Home & Garden News

Plant Sales

London Grove Friends Meeting: is holding its plant sale 7 a.m. to 2p.m. May 9. There are hundreds of flowers, vegetables and herbs plus perennials to beautify your landscape. Experienced gardeners will be available to answer questions. Proceeds benefit local organizations and the American Friends Service Committee. There will also be a bake sale, indoor yard sale and silent auction organized by London Grove Friends Kindergarten. For information: www. londongrovefriends.org. The Nancy Hollywood

Community Garden: at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church will hold its Annual Open House and Plant Sale on May 9from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Plant Sale will feature assorted garden vegetables grown by the Church Farm School Science students next door, organically grown herbs, and assorted perennials. The vegetable varieties have been selected for their disease resistance and productivity for our area. This year, pre-order forms will be offered online at www.stpauls-exton.com. Funds raised will help to cover garden expenses. The community is invited to tour the garden, featuring a Vertical Growing Garden with drip line irrigation, an Idea Garden, a Children’s Garden, a Compost Program, and Bee Program. The Garden is at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 1105 E. Lincoln Highway, Exton. For further information, visit www.stpaulsexton.com or contact Director Steve Choc at 484-364-6481. Philadelphia Unit of the Herb Society of America: 76th Anniversary Herb Sale on Thursday, May 14. It will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. (rain or shine) in the meadow at Historic Yellow Springs. Thousands of herbs, dozens of vegetable seedlings and many rare and unusual scented geraniums and salvias will be offered for sale. In addition, there will be many herbal offerings in the boutique tent including chutneys, jams, mustards, notecards, and homemade baked goods all made by our members. An herbal, gourmet box lunch may be reserved for $15 and should be received by May 11. The box lunches will be served starting at 10:30a.m. (Checks should be made payable to HSA Philadelphia Unit. P.O. Box 273, Chester Springs, PA 19425) Brandywine Conservancy: Wildflower and Native Plant Sale, free admission; Saturday, May 9, and Sunday, May 10, 9:30a.m. - 4:30p.m. Celebrate spring and help sustain the nature around you with wildflowers, native plants and seeds from the Brandywine Conservancy’s annual sale. Conservancy staff and volunteers will be available to answer questions and provide planting and horticultural information. All proceeds from the sale benefit the Conser- Students at The Church Farm School prepare seedlings for the plant sale at the Nancy Hollywood Community Garden on May 9.

vancy’s diverse and beautiful gardens. The Brandywine Concervancy is at 1 Hoffman’s Mill Road, off Route 1 in Chadds Ford. Marshallton United Meth

odist Men: Annual Flower Sale will begin on Friday, May 8and continue through Saturday, May 23. The church is at 1282 W. Strasburg Road, West Chester. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 9am to 5pm. The sale features large hanging baskets, annuals, geraniums, climbing mandevillas, perennials, vegetables, herbs, patio planters, and more. Proceeds will support local, regional, and global outreach. For more information, contact the church office at 610-696-5247.

Gardening programs

Mt. Cuba Center: in Hockessin, Del., has released the Spring - Summer 2015Program Guide, which offers a range of gardening, conservation, art and wellness programs for all levels. For information, visit www. mtcubacenter.org or call 302-239-4244.

Master Gardeners

New Master Gardeners sought: The Penn State Chester County Master Gardeners are currently accepting applications for the class of 2015. Volunteers are needed for staffing the hotline, Speaker’s Bureau, disseminating the latest horticultural information at community events, developing fundraiser campaigns, expanding social media presence, creating publications, and partnering with organizations in developing and promoting the understanding of pollinator gardens, native plants, edible gardening and sustainable gardening practices. Appli- cations will be accepted until May 15. Applicants need not be expert gardeners, but should have some familiarity with gardening. A strong commitment to volunteer service is a must. Class size is limited to 25individuals. Interviews will take place in late June to select the final candidates. Training sessions will take place on Wednesday 6– 9p.m. Aug. 17 through Dec. 9at the Chester County Government Services Building in West Chester. Additionally, there will be two online modules that can be completed any time prior to the end date. The training program covers botany, plant identification, integrated pest management, plant propagation, native plants, soil science, plant diseases, and other subjects. Upon completion of all classes, Master Gardener candidates must pass a comprehensive closed book final exam with a grade of 85percent or better. Within the first year after classroom study, apprentices are required to volunteer 50hours in the community. At the completion of this volunteer service, trainees receive the official Master Gardener certification. For more information and to obtain an application, email exa108@psu.edu with the subject line “2015Master Gardener Training.” Applications may also be accessed at: Facebook.com/Penn State Extension Chester County under DOCS or the Extension website. www. extension.psu.edu.

Gardening hotline

West Chester: Penn State Extension Chester County Master Gardeners gardening hotline is now open to take questions for the season. You can call the Penn State Extension Office at 610696-3500with your garden related questions weekdays from 9a.m. – 4p.m. Chester County Master Gardeners answer questions on a variety of topics including growing vegetables, fruits, ornamentals, native plants, invasive, turf grass, plant identification, pruning, and insect and disease problems. Advice encourages the use of integrated pest management and environmentally sound practices. You can also email your questions to Chestermg@hotmail.com. More information about Penn State Extension Master Gardeners of Chester County may be found at extension.psu.edu/chester/programs/mastergardener.

Area gardens

Scott Arboretum: offers the following programs May 8— National Public Gardens Day, free, 4-6p.m. May 11 — Tree Peony Collection Tour with Mid-Atlantic Peony Society, 5-6:30p.m.; Tremendous Tropicals and Amazing Annuals lecture, 7-8p.m. Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College is located at 500College Ave., Swarthmore. 610-328-8023; www.scottarboretum.org.