in this issue........

Trip to Raleigh Arboretum and Plant Delights

Arboretum News

Treasure Tree News

Herb & Plant Festival in Concord, NC

Demo Garden's New Addition

Trip to Raleigh Arboretum and Plant Delights

The Forsyth Master Gardeners will travel to Raleigh on May 22, to visit the J. C. Raulston Arboretum and Plant Delights Nursery, Inc.

Call Linda Dunn at 336-703-2850 to reserve a seat on the tour bus. Cost is $20 per person, and this doesn’t include the cost of lunch. We will be stopping for lunch between the Arboretum and Plant Delights. You will also be able to do some light shopping at Plant Delights.

Arboretum News

Approximately 95 people attended the Arboretum’s Spring Seminar presented by Clemson horticulture specialist and author, Bob Polomski, on Saturday March 1.
Dr. Polomski shared his thoughts on dealing with drought and offered landscape gardening advice as we “get ready for spring”. Participants had their questions answered at a Master Gardener plant Clinic following the program. Thanks to Carol Wiggins and the Education committee for planning this event and to Bob Hooks for helping organizing the publicity. It was great to see a wonderful feature by the Winston-Salem Journal the next day in our Sunday newspaper.

Our youth education program is in full swing at the Arboretum. Many new master gardeners signed up to help out this year. Thank you all!

The greenhouse is bursting at the seams! We have added some new selections of drought-tolerant bedding plants such as cupheas and purple shield. (The Spring Plant Sale is our primary fund raiser; Mary Caponera and Al Birch are co-chairs this year.)  These colorful plants will go on sale during the first two weeks of April, and sales days are Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturday mornings, beginning April 2.  More than 25 volunteer have helped ready the plants! 

Harriet McCarthy came out and taught us how to take care of the worm farm. She cleaned it and supplied it with her wormy friends. Hopefully now, we don’t have to go to the bait store every time we need worms for our children’s programs.

The date for the Friends Gala is May 22.

Connie Little

February 6, 2008 before the planting

March 19, 2008 - Everything's abloom!

"The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size."

---Gertrude S. Wister

Treasure Tree News

Winners of the 2008 Essay Contest are announced!

Congratulations to Mrs. Hunt at Sherwood Forest Elementary and Mrs. Howell at the Arts Based Elementary School for taking the top prizes in the 2008 Treasure Tree Essay contest for fourth graders in Forsyth County.

Mrs. Hunt teaches the student who wrote a marvelous, county winning essay. This young lady and her class will receive a flowering tree to plant on their campus, and the teacher receives $100 for purchases of class supplies. Mrs. Howell takes home a $50 gift certificate for having the most entries in the Contest. All students receive personalized Certificates, and the best writer in each class receives a “I am a Tree-rific Person” T-Shirt for their top essay.

Many thanks to the master gardeners who serve on this dynamic Committee. We are especially appreciative to Pat Johansson, essay contest program chair, and all the essay readers this spring..

Anyone can join the Treasure Tree Committee; the group meets the second Monday of each month at 1:30 pm. Call Toby Bost for more information.

3rd Annual Spring Herb & Plant Festival

April 19th 8am—5pm
Piedmont Farmers Market, Concord, NC

• Horticultural speakers
• Live demos
• Garden art
• Live herbs and perennials
• Knowledgeable speakers.

KATHY SCHLOSSER is new to the festival this year. She is a member of the Herb Society of America, and she serves as chair on the National Herb Garden at the US National Arboretum in Washington, D.C.

Kathy travels throughout North Carolina giving talks on native and endangered plants, habitat plants and herbs. She edited the book The Herb Society of America's Essential Guide to Growing and Cooking with Herbs, which was released in September, 2007.

Open air market with shelter, ample gravel parking and indoor restroom facilities. Handicapped parking is also available

Demo Garden's New Addition

Come and see the new addition to our Demo Garden family. It’s a brand new bouncing baby greenhouse! The stork at Atlas Greenhouses of Alapaha, Ga. delivered it to us. John O’Brien, Tyler Trexlor and Robert Vance helped bring it into the world. It is 10 feet long and 10 feet wide, made of aluminum and steel beams with polycarbonate siding. It has an automated, attached vent system with electric fans for cooling and electric heating system. The little darling will be shared by Tim and Stephen for the use of their different programs as well as other agents as needed.

You’re invited to come and see this new arrival. If you stop in on any Tuesday morning with clear weather you will also get to meet the volunteers who help keep the Demo gardens a real show place of horticultural beauty. Pat White and Robert Rhodes help to manage the volunteers and they are always happy to have new folks join the family of volunteers. Hope to see you there soon.

~Pamela Stewart