Piedmont Master Gardeners

How to Become an Extension Master Gardener
2023-10-12 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | VA
The Piedmont Master Gardeners and Virginia Cooperative Extension will host a free information meeting on how to take part in the 2024 training class for Extension Master Gardeners serving Charlottesville and Albemarle County. For more details, contact Nick Saylor, master gardener program coordinator, at 434-872-4581 or nickjs23@vt.edu. Click here to learn more about the training and how to apply.

Pollinator Gardening with Three Flowerpots
2023-10-03 18:30 - 19:30 | VA
Growing native plants is one of the best ways to promote biodiversity and create healthy habitat for wildlife, including pollinators like the monarch butterfly, now in migration. Even if you live in an apartment or townhome that lacks a garden space, you can still support pollinators by growing native plants on a patio or balcony. At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 3, join us at The Center at Belvedere to learn how you can create a native plant garden with as few as three flowerpots that will attract bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other vital pollinators. Register here for this free program, which is open to all. The Center at Belvedere is at 540 Belvedere Boulevard in Charlottesville.

Garden Basics: Fall Lawn Care and Great Lawn Alternatives
2023-09-16 14:00 - 16:00 | VA
Lawns can help prevent wind and water erosion, control flooding, break down organic chemicals, cool the air, reduce noise, and sequester carbon. But they can also increase water consumption and pollute our air and waterways. Learn a sustainable approach to lawn management that includes
• Using environmentally friendly practices
• Managing weeds and pests while doing no harm to pollinators, birds, and other wildlife
• Reducing your lawn with groundcovers and low-maintenance native plant beds.
Garden Basics is a partnership with the Bread and Roses ministry at Trinity Episcopal Church.

Seed-Saving Workshop at Gordon Avenue Library
2023-08-16 18:00 - 20:00 | VA
The Jefferson-Madison Regional Library will host a workshop led by Piedmont Master Gardeners on how to save seeds from plants in your garden. It will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. August 16 at the Gordon Avenue Library, 1500 Gordon Avenue in Charlottesville. Register here to take part.

PMG Speakers Bureau: Pruning the Right Way at the Right Time
2023-08-01 18:30 - 19:30 | VA
The Center at Belvedere will host a free presentation by a Piedmont Master Gardener and professional arborist on “Pruning the Right Way at the Right Time.” Learn the essentials of when, where, and how to prune trees and shrubs; what tools to use; and how to prune safely and efficiently. Please register here.

Albemarle County Fair: Submit an Entry
2023-07-26 12:00 - 20:00 | VA
Submit Entries: July 26 @ 12:00 pm – 8 pm
Pick up Entries: July 29 after 8pm or Sunday July 30 from 1-3 pm
Calling all home gardeners, brewers, bakers, beekeepers, artists, crafters, viticulturists! Join Extension Master Gardeners and Albemarle/Charlottesville 4-H Youth Development in participating in the Fair by submitting an entry.
The Fair takes place from 4 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, July 27, and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, July 28, and Saturday, July 29, at James Monroe’s Highland, 2050 James Monroe Parkway in Charlottesville. Admission is $5; children under 6 are free.
Enter your best homegrown flowers, vegetables and fruits; or showcase your skill in baking, food preservation, fine arts, photography. The possibilities are endless! Explore the many entry categories for Agriculture and Home Arts and consider entering in more than one category.
Bring your children or grandchildren, show off your talents and learn along the way. You might even take home a blue ribbon! And while you are there, stop by the Piedmont Master Gardeners mobile Help Desk for answers to your gardening questions.
For ideas, tips, detailed schedule and instructions on submitting entries, please visit https://albemarlecountyfair.com. To register an entry, visit https://albemarlecountyfair.com/entry-catalog/. Drop off all entries at the Agriculture and Home Arts Barn, Wednesday, July 26, 12 – 8 p.m. Judging will be done the next day, and entries with ribbons will be displayed throughout the fair. Entries may be picked up after 8 p.m. Saturday, July 29, or Sunday, July 30, 1-3 p.m.

Garden Basics: Why Is My Plant Looking Unhealthy?—A Hands-on Workshop About Diagnosing Plant Problems
2023-07-15 14:00 - 16:00 | VA
Plant problems are often linked to a disease-causing organism or less-than-ideal growing conditions. This free, hands-on workshop will offer a systematic approach to uncovering the cause of a plant’s problems, as well as examples of common plant problems in Virginia.
Participants are encouraged to bring samples from their own gardens for the class to examine and diagnose. The plant sample must include both living and dead material and must be stored in a sealable plastic bag to avoid spreading potential pathogens. PLEASE DO NOT BRING A SAMPLE OF BOXWOOD. This will avoid the possibility of spreading the highly contagious boxwood blight. Participants are also encouraged to bring photos of their plant before the sample is taken to show how widely the disease is distributed in the plant and other plants in the garden. Include the stem and soil surface in the photos.
It will be helpful to have a hand lens or magnifying glass for examining plant material in the class, as well as a smartphone, tablet, or laptop for looking up information on the Internet.
Due to the hands-on nature of this class, space is limited. Registration closes at 5 p.m. July 14 or when the class is full. Garden Basics is a partnership with the Bread and Roses ministry at Trinity Episcopal Church.

National Pollinator Week Garden Tour and Presentation at The Center
2023-06-20 17:30 - 19:30 | VA
The Center at Belvedere and the Piedmont Master Gardeners will celebrate Pollinator Week with an open house and tour of the Center’s rose and pollinator demonstration gardens, followed at 6:30 p.m. by a presentation on “How to Create a Pollinator Paradise in Your Yard.” The program is free and open to all and will provide an overview of the best plants for attracting and supporting pollinators in home landscapes in our region. To register, visit https://thecentercville.org/calendar/event/90394//3/.
Completed in 2022, The Center’s pollinator demonstration garden comprises mostly native perennials and grasses and is designed to provide food, shelter and nesting areas for pollinators throughout the growing season. The Piedmont Master Gardeners reinstalled the demonstration rose garden at The Center when it moved to its current location in 2020. It features a diverse array of rose varieties.

Garden Basics: Simple to Sensational Summer Container Gardens
2023-06-17 14:00 - 16:00 | VA
Learn tips and techniques for planning, creating, and caring for an attractive and healthy container garden. Participants in this free class will learn how to grow ornamentals, pollinator plants, herbs, and vegetables in containers, and will create a flowering summer container garden to take home. Space is limited. Registration will close at 5 p.m. June 16 or when then the class is full. Garden Basics is a partnership with the Bread and Roses ministry at Trinity Episcopal Church.

Garden Basics: Vermicomposting to Enrich Your Soil
2023-05-20 14:00 - 16:00 | VA
Composting with earthworms (vermicomposting) in an enclosed container can turn food waste into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. Vermicomposting is an excellent alternative for people who lack the space for traditional composting. It can be done indoors in a garage, a basement, or under a sink, or outdoors with some protection from the cold. In this free Garden Basics class, you will learn how to set up your own system, how to feed the worms and harvest the castings, and where to go for resources and supplies. Space is limited. Please reserve your place in the class by registering below. Registration closes at 5 p.m. May 19 or when the class is full. Garden Basics is a partnership with the Bread and Roses ministry at Trinity Episcopal Church.

Rain Barrel Workshop at Pen Park
2023-05-11 18:00 - 19:00 | VA
Rain barrels can reduce stormwater runoff from your property while providing water you can use for irrigating landscaped beds, watering potted plants, or outdoor chores like bike or car washing. In collaboration with the City of Charlottesville, the Rivanna Stormwater Education Partnership, the Albemarle County Service Authority, and the James River Association, the Piedmont Master Gardeners will participate in a workshop on how to set up your own rain barrel at 6 p.m. May 11 at Pen Park Shelter 2. Registration opens at 10 a.m. April 24. For the registration fee, you will receive a plastic barrel and a DIY assembly kit.

The Piedmont Master Gardeners' 20th Annual Spring Plant Sale
2023-05-06 10:00 - 14:00 | VA
Join us for our 20th Annual Spring Plant and Green Elephant Sale. The sale offers something for all gardens:
• plants for sun, shade, or something in between
• annuals, perennials, native and pollinator plants
• herbs
• vegetables
• houseplants
• trees
• shrubs
• fruit
New this year: Native plant combination trays for sun and shade.
Click here to see the wide array of other plants available.
Plus, you can drop off tools and knives to have them sharpened.
Cash, credit cards, and checks accepted. Sale happens rain or shine.* Wagons or carts are welcome to load up your plants.
Master Gardeners will offer demonstrations, educational displays, and a Horticultural Help Desk to answer your questions about problem plants, insects and more. Plan to pick up a soil test kit.
The Plant Sale is the primary source of funding for the Piedmont Master Gardeners’ work in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area, including our support for schoolyard gardens, partnerships with community gardens, native plant and pollinator demonstration gardens, free and low-cost classes and lectures, a monthly online newsletter, onsite advice on healthy lawns and landscapes, and gardening opportunities for people with special needs.
Shop with us and support our educational efforts in the community!
* If extreme weather causes a change in schedule, we will announce it on our Facebook page.

Garden Basics: 'Planting Your Annual Garden'
2023-04-15 14:00 - 16:00 | VA
An annual garden adds beauty, color, texture, and diversity into any yard, and it’s easy on the pocketbook. Whether standing alone or supplementing a perennial garden, it can be in sun or shade and can be adapted to fit into almost any spot, large or small. This free Garden Basics class will cover how to choose a site, create a design, select the seeds, prepare the soil, and keep annuals attractive and healthy through the growing season. Garden Basics is a partnership with the Bread and Roses ministry at Trinity Church. The class will include a tour of the Bread and Roses annual beds.

PMG Speakers Bureau at The Center: "Don't Guess; Soil Test!"
2023-04-04 18:30 - 19:30 | VA
At 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 4, The Center at Belvedere will host “Don’t Guess; Soil Test,” a free presentation by soil scientist and Piedmont Master Gardener Linda Blum. Without a soil analysis, adding nutrients and other supplements to your yard or garden can result in overfertilization that harms plants and threatens local waterways, even when organic fertilizers are used. Blum, a faculty member in the University of Virginia’s Environmental Sciences Department, will explain how to have your soil tested, how to interpret the results, and how to follow the recommendations for amending your soil. This program is open to all. The Center is at 540 Belvedere Blvd. in Charlottesville. To register, visit https://thecentercville.org/calendar/event/82752.

Spring Lecture Series—Elisa Meara and Alex Thompson, “Attractive, Functional, Sustainable Solutions to Managing Stormwater Runoff in the Home Yard and Garden”
2023-03-30 19:00 - 20:15 | https://www.piedmontmastergardeners.org/event/spring-lecture-series-elisa-meara-and-alex-thompson-attractive-functional-sustainable-solutions-to-managing-stormwater-runoff-in-the-home-yard-and-garden-2/
In this online presentation, landscape designers Elisa Meara and Alex Thompson will show how smart planting and attractive rain gardens can reduce stormwater runoff and filter pollutants that threaten rivers and streams feeding the Chesapeake Bay. A graduate of London’s Inchbald School of Design, Meara (above) hails from the Dominican Republic and is owner of the Native Plant Landscape Design Corp. in Falls Church. Thompson is a principal designer for the firm. She grew up in the English countryside and holds a master’s degree in landscape design from The George Washington University.

Spring Lecture Series—Elisa Meara and Alex Thompson, “Attractive, Functional, Sustainable Solutions to Managing Stormwater Runoff in the Home Yard and Garden”
2023-03-30 19:00 - 20:15 | https://www.piedmontmastergardeners.org/event/spring-lecture-series-elisa-meara-and-alex-thompson-attractive-functional-sustainable-solutions-to-managing-stormwater-runoff-in-the-home-yard-and-garden/
