Fluvanna Master Gardeners

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

Announcements

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.

Please explore our site and Happy Gardening!

Fluvanna Master Gardeners Facebook Group

7 days ago

Letโ€™s see how many questions this raises.....Poison Hemlock is a common poisonous weed in Virginia! It looks a bit like Queen Anne's lace or wild parsnips but can grow 6-10 feet tall and has stems spotted or streaked with red or purple.Poison Hemlock is an herbaceous biennial flowering plant in the carrot family. It grows 6 to 10 feet in height with a smooth green stem often spotted or streaked with red or purple. The leaves are finely divided and lacy, up to 20 inches long by 16 inches wide. It has white flowers that grow in small erect clusters. Each flower develops into a green, deeply ridged fruit that contains several seeds. All parts of this plant have an unpleasant odor. While Poison Hemlock is usually biennial, in favorable locations it may be perennial.Where it may be found:Poison Hemlock is a non-native that is very common in Virginia and across the United States. It grows along fence lines, ditches, wet roadsides and meadows.What part(s) of the plant are toxicAll parts of Poison Hemlock are extremely poisonous, emit a foul odor and contain the toxin coniine what acts exactly like nicotine. The juice can cause severe skin irritation. Often, internal poisoning occurs after the victim confuses the Hemlock root with Wild Parsnips, the Hemlock leaves with Parsley, or the Hemlock seed with Anise.More info on all poisonous plants in Virginia: https://resources.ext.vt.edu/contentdetail?contentid=1405More info on poison hemlock: https://extension.psu.edu/poison-hemlock ... See MoreSee Less

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1 week ago

And itโ€™s Virginia Native Plant Society for the win! (Regarding my question about propagation of this fabulous honeysuckle) ... See MoreSee Less

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1 week ago

When something has been around this long, maybe we shouldnโ€™t fight it!! ... See MoreSee Less

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1 week ago

I have a question regarding our glorious native coral honeysuckle. Can it be propagated by cuttings? Extra credit for hints or tips... ๐Ÿ˜Š ... See MoreSee Less
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2 weeks ago

Found my plant was knocked off my deck this morning and eaten to pieces. I saw squirrels attacking it the other day and devouring portions. Could squirrels knock it off my deck? This was a heavy pot! ... See MoreSee Less

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2 weeks ago

Yea for compost!! ... See MoreSee Less

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2 weeks ago

Royal paulownia or princess tree is flowering right now! Its showy purple flowers appear before leaf-out making this invasive tree easy to identify. One large tree may produce 20 million seeds per year. Identify now and plan to control this tree June - February. Photo credit: Leslie J. Hehrhoff, University of Conn, bugwood.orgLearn more about Paulownia tomentosa. http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a888 ... See MoreSee Less

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2 weeks ago

YupIf you don't have space (or time!!) to plant a whole garden, you can still grow a tomato plant in a container!! Container gardening can be a low-cost way to get started gardening--all you need is a 5 gallon bucket, a bag of potting soil, a tall stick/stake, and a plant.If you use a bucket, or another container without drainage holes, make sure to add plenty of holes to the bottom before planting.Put your tomato plant somewhere that will get at least 6 hours of light a day and make sure you water it deeply (until the water drains out the bottom). Containers may dry out very quickly in hot weather and need to be watered every day!Tomatoes can take from 55-100 days from seed to harvest!Learn all about container gardening with vegetables here: https://resources.ext.vt.edu/contentdetail?contentid=1064Image text:Container should:1. Be big enough to support plants when they are fully grown2. Hold soil without spilling3. Have adequate drainage4. Never have held products that would be toxic to plants or people.Potting media: Use a fairly lightweight potting mix. Soilless mixes, such as peatlite mix, are generally too light for container vegetable gardening, not offering enough support to plant roots. If the container is also lightweight, a strong wind can blow plants over, resulting in major damage.Planting: Plant container crops at the same time you would if you were planting a regular garden.Watering: Containers can dry out very quickly, especially on a concrete patio in fullsun. Watering daily or even twice daily may be necessary.Light: Plant needs at least sis hours of direct light.Labeled on plant:No need for gravel in bottom of containerRequires at least a 5-gallon container!1 plant per containerSupport the plant as it grows by staking or with a cage. ... See MoreSee Less

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2 weeks ago

You can learn something new every day.๐‡๐จ๐ฐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐€๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐ ๐’๐ฉ๐ซ๐ž๐š๐๐ข๐ง๐  ๐‰๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐–๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐ฌ Plant sales sponsored by Master Gardeners, Churches, and other organizations are often done as fund raisers using donated plant material from volunteers dividing specimens from their home gardens. Unfortunately, donated plant material (even gifts from friends) can easily harbor invasive jumping worms or their eggs and spread them to uninfected areas. The best way to avoid that is to root wash your material before potting it up into fresh potting media, and/or root washing any plant material you get before planting it. >>Researchers are looking into how the worms will affect forests long-term and what can be done to control already established populations, reports PBS Wisconsin. Herrick and his team at the University of Wisconsin plan on connecting gardeners and landscaping professionals so they can share observations about the worm and practices for controlling them.<<Below is a good article about "best practices" for sharing plants from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Extension. ~rce via Iowa Master Gardeners and Smithsonian Magazine๐’๐ฆ๐ข๐ญ๐ก๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐š๐ง ๐Œ๐š๐ ๐š๐ณ๐ข๐ง๐ž ๐€๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ฅ๐ž https://smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/&hellip;๐”๐๐‡ ๐„๐ฑ๐ญ๐ž๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง "Plant Sales and Jumping Worms"https://extension.unh.edu/resource/plant-sales-and-jumping-worms๐ˆ๐จ๐ฐ๐š ๐Œ๐†๐ฌ https://www.facebook.com/iamastergardeners/posts/5705420829475791๐”๐ง๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ˆ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐จ๐ข๐ฌ ๐„๐ฑ๐ญ๐ž๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐งhttps://www.facebook.com/UIExtension/posts/10157677094636793๐๐ซ๐ž๐ฏ๐ข๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ (with links to other posts and resources)https://www.facebook.com/extensionmastergardener/posts/3378540615505808๐Ž๐ซ๐ž๐ ๐จ๐ง ๐’๐ญ๐š๐ญ๐ž ๐”๐ง๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐–๐ž๐›๐ข๐ง๐š๐ซ https://youtu.be/tflbNuegJH0 ... See MoreSee Less

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3 weeks ago

Free webinar about canning. So many of us grow vegetables all summer. Learn proper canning. https://fb.me/e/2cinMmXy1 ... See MoreSee Less

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4 weeks ago

Taking bets?Last frost dates are here! Last frost dates are coming and going across the commonwealth! As they pass it's time to get into summer veggie planting. You can now start to think about transplanting your tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant, as well as sowing summer squash, cucumbers, pumpkins, beans, okra, melons, sweet corn and more!Check the full guide here ๐Ÿ‘‰ https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-312/426-312.htmlRemember that these dates are just estimates and you should monitor your weather forecast as you plan to plant out tender summer veggies!Image text:Last frost dates!Zone 6a: May 5 - May 15 Zone 6b: April 25 - May 5 Zone 7a: April 15 - April 25 Zone 7b: April 5 - April 15 Zone 8a: April 5 - April 15What can you plant as your last frost date passes?Tomatoes (transplant) Peppers (transplant) Eggplant (transplant) WatermelonSummer Squash Sweet CornCucumbers PumpkinsBeansOkra ... See MoreSee Less

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4 weeks ago

Great speakers ... See MoreSee Less

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Horticultural Help Desk

The Fluvanna Master Gardeners Horticultural Help Desk at the Fluvanna Public Library will reopen on Tuesday April 6, 2021!

Weekly Help Desks are every Tuesday from 2 to 5 pm on the covered patio of the Library. Come with your questions on gardens, lawns, trees, and plants. We provide research-based advice, along with handouts, and reference material from Virginia Tech and other research institutions.

During the pandemic we require masks and social distancing. Hand sanitizer will be available.

If you can't make the face to face Help Desk, you can still get help by contacting us by clicking here or 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

Master Gardeners in Action

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.