Hardening Off Your Seedlings ~ Washington Gardener Enews ~ March 2012

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Washington Gardener Enews ~ March 2012

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

~ Hardening Off Your Seedlings

~ Magazine Excerpt: Heaths and Heathers

~ Mid-Atlantic Garden To-Do List for March-April

~ Reader Contest: Win Six Trillium cuneatum Plants from Sunshine Farm & Gardens

~ Washington Gardener's Recent Blog Post Highlights

~ Spotlights Special: Native Baptisia Shorter Hybrid

~ Top Local Garden Events Calendar for March-April

~ Washington Gardener Magazine Back Issue Sale!

and much more...

Growing Fruit Trees in the Mid-Atlantic

I'll be talking about "Growing Fruit Trees in the Mid-Atlantic" at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, VA, on Saturday, March 17 at 10am. This is an expanded talk from what some of you may have seen at RootingDC or elsewhere.

To sign up, go here or just come a few minutes early and register on-site.

A Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day BURSTING Forth

Wow, what a difference from last year's mid-March Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day in my Zone 7 DC/MD border garden. This year's mild winter and record high temps have sent shock-waves through my garden. It looks more like our usual mid-April right now. It might actually be easier to list what is NOT in bloom. Here are a few pics of what is in bloom now from my ornamental plum tree to my tiny scilla bulbs. Hope Mother Nature leaves me some blooms to carry on for the rest of spring...

Video Wednesday: Philadelphia Flower Show 2012

Experience the recent Philadelphia Flower Show 2012. First, dive in the ocean, then join a beach party, next design your own Hawaiian short, finally stroke an exotic bird.

Washington Home and Garden Show

Washington Gardener Magazine will be at booth #1421 at this weekend's Washington Home and Garden Show. The sho runs Friday, March 9 through Sunday, March 11 at the DC Convention Center.

See me, Kathy Jentz, Washington Gardener Magazine's Editor at 6pm Friday and again 3pm on Saturday for "Urban and Small Space Gardening" talk on the main stage. Whether your yard is 10-acres in the suburbs or a postage-stamp sized in the city, you have the challenge of using your garden space and resources (time, energy, fund) as efficiently as possible. Learn tips and tricks for getting the most out of your space and thinking outside-the-box for creative solutions to common landscape challenges.

Video Wednesday: Seed Packet Decoding

Linna Ferguson of www.foodscaper.com speaks about Seed Package Information at the Washington Gardener Magazine Seed Exchange 2012 in Fairfax County, VA.

Lewis Ginter Orchid Show Winners

Our February 2012 Washington Gardener Magazine Reader Contest winners are:
~ Judy Thomas
~ Madeline Caliendo
~ Judith Daniel
~ Janet Benini

Janet said, "My favorite orchid is the purple paleopsis that I've had for 6 or 7 years. This year it has THREE spikes with a total of 16 blossoms (so far). It's in a window with a plant light above and a humidifier nearby and seems to be very happy!  Thanks for the great work you do. I always look forward to receiving my Washington Gardener."


Judy T. noted, "Naming my favorite orchid is like naming my favorite child, near impossible. But I will share an orchid that I find fascinating, that I have never seen except in photographs: the ugly, Warty Hammer Orchid: it has an impossibly cool pollen-delivery method. I learned about it though John Alcock's An Enthusiasm for Orchids' Sex and Deception in Plant Evolution 2006, Oxford University Press."

They each receive two passes (valued at $44) to Orchids Galore! at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond, VA. Orchids Galore! running from March 10 - April 22. Hundreds of orchids will dazzle the senses with color, fragrance and beauty throughout the Garden’s Conservatory. Discover how orchids traveled from native habitats to become a popular fixture in many homes, including tales of plant explorers who traveled far and wide to collect these enchanting plants. Learn about current issues related to conservation and saving wild orchids threatened with extinction due to habitat loss and over-collection.