ADVERTISER OF THE WEEK: Brookside Gardens' Holiday Outdoor Light Exhibit

Brookside Gardens annual walk-thru Garden of Lights display runs Nov 25, 2016 - January 1, 2017.  Step into a magical winter wonderland illuminated with more than one million dazzling colorful lights shaped into hand-crafted, original art forms of flowers, animals and other natural elements. Stroll from garden to garden enjoying twinkling tree forms, fountains, sparkling snowflakes overhead and more.  In addition, visit inside the Conservatory to enjoy the G-Scale model trains winding through a seasonal landscape. Afterward, warm up inside the Visitors Center while you sip hot cocoa and listen to one of the nightly musical performances. 

Admission

$25 per Car/Van (Sunday- Thursday)
$30 per Car/Van (Friday - Saturday)

  Find out more at: http://www.montgomeryparks.org/brookside-gardens-annual-garden-lights-walk-light-exhibit-opens-november-25-2016/

ADVERTISER OF THE WEEK Details
Every Thursday on the Washington Gardener Magazine Facebook page and Yahoo list we feature a current advertiser from our monthly digitall magazine. To advertise with us, contact wgardenermag@aol.com today. 

Win a ‘Splash’ Potted Amaryllis from Gardener’s Supply Company in November 2016 Washington Gardener Magazine Reader Contest

For our November 2016 Washington Gardener Magazine Reader Contest, Washington Gardener is giving away a ‘Splash’ Potted Amaryllis from Gardener’s Supply Company (http://www.gardeners.com).
   Brilliant starbursts of the purest white brighten the centers of the
cherry-red flowers. This stellar beauty’s double blooms resemble lilies, with layers of tapered, curved petals. Amaryllis are easy-to-grow, no-fuss plants that produce magnificent blooms for months of color. This Holland-grown bulb is planted in a 7½" diameter ceramic cachepot.
    Gardener’s Supply was founded in 1983 by a handful of enthusiastic Vermont gardeners. Today, they serve millions of gardeners nationwide, offering everything from seed-starting supplies and garden furniture to flower supports and garden carts. Though their company has grown, they remain passionately committed to providing garden-tested, earth-friendly products that will help their customers have more fun and success in their own home gardens.
   To enter to win the ‘Splash’ Amaryllis, send an email to WashingtonGardener@rcn.com by 5pm on Wednesday, November 30, with “Amaryllis” in the subject line. In the body of the email tell us which was your favorite article in the November 2016 issue and why. Please also include your full name and mailing address. The winner will be announced at our blog and Facebook page on December 1.

UPDATE:

The winner of our November 2016 Washington Gardener Magazine Reader Contest is John Rebstock of Cheverly, MD. John's email was chosen at random from among the submitted entries.

 

Savory Sunday: Deep Fried Green Beans

Guest post by Shelby Smith

  Do you have those last lingering green beans that have survived the early November frost? Well, if you have a lot or just a handfull, try this different recipe then just blanching them or making green bean casserole. Deep Fried Green Beans is fast and doesn’t require a lot of ingredients.

Ingredients

• Green Beans picked fresh from the garden.
• 1 cup of panko bread crumbs.
• ¼ cup of flour.
• 3 tbsp. of water.
• ¼ tsp of salt and pepper.
• 2 cups of oil.

Directions

• Heat oil in pot to medium heat.
• Snap the ends of the beans and discard any that are really dry. (Continue to dry them and use them for seeds for the next season.)
• In a small pot blanch the green beans for 1 to 2 minutes in lightly salted water. Drain and air dry the beans before putting them in the batter.
• In one bowl mix flour, water, salt and pepper to make a thick batter. Batter each bean and dredge each bean into the bread crumbs in a separate bowl.
• Fry the beans in small batches until they are golden brown and drain them on a paper towel. While still hot you can add any additional seasoning if needed.

The green beans should be warm and very crispy. You can serve this with a teriyaki sauce or a Sriracha ranch dip on the side. You can try this with other vegetables as well to use them up at the end of the harvest season.

"Savory Sunday" is a new weekly blog series with seasonal recipes from the garden.

About the Author:

Shelby Smith is a senior double major in multi-platform journalism and film studies at the University of Maryland College Park. She was a sports copy-editor for a campus publication called Unwind Magazine and a writer at The Campus Current newspaper at Anne Arundel Community College. 

Magical Milkweed and much more inside the November 2016 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine

 

The November 2016 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine is now out.

You can view it online at http://issuu.com/washingtongardener/docs/washingtongardenernov2016

Inside this issue:

Magical Milkweed

Nutritious and Delicious Lamb’s Quarter

Your Monthly Garden Tasks To-do List

Meet Yao Afantchao: Ethnic Crop Specialist

Local Gardening Events Calendar

New China Garden at the US National Arboretum

Top Tips for Preventing Diseases in Your Garden

Giving Bulbs a Great Start

Maryland’s State Herbarium at Risk

Latest Boxwood Blight Research

Tips for Planting Bulbs with Kids

Many Mulching Benefits

And much more…

Note that any submissions, event listings, and advertisements for the December 2016 issue are due by December 10.

  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

Video Wednesday: Brookside's Children Garden

Brookside's Children Garden

Sunflowers Still for Bloom Day

It is Garden Blogger's Bloom Day again! On the 15th of each month, we gardeners with blogs share a few bloom photos from our gardens. Here is the Mid-Atlantic USA (USDA zone 7) on the DC-MD border, the past month has continued to be very dry. We have had cold spells, but no real frost/freeze for me yet. It has been so freaking dry that I had to turn back ON my outside water and top off my pond with several hundred gallons of water as it was starting to endanger the pump system.

In my sidewalk median aka the hellstrip, sunflowers are still going strong. I cut one or two every few days to put next to my kitchen sink to enjoy. Each time, I think "this may be the last one" - so far though they just keep on blooming away. 

 What is blooming in YOUR garden today?

Savory Sunday: Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Guest post by Shelby Smith

    Want to save a little money or add a new tradition to the fall holidays? Toasting your own pumpkin seeds is fun, a little messy, and saves ingredients from being wasted. Freshly carved pumpkins for outdoor decorations can all be used for this recipe.

Ingredients

• Pumpkin seeds from any fresh pumpkin.
• Whatever seasoning you like: Salt, Old Bay, or ranch seasoning.
• One sheet tray.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Open and gut any pumpkin. Place the seeds in a spaghetti strainer. Rinse seeds clean with water until all the pumpkin guts are gone.
4. Spread the seeds in an even layer on the baking sheet and season generously with whatever you want. I used salt and Old Bay seasoning.
5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the shell just pops open when you bite them. You can flip the seeds over half-way through the cooking process if you want.
6. Serve when they are still warm or store them for later.

This is a quick snack that could be a nice addition to lunch or as an addition to a trail mix. If you want more butter flavor you can bake the seeds with butter and the seasoning. Pumpkin seeds can be both sweet and savory. For "sweet" seeds, try toasting them with pumpkin pie spices or with cinnamon and sugar. Be sure to set a few un-toasted seeds for planting next year!

"Savory Sunday" is a new weekly blog series with seasonal recipes from the garden.

About the Author:

Shelby Smith is a senior double major in multi-platform journalism and film studies at the University of Maryland College Park. She was a sports copy-editor for a campus publication called Unwind Magazine and a writer at The Campus Current newspaper at Anne Arundel Community College. 

Video Wednesday: A Plot of Their Own

A Plot of Their Own https://youtu.be/LeO9Bfw4vCU via @YouTube
filmed at the Fenton Street Community Garden on a VERY hot day in July...

Savory Sunday: Eggplant Parmesan Sliders

Guest post by Shelby Smith

    One of the easiest and best known recipes for eggplant is Eggplant Parmesan, but let’s put a small spin on it. Pretty much anything can be made into a slider, why not eggplant parmesan slider?

    This is a fun twist on a traditional entrée dish -- making it into a lunch option or a quick meal on the go. Eggplant by itself doesn’t have much taste, but it can be prepared several ways and absorb a lot of flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 medium eggplant.
• ½ cup of flour.
• ½ cup seasoned bread crumbs.
• 2 eggs scrambled.
• 2 tbsp. of Parmesan cheese.
• ¼ tsp. of salt and pepper.
• ½ cup tomato sauce fresh or jar.
• Packet of slider buns.
• ½ cup of oil.

Directions

1. Heat oil to medium high in a pot that is at least 4 inches tall.
2. Turn broiler on to high.
3. In two bowls place your flour and bread crumbs. Mix salt and pepper in the flour. In another bowl pour your scrambled eggs.
4. Slice eggplant into ½ inch thick slices and peel off the skin.
5. In an assembly line completely dread the eggplant slices in flour.
6. Coat the slices in egg then bread crumbs.
7. Fry each slice individually (depending on how wide your pot is) until golden brown.
8. When ready to serve, put each fried slice on a lined baking sheet and layer tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese on each piece. Broil until the cheese is melted.
9. Serve on slider buns with as much sauce or cheese as you want.

You can stack these with as much cheese as possible. The sliders should be crisp on the outside and buttery and soft on the inside. You could try baking the eggplant in the oven to save using too much oil.

You could even use this same recipe with zucchini and squash. Try serving this with light salad, like the arugula tomato and avocado salad I posted last week.

"Savory Sunday" is a new weekly blog series with seasonal recipes from the garden.

About the Author:

Shelby Smith is a senior double major in multi-platform journalism and film studies at the University of Maryland College Park. She was a sports copy-editor for a campus publication called Unwind Magazine and a writer at The Campus Current newspaper at Anne Arundel Community College. 

2017 Garden Book Club Picks

Here are the 2017 Garden Book Club Picks:  

Garden Revolution by Larry Weaner - Winter (February)

The Triumph of Seeds by Thor Hanson - Spring (April)

Big Dreams, Small Garden by Marianne Willburn - Summer (July)

Ghost Image by Ellen Crosby (fiction) - Fall (November)

The Washington Gardener Magazine's Garden Book Club is free and open to all. We meet quarterly on a weekday evening near a metro-accessible location in the DC-area. 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.

Here are some more suggested titles that were not picked:

All the President's Gardens by Marta McDowell

Urban Forests by Jill Jones

Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

The Garden Awakening: Designs to Nurture our Land and Ourselves by Mary Reynolds.

The Writer's Garden: How gardens inspired our best-loved authors by Jackie Bennett

The Hidden Life of Trees: What they Feel, How they Communicate by Peter Wohlleben

The Seed Thief by Jacqui L'Ange

The $64 Tomato by William Alexander

The Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner

Snapdragon: You Can Grow That!

Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) are a cool season annual (sometimes a tender perennial) like pansies and violas that bloom in the shoulder seasons (early spring and late fall). They stop blooming through the coldest part of winter, but hold on to their green foliage for us here in the Mid-Atlantic (USDA zone 7).

Snapdragons make excellent container plants and it flowers in a wide range of colors from whites, oranges, and yellows to pinks and purples.

The common name "snapdragon", originates from the flowers' reaction to having their throats squeezed, which causes the "mouth" of the flower to snap open like a dragon's mouth.

Snapdragons are low-care. Just plant them in a sunny spot and make sure they do not entirely dry out. Mulching and snipping off their spent blossoms can help them stay healthy and floriferous*, but is not required.

And, oh yeah, they are deer-resistant! That makes them pretty useful among other cool-season annuals that are practically deer and rabbit candy. So, if you have a bare spot in a bed or container in the cooler gardening months, think about adding snapdragons.

*floriferous = continually bearing lots of flowers

All who are involved with You Can Grow That! (YCGT!) believe that plants and gardening enhance our quality of life. We want people to be successful with what they grow and to become more aware of the many gifts that horticulture brings. Find out more at http://www.youcangrowthat.com/.