Biweekly Update – June 4, 2019
New Announcements:
1. Biweekly Update Submission form – Please use this form for submitting future biweekly update items. Due to staffing limitations through the summer of 2019, submissions sent through email could be missed.
2. Master Gardener College Updates: September 19-22, 2019, Norfolk, Virginia
a) Registration is open! View our registration information page. For more information on booking your accommodations (scroll down to “Accommodation Costs”).
b) Room block information available! Book your room at The Main now!
3. Master Gardener Scholarship for 2019– Deadline for applications August 9th
a. (VMGA) Diane Relf Master Gardener College Scholarship Application Form
b. Scholarship Application Process
c. Scholarship Nomination Guidelines
d. Scholarship Nomination Rules and Guidelines
4. Spotted Lanternfly, an invasive pest insect– found in Winchester, Va- January 2018
a. For information regarding the quarantine please see attached flyer
5. Get to Know Insects Series– at the Greensville/Emporia Extension Office- June 24, 2019
a. Beneficial Insects- Learn about beneficial insects and pollinators including native bees and butterflies. Learn what to do and what to plant to attract them. This class is free.
b. Registration closes 5 business days prior to the class.
Call (434) 348-4223 to sign up.
6. Online Plant ID Classes– from Longwood Gardens and NC State- July 8th- October 31st
a. Reduced fee for Extension Professionals so you can brush up on your plant ID skills and preview the classes to determine if they will be useful as advanced training opportunities for your volunteers.
i. Discount Code for Extension Master Gardener Volunteers & Master Naturalists – MASTER ($98 fee) = $97 discount
ii. Discount Code for Extension Professionals – AGENT ($50 fee) = $145 discount
b. Course instructor, Preston Montague, is a landscape designer, educator and artist. He has a bachelor's degree in horticulture and a master’s degree in landscape architecture, both from NC State. He has experience teaching at NC State, NC A & T, and many botanical gardens in the region.
7. The American Horticultural Society’s National Children & Youth Garden Symposium- University of Wisconsin, Madison in Madison, Wisconsin – July 10th-13th
May Announcements:
1. 2019 Tree and Shrub Identification Series – Stafford, VA – May 2-June 6, 2019
2. 2019 Strengthening your Facilitation Skills Trainings – May 9 – July 18
3. Piedmont Master Gardeners Through the Garden Gate – Charlottesville-Albemarle County – May 11-September 1
4. eXtension Good and Bad bugs webinar series – Feb 1 – Dec 6, 2019
June Announcements:
5. Strategic & Project Planning: Becoming Agents of Change – June 5 – September 11, 2019
6. Celebrate Pollinator Weed with the Capital Naturalist! – Bristow, VA – June 8, 2019
7. NC State Extension Master Gardener College – Raleigh, NC – June 6 – 9, 2019
8. Are you attending International Master Gardener College 2019 in Valley Forge, PA June 17-21? Let VMGA know!
9. Monticello | UVA 23rd Annual Historic Landscape Institute, “Preserving Jefferson’s Gardens and Landscapes” – June 23-28, 2019
a. This one-week course uses Monticello and the University of Virginia as outdoor classrooms to study historic landscape preservation.
b. Preserving Jefferson’s Gardens and Landscapes Flyer
July Announcements:
10. NRV Garden Tour – Blacksburg/Christiansburg, VA – July 6, 2019
a. 9 am until 5 pm
Featuring 7 gardens in the Blacksburg/Christiansburg area
Tickets on sale at local libraries – June 1
11. Wildlife Gardening with the Humane Gardener – Bristow, VA – July 13, 2019
12. Cullowhee Native Plant Conference – Western Carolina University – July 17-20, 2019
October Announcements:
13. Save the Date: Protecting Pollinators in Urban Landscapes – Cincinnati, Ohio – October 7-9, 2019
Other Announcements:
14. Follow the State Office on social media:
● YouTube
15. Resources for fertilization of lawns and for those involved with Healthy Virginia Lawns programming
16. Do you have questions coming in to your Extension Master Gardener program and need to find some answers? Extension Search Resources for EMG Questions
17. Registration now open for online Plant Identification Classes by Longwood Gardens and NC State – Click Here
18. An update from National Initiative for Consumer Horticulture: 2018 accomplishments letter
19. Gardeners’ Survey – AmpleHarvest.org
20. Visit the VCE Lawn and Garden Calendar!
21. Every Kid in a Park Program
c) Information from Chad Proudfoot, 4H: “The program is very simple: every 4th grade student (or home school equivalent) in the United States is entitled to get one Every Kid in a Park pass which lasts through August 31 of the school year.”