fig Propagation 13:53 What is the best time of year to take cuttings? 14:35 What is the best length to cut at? 15:51 Other ways you might inherit a Fig Tree 17:06 Average price of a fig tree 18:10 What's fabulous about figs? 19:34 Figs can be grown in containers and barrels 21:16 Planting Fig trees 24:28 Weather for fig trees 27:11 What winter care do Fig trees need? 28:21 Traunfeld whacked his tree back! 30:36 Best advice for pruning figs 32:58 You only need one fig 34:08 Certain figs need a specialized wasp to pollinate them 34:49 Finding Figs in grocery stores 35:08 How to tell a fig is ripe 37:10 Ways to enjoy Figs 39:28 Traunfeld describes the flavor of Fig 41:00 How to deal with Wasp and Hornets that love ripening fruit 43:33 Best Fig varieties for our region 45:01 Should Little Miss Figgy be fertilized? 46:38 Traunfeld gives his best fig growing advice 47:27 Want to contact Traunfeld? 49:12 Want to start a podcast with Spotify? Learn more from Kathy Jentz 50:31 Plant Profile: Cleome Hassleriana 52:10 What's new in the garden this week: Milkweed pods have burst open! 52:48 Upcoming Events in the Washington DC region 54:53 The Urban Gardener by Kathy Jentz and Teri Speight 55:58 Groundcover Revolution by Kathy Jentz 57:19 The Last Word on Critters with Dr. Allan Armitage

We welcome your questions and comments! You can leave a voice mail message for us at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/message Note that we may use these messages on a future episode.

And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!

Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz
Interview Edit and Show Notes: Christine Folivi

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Tuesday, September 19, 2023

September 2023 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine – The NEW National Botanic Garden , Franklin Trees, Beets, Hammerhead Worms, and much more…

The September 2023 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine is out.

Inside this issue:

·         Franklin Tree (Franklinia alatamaha)

·         Should You Worry About Hammerhead Worms?

·         Attracting the House Finch to Your Garden

·         The NEW National Botanic Garden

·         A New, Improved New England Aster

·         Beech Leaf Disease in Our Region

·         Fall Bulb Planting Timing

·         Great Gardening Books Reviewed

·         The Many Benefits of Cover Crops

·         How to Grow Beets: Best in Fall

·         What Are Soil Pores?

·         and much more…

 

Note that any submissions, event listings, and advertisements for the October 2023 issue are due by October 5.

 

>>  Subscribe to Washington Gardener Magazine today to have the monthly publication sent to your inbox as a PDF several days before it is available online. You can use the PayPal (credit card) online order form here: http://www.washingtongardener.com/index_files/subscribe.htm


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Monday, September 18, 2023

Monday Thoughts: “All my hurts my garden spade can heal.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

“All my hurts my garden spade can heal.” 

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Sunday, September 17, 2023

Meet the New Fall 2023 Intern

This fall semester, we have just one editorial intern. As a first assignment, I asked her to write a short introduction to our readers...


Hi Everyone! My name is Christine Folivi and I am a senior at University of Maryland College Park. This fall at Washington Gardener Magazine I was able to visit the plot at the Fenton Community Garden and I am excited to be growing a few edible plants there as well. I am originally from Lome, Togo, and my dad was a farmer there, but because we came to America when I was two years old, we quickly got accustomed to the city and farming and gardening were not necessary, so this opportunity at the Washington Gardener Magazine means a lot to me and I can’t wait to learn how to garden and learn how to nurture plants. Being around plant life is a good way to understand the environmental impacts of our actions on a day-to-day basis and selflessness. Being a part of Washington Gardener means I get to share information about plants and how to care for them with people who want to learn and understand and have the privilege to be a part of an environmental community. 
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Saturday, September 16, 2023

GardenDC Podcast Episode 165: Gardening and the Weather

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we chat with garden writer Margaret Roach, all about gardening and the weather. The plant profile is on Hardy Banana and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on Growing Container Strawberries by Christy Page at the Food Gardening Network.

If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 92: Universal Gardening Truths with Carol J. Michel

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2022/02/gardendc-podcast-episode-92-universal.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 23: Summer Cocktails with Marianne Willburn

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2020/08/gardendc-podcast-episode-23-summer.html


BTW, YOU can become a listener supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! 
See how at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/support.

Show Notes: 00:01:39 Gardening and weather are interconnected. 00:06:23 Finding solace in gardening. 00:08:22 Disappearing garden columns. 00:13:19 Asian jumping worms and weather. 00:14:15 Climate Change affects gardening practices. 00:17:12 Lengthening the growing calendar and climate. 00:17:40 Climate change impacts gardening practices. 00:20:28 Watering needs and irrigation systems. 00:25:00 Flooding and garden recovery. 00:26:20 Prepare for changing weather conditions. 00:29:23 Protecting plants from frost. 00:33:05 Coping with sudden shade change. 00:33:14 Adapt to changing garden conditions. 00:36:39 Gardens need to be edited. 00:39:16 Snow protection techniques. 00:42:13 Ice storms and their impact. 00:44:10 Climate change affects plant behavior. 00:45:01 Change in timing and phenology. 00:49:19 Native plants and climate change. 00:51:56 Gardening is a continuous experiment. 00:52:27 Spotify for Podcasters is free. 00:53:42 Hardy Banana plant profile. 00:58:10 A Life of Learning in the Garden. 01:03:22 Growing strawberries in containers. 01:04:54 Watch out for berry-stealing critters. 01:06:20 Washington Gardener online presence.

We welcome your questions and comments! You can leave a voice mail message for us at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/message Note that we may use these messages on a future episode.

And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!

Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz
Interview Edit and Show Notes: Christine Folivi

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Friday, September 15, 2023

Fenton Friday: Harvest Share


We got RAIN earlier this week - and lots of it! It is a good thing too as our water mater to fill the garden's cistern from the nearby fire hydrant was damaged and was just recently returned, so I was preparing to have to haul water from home if needed.

We are still harvesting a few handfuls of 'Ferrari' Beans, lots of Zucchini, a few Mexican Sour Gherkins, 'Lunchbox' Peppers and other pepper varieties, some 'Sun Sugar' and 'White Currant' Tomatoes, and a few Blackberries. The picture above is of today's "haul" -- enough to snack on, but not enough to make a meal or feed a family. 

I did leave a couple zucchini for our community garden's monthly harvest for the hungry collection and gave our new intern a few to take home as well.

Speaking of zucchini, I plan to use some of the frozen bags of shredded zucchini from last month to make several zucchini breads this weekend to take to a few garden club events and potlucks. 

In the cutting garden, all the flowers are doing well - but it is the dahlias that I find myself gravitating too and cutting for small vases around the house. I am a little disappointed that they only last a few days. Any tips for keep fresh-cut dahlias going longer indoors?

How is your garden plot growing this week?

 

About Fenton Friday: Every Friday during the growing season, I'll be giving you an update on my community garden plot at the Fenton Street Community Garden just across the street from my house in zone 7 Mid-Atlantic MD/DC border. I'm plot #16. It is a 10 ft x 20 ft space and this is our 12th year in the garden. (It opened in May 2011.)  See past posts about our edible garden by putting "Fenton" into the Search box above (at the top, left on this blog).
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Thursday, September 14, 2023

Discuss "Orchid Muse" with the Washington Gardener Magazine Garden Book Club

UPDATE: Exciting news! Author Erica Hannickel will be joining us for the book discussion.

For our next Garden Book Club selection, we will be discussing: 

Orchid Muse: A History of Obsession in Fifteen Flowers by Erica Hannickel

You can order it new or used at our Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3Yoo42b

or at our Bookshop store: https://bookshop.org/a/79479/9780393867282

In the December 2022 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine, reviewer Jim Dronenburg wrote, "... even if you never intend to have, wear, or grow an orchid, it is a fascinating read." 

Our Fall 2023 club meeting will be on Thursday, November 30 from 6:30-8pm ET via Zoom. 
To join us, register here: 
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAkc-ygrzMiH9z6ekl2ip3wn8PLuyFrG9r9

The Washington Gardener Magazine's Garden Book Club meets quarterly via Zoom and is free and open to all. We will announce the details of each upcoming meeting about two months in advance. Please check back on this blog for schedule updates and announcements.

Want to read ahead? The next book club selections are
  • Winter 2023/24 - American Roots by Nick McCullough, Allison McCullough, and Teresa Woodard
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Monday, September 11, 2023

Monday Thoughts: "Nature writes. Gardeners edit." - Roger Swain

"Nature writes. Gardeners edit." - Roger Swain

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