Fluvanna Master Gardeners

Educating the Fluvanna County community to use environmentally sound and sustainable horticulture practices.

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Welcome

If you are looking for gardening and horticultural information we hope you will find it here. We have pages of Frequently Asked Questions, a curated list of links to science-based gardening topics, and our online Help Desk, where you can ask questions of our Master Gardeners.

Our Facebook group is our primary public communication media. We hope you will visit our group and "Like" us to see us in your Facebook feed. You can view our most recent posts here.

Please explore our site and Happy Gardening!

$500 Horticultural Scholarship Available – Applications due April 22, 2022

The Fluvanna Master Gardeners will award a $500 scholarship to a Fluvanna County res-
ident who plans to study horticulture or sustainable landscape management (SLM), at the
post secondary level, within the 2022-2023 academic year. The purpose of this scholarship is to promote the interest of Fluvanna County residents in creating and maintaining a healthy, sustainable environment through the study of horticulture and/or landscape management.

Click HERE to see eligibility information and the application form. Application deadline is April 22, 2022.

Recent Facebook Posts

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Fluvanna VCE Master Gardeners

Fluvanna VCE Master Gardeners

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2 days ago

Further proof, Joanne Flaherty Perry!Positive Effects of Gardening on Mental HealthAnyone who has picked up a trowel and turned over some soil knows that gardening can be good for your mental and physical health. A new paper published by Texas A&M researcher Dr. Charles Hall details all the positive benefits to be had from gardening. From reducing stress and decreasing depression to increasing your self esteem, gardening can make your life better, while also benefiting the ecosystems around you. Read more about his research in the article below! ~kgmArticle: bit.ly/3a0E31o ... See MoreSee Less

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1 day ago

(Terasa) Stokes aster (Stokesia laevis) is a low maintenance native plant that is a source of nectar for pollinating insects such as butterflies and bees. It is named to honor the English physician and botanist Jonathan Stokes who became well known for his work using foxglove (digitalis) to treat heart failure. ... See MoreSee Less

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1 day ago

Have you been looking at your landscaping beds & wondering what you could do to make them look fuller, add more blooms, and create a professional layered look? This webinar from Virginia Cooperative Extension - Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia can help! This informative talk covers sustainable landscape principles, adding plant layers under trees, refreshing foundation plantings and more. One great recommendation is to add "keystone" perennial species from the goldenrod, aster, and sunflower families which are important to support wildlife.View the session here: mgnv.org/mg-virtual-classroom/sl-class-video/well-layered-landscape-2022/Image text: Learn to get a professional landscaping look- Layer low-growing plants with taller plants - Use foundation plants- Choose plants with staggered bloom times- Reduce lawn (if you want to!) & build wide bedsAnd choose plants to support pollinators & wildlife- For example plants in the genrea symphyotrichum, helianthus, and solidago ... See MoreSee Less

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2 days ago

Here is your “wow, I didn’t know that!” Moment for today!🧐Have you ever lifted up a rock and found lots of little "rollie-pollies" living in the moist, dark soil underneath? Those humble pill bugs may be one of the most interesting creatures in your garden!Pill bugs (also called rollie-pollies) and their relative sow bugs (which do not curl up) are more closely related to shrimp and crayfish than insects. They are the only crustaceans that have adapted to living their entire life on land. Sowbugs and pillbugs are scavengers and feed mainly on decaying organic matter and are important to the regeneration of healthy soils. Pill bugs are able to process heavy metals, such as cadmium, removing them from tainted soil. They are very important decomposers in contaminated soils that many other species cannot tolerate. They rarely damage garden plants.The next time you lift a rock and see pill bugs, know that they are garden friends doing important work to help keep our soil healthy! ... See MoreSee Less

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2 days ago

Now that is one pretty rain garden!Did you know that pollutants carried by rainwater runoff account for 70% of all water pollution (according to US EPA estimates)? Rain gardens can slow down runoff long enough to filter it before it moves on. The plants, soil, and the microorganisms in a rain garden's soil act as a filter to clean or break down pollutants. A rain garden is a natural or man-made planted shallow depression that temporarily holds runoff from impervious areas until it evaporates, is absorbed by the plants, or infiltrates into the ground. Think “puddle with plants.” The runoff can then flow out of the rain garden into another a grass swale, a buffer, or into a nearby storm drain, stream, stormwater pond, or other body of water. It can infiltrate into the soil, evaporate back into the atmosphere, or the plants can absorb and use it. Water is meant to be held temporarily (two to four days), so it is filtered and gone before the next rainfall and so mosquitos don’t breed. Sediment is filtered when it is trapped by the plants and settles to the bottom of the garden.To learn more about rain gardens: www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/spes/spes-13/SPES-13.pdfThe Virginia Department of Forestry also has a technical guide to rain gardens here: dof.virginia.gov/urban-community-forestry/urban-forestry-homeowner-assistance/rain-gardens/And here is a separate publication with plant recommendations: www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-043/426-043.htmlPictured: Rain garden in the High Point neighborhood in Seattle, WA, retain stormwater runoff, which can help reduce peak flooding. Photo credit: US EPA Clarion Associates ... See MoreSee Less

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Horticultural Help Desk

The Fluvanna Master Gardeners Horticultural Help Desk at the Fluvanna Public Library Opens April 5th!

The Help Desk is staffed from 2 to 5pm every Tuesday until October. Come visit us to chat about all things horticultural. We're here to answer your gardening questions.

You can also get help by contacting us here or through the Help Desk tab at the top of any of our web-pages and completing the Contact Us form. 

You can also call the Fluvanna Virginia Cooperative Education office in Fork Union at 434-591-1950 and ask the staff to convey your message to us.

Bring us your gardening questions!

 Special note: If you wish to send a plant or insect sample to the VT Plant Clinic - PLEASE contact us FIRST for instructions on how to do this correctly or the Clinic may not be able to process your sample. Click on our Help Desk page for instructions for submitting plant samples.


Additional Announcements

Coming Events

  • 24 May 2022 2:00 PM
    Horticultural Help Desk
  • 31 May 2022 2:00 PM
    Horticultural Help Desk
  • 07 Jun 2022 2:00 PM
    Horticultural Help Desk
  • 14 Jun 2022 2:00 PM
    Horticultural Help Desk
  • 21 Jun 2022 2:00 PM
    Horticultural Help Desk

Master Gardeners in Action

FMG-people
Master-Gardeners

How The Master Gardener Program Works

Purpose

Extension Master Gardeners are trained volunteers that educate and train the public in the latest gardening information and techniques. These volunteers run plant clinics; answer phone requests for horticultural information; establish and maintain demonstration gardens; work with people who have disabilities, youth, the elderly, and other special groups in the community; design and implement community involvement projects; and much more!

Activities:

  • Provide guidance on sustainable landscapes.
  • Conduct plant clinics.
  • Oversee teaching and demonstration gardens.
  • Staff the VCE Master Gardener Help Desk.
  • Run annual spring educational seminars.
  • And more!

Fluvanna Master Gardeners Are Busy In The County

Fluvanna Master Gardeners Activities

Public Events

We host many public events around the county. Click the link below to find out where we will be next.

Find An Event

Contact The Help Desk

Contact our Help Desk for any of your problems or questions.

Contact Us

Read Details Of Our Many Projects

The Fluvanna MGs have a wide variety of projects that will interest you.

Find Out More

Our Mission

We are a local chapter of the Virginia Master Gardeners Association.

Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners (VCE-MGs) are volunteers working in partnership with the Virginia Cooperative Extension to encourage and promote environmentally sound horticulture practices in the community through sustainable landscape management. VCE-MGs play a vital role in educating and reaching out to their local community. Each Master Gardener contributes at least 20 service hours per year in addition to completing 8 hours of continuing education.

Master Gardeners help the Extension Service solve gardening problems and teach environmentally sound practices by:

  • Working in information booths at community events and fairs
  • Maintaining demonstration gardens
  • Answering garden questions at plant clinics
  • Teaching horticulture to beginning gardeners and youth
  • Using special talents, such as writing and photography, to benefit the program.

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