Tag: gardening
Students create self-watering buckets for growing plants
You don’t need a yard to grow vegetables. A simple self-watering bucket can turn an apartment balcony or other small space into a garden. Hands On Harvests is collaborating with Braddock Elementary School in Annandale to provide dozens of containers for families who don’t have access to land. Joyce Matthews, a teacher at Braddock and … Continued
The community celebrates Earth Day at Annandale’s Garnett Park
Dozens of representatives of public agencies and nonprofits shared information about their programs and services at the Earth Day celebration on April 27 at the Eileen Garnett Civic Space in Annandale. Volunteers with Hands On Harvests planted vegetables at the demonstration garden in the park, located at 7200 Columbia Pike, between the ACCA Child Development … Continued
White Gardens show signs of neglect
Over a year ago, the Fairfax County Park Authority dropped plans for a Resident Curator to maintain the John C. and Margaret K. White Gardens and agreed to preserve and enhance the park’s natural and horticultural resources. The White Gardens are a hidden oasis in the midst of the Falls Church area of Mason District. … Continued
Experts offer gardening tips
Master Gardeners are presenting free vegetable gardening tips this Saturday morning at eight community gardens across Fairfax County. The gardening experts will be at Pine Ridge Park, 3401 Woodburn Road in Annandale, and Hogge Park, 3139 Glen Carlyn Road, Bailey’s Crossroads. Both sessions are 9 a.m.-11 a.m. on April 13. Master Gardeners will distribute soil … Continued
Learn how climate change is affecting gardening
Hands On Harvests, the nonprofit organization that operates the new garden in the Eileen Garnett Civic Space on Columbia Pike in Annandale, is hosting three online gardening education programs. The first webinar, on Feb. 13, 7 p.m., is on gardening in a changing climate. Sara Via, a professor and climate extension specialist at the University … Continued
Students are working on robotic gardening
Students at Annandale and Falls Church high schools are learning how to use FarmBots to automate gardening. FarmBots are robots that can be programmed to plant seeds, water plants, pull weeds, and harvest the produce. It slides back and forth on a specially constructed raised garden bed. Hands On Harvests The FarmBot program is a … Continued
Park Authority drops plans for a resident curator at the White Gardens
The Fairfax County Park Authority dropped plans to install a resident curator in the house at the John C. and Margaret K. White Gardens, park officials announced at a virtual public meeting on Feb. 27. Instead, the house will be torn down, and the horticultural treasures and meadow will be restored and maintained as a … Continued
Public meeting to address the White Gardens resident curator program
The Fairfax County Park Authority invites the community to a virtual meeting Monday, Feb. 27, at 7 p.m., on the future of the Resident Curator program for the John C. and Margaret K. White Horticultural Park. The 13-acre park, at 6711 Princess Anne Lane, in the Falls Church area of Mason District, includes a house, … Continued
Garden plots available for rent at Hogge Park in Bailey’s Crossroads
Garden plots are now available for rental at the newly renovated Boyd A. and Charlotte M. Hogge Park in Bailey’s Crossroads. The park, at 3139 Glen Carlyn Road, has a fenced-in garden with 34 raised 6 by 9-feet garden beds. The plots are available for rental for one season – February through November – for … Continued
Fines take effect for spreading bamboo
The Fairfax County ordinance that prohibits bamboo spreading to neighboring yards takes effect today, Jan. 1, 2023. The Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance last March setting fines for homeowners who let running bamboo spread beyond their property line. The ordinance is enforced on a complaint basis. If a property owner finds bamboo encroached into … Continued
Resident curator program for the White Gardens is on hold
The resident curator application for the White Gardens is on hold, but cannot be considered dead, according to Park Authority officials. The White Gardens are located in the Falls Church area of Mason District. The Fairfax County Park Authority is seeking a “resident curator” to live in Margaret and John White’s former house rent-free while … Continued
Moon gate in the works for Green Spring
A moon gate is coming to Green Spring Gardens. Plans for a new Moon Gate Garden began in 2020 when Green Spring celebrated its 50th anniversary. Moon gates originated in ancient Asian gardens. “Guests who passed through them were symbolically granted an auspicious welcome and good fortune,” The Fairfax County Park Authority explains. “In garden … Continued
Rotary Club honors best landscapes
The Bailey’s Crossroads Rotary Club on June 24 awarded businesses and other facilities with Blooming Best Awards for excellence in landscaping. The winners are: • City Diner — frontage and side landscaping, Route 7 and Rock Spring Avenue. • McDonald’s — entrance, Route 7 and Carlin Springs Road. • Olive Garden and Longhorn Steakhouse — … Continued
Local inventor in national DIY contest
Bailey’s Crossroads inventor Carlos Villamar’s design for a sustainable greenhouse is in the running for a national competition hosted by Make magazine. Villamar has moved up to second place in his group in the DIY Hero contest. The public can vote for him here. Voting ends 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 14. Group winners will … Continued
More details emerge on the resident curator applicant for the White Gardens
Resident curator applicant Meg Stout revealed more details about her plans for the White Gardens at a March 29 meeting with the evaluation team. If selected as the resident curator, Stout and her husband Bryan would live in and restore the house built by Margaret and John C. (JC) White in 1939. The White Gardens … Continued