President’s Letter – September 2025

By MG Linda Barrett

Summer just isn't complete without a visit to the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. A big thank you to Pam Bates, the Fairgrounds Garden group, and all the MGs and interns who interacted with residents at the Fairgrounds Garden.

As we approach the end of summer, please consider volunteering with the Harvest Festival on October 4 or Close Encounters with Agriculture on weekdays throughout October. Beyond that, if you feel called to volunteer your time and talents in support of other programs, we are still seeking MGs/interns interested in a leadership position with the Community Events or Speakers Bureau committees. You can read about these positions on our website. Please contact our Nominations Committee chair, MG Dave Ottalini, if interested, using his contact information in VMS. 

Thank you for all you do to support our mission! 

Linda 

New Workshops Committee

By MG Terri Valenti

MG Dara Ballow-Giffen conducts a workshop.
Photo: MG Robert Toborek

A new Workshops Committee will offer workshops much like those previously provided by Montgomery County Master Gardeners as part of Garden Discovery Day and by our Grow It Eat It Committee from 2011-2024. MG Mary Gallagher will schedule all workshops.

Workshops offer information on specific topics, accompanied by an activity that produces an item participants can take home and use. Over 30 vetted and approved workshops have been offered by MCMG in the past. Topics have included Planting Vegetables or Herbs in Pots, Planting Seeds (Microgreens, Salad Boxes, Natural Seed Stratification/Early Seed Starting), Plant Propagation, Vermicomposting, Mushroom Growing, Tea Garden-Making, Hands-on Designing Your Vegetable Garden, Tomato Grafting, Soil Testing, Hydroponics, and all the Discover Series children’s programs.

If you have a topic for a workshop you would like to give in the future, please contact MG Terri Valenti, Major Events Director, to discuss. If you know of groups who are looking for a workshop, please contact MCMG Coordinator Steve Dubik (sdubik@umd.edu), who will start the approval process. Questions can be sent to MGs Terri Valenti or Mary Gallagher; you can find their contact information in VMS.

Children's Workshops in September

By MG Terri Valenti

MG Cynthia Hernan conducts a children's learning activity.
Photo: MG Robert Toborek

The Workshops Committee, in collaboration with the Derwood Demo Garden team, will offer six children’s workshops at the Demo Garden on September 27 and 28. These workshops are geared toward helping Scouts earn specific badges, but any group of children may take them. Groups can also request May dates for workshops.

The Workshops team has experience working with Scouting America and Girl Scouts and is collaborating with these organizations on the workshops. The team will manage nine programs for grades K-12, each with an appointed program manager. These programs cover six Cub Scout/Boy Scout badges and seven Girl Scout badges, encompassing all badges that align with the Master Gardener mission.

Girl Scouts complete a badge requirement. Photo: MG Sue Kuklewicz

September program offerings will be available to all children regardless of their scout affiliation, and will cover requirements for three Cub Scout/Boy Scout badges and six Girl Scout badges. The workshop format was tested last April with a trial of the Discover Bugs program. The Derwood Demo Garden will be used for tours and activities, and outside classrooms will be set up with project-based stations for each program.

If you know of a group interested in a children’s program in either September or May, please contact MG Mary Gallagher using her contact information in VMS, or use this link.

September 2025 MG Recognitions

By MG Sreemoti Mukerjee Roy

This month we would like to acknowledge the contributions of dedicated volunteers associated with the Bay-Wise Program Committee, the White Oak Youth Garden, and the Therapeutic Horticulture (TH) Program.

Bay-Wise Program

MG Buffy Elliot authored an August The Seed article, ”Have Your Landscape Bay-Wise Certified,” in which she discusses the certification process and encourages other MGs to undergo a Bay-Wise assessment. 

MG Carol Roman and MG Intern Cally Neely are Bay-Wise apprentices who have attended online training. They helped with several Bay-Wise site certifications, where they learned the process of evaluating a landscape and talking with residents about actions they have taken or will take toward a healthy landscape.

White Oak Youth Garden

MGs Rosemary McCabe and Janina Traxler joined the Youth Gardening Program last year as Interns. They volunteer at both the after-school and summer camp programs, and assist with whatever is needed, including weeding, watering, and leading student activities. Recently they pitched in to re-set the shed, as it had been moved.

Therapeutic Horticulture Program

MG Vivienne Burke stepped up to lead the Brooke Grove Retirement Village program, the largest in TH, when it needed a leader. She provides continuity to MCMG’s proud program of 25-plus years.

MG JoAnn Mueller chaired the TH program for 24 years! She continues to lead two programs, Layhill Center Nursing Home and Marian House Assisted Living, with unfaltering energy and dedication.

MGs Eleni Clark and Carol Logan are preparing to take the reins of TH when MGs Lisa Diamond and Wendy Band complete their tenure at the end of 2025. Welcome to this dynamic duo!

And last but not least, MG Sarah Wattenberg bravely agreed to restart the program at Kensington Nursing and Rehabilitation Center when she was still an intern, even before she had served in any TH Program!