One of the delights of the summer and fall seasons is the flight of the monarch butterfly. These beautiful insects have evolved with the plants of the milkweed family (Asclepias) that provide the foundation for their larvae (caterpillars) as well as nectar for the adults.
Read MoreGreetings to all our members from your President and Board of Directors, Although we have been in pandemic mode for two years, we have managed to hold two very successful plant sales in 2020 and 2021.
Read MoreMost of us who garden, whether with mostly native Virginia plants or otherwise, are familiar with the invasive Asiatic dayflower, Commelina communis, a weedy annual.
When I began botanizing on behalf of the Northern Neck Native Plant Society with Marie Minor in 2007, she told me that there is a perennial native Virginia dayflower, Commelina virginica, which looks similar but has THREE larger blue petals. In my recollection, I have never found this plant, native to the Northern Neck, on the Northern Neck. I was desirous of this native for my garden!
Read MoreAs a state employee, I appreciated what your administration did several years ago to encourage folks to visit Capitol Square.
That space is a true jewel that can be, and should be, used to show off the Commonwealth to the rest of the country and to the world. It is now used to highlight figures from the state’s history from the Native Americans who lived here for centuries to George Washington to Barbara Johns to leading women. Overlooking it all is the magnificent Capitol designed by Virginia native Thomas Jefferson.
I propose that it now be used to also showcase other things native to Virginia—its plants. Transforming Capitol Square into a Virginia native plant public garden would be a lasting ecological gift your administration could give to Virginia and its citizens.
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In the recent House and Home magazine, there’s an article about native wildflowers of the Northern Neck with a name you might recognize.
http://thehouseandhomemagazine.com/culture/wild-jewels-of-the-northern-neck/
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PDFS for Presentation, Resources and Handouts from Betsy Washington’s Gardening for Beauty, Butterflies and Pollinators Presentation
Read MoreThe Northern Neck Chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society serving the four counties of Virginia’s Northern Neck is offering an academic scholarship for 2021 in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1000) to a deserving high school senior who shows an interest in and an aptitude for furthering their studies at an institution of higher learning.
Read MoreRead all about American Wisteria (W. frutescens), our 2021 Wildflower of the Year on the VNPS Blog.
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The “Plant Northern Neck Natives” campaign, of which Northern Neck Native Plant Society is a partner, is pleased to be collaborating with other campaigns across the state to offer a series of 12 webinars - 6 this spring and 6 this fall. The webinars will guide you through the why and how to turn your home garden into a beautiful retreat for your family and a native habitat for birds and other wildlife.
Read MoreBetsy Washington highly recommends these two upcoming talks, for which some will have already seen earlier promotions, by a couple of our more accomplished native planters. Chris Ludwig is already known personally to some, and has previously given at least one in-person talk to the NNNPS. Please try to make time for one or both; if unavailable at those hours, we’ll try to get the url for their recordings and publicise them when released.
Read MoreDUG IN FARMS
New Format and New Opportunities!
NNNPS has had to change the venue and format of our popular Annual Fall Native Plant Sale this year. We have worked out a wonderful agreement with Carolyn Quinn of Dug In Farms on Fleets Bay Rd, to sell our Native Plants and are offering many new features to making shopping convenient and safe.
This year’s Sale will be held EVERY DAY from Saturday, Sept. 19th, through Saturday Oct 10. Our beautiful Native Plants will be on sale every day during these four weeks so you can shop at your convenience and avoid the crowds. Volunteers will re-stock plants each week to be sure we have fresh supply of plants available during the entire sale.
Knowledgeable Volunteers will be on hand each Saturday morning from 9:00 – 12:00 (Sept. 19, Sept. 26, and Oct. 3 and 10th) to help you pick the perfect native plants for your gardens. We will have our free Guide to Northern Neck Native Plants, and other helpful brochures on Designing Bay Friendly Landscapes with NN natives, and on Deer Resistant and Salt Tolerant plants.
Read MoreThere will be no traditional Native Plant Sale and no Market Days Make-up Sale at Wicomico Parish Church this year. The stars are not aligned this year—masks, gloves, sanitizers, social distancing—plus comparing notes with other like-minded local non-profits, made us come to this conclusion.
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HERE’S A TED MUNNS RECOMMENDATION FOR A VIDEO WORTH WATCHING
Virginia Home Grown visits The Quarry Gardens at Schuyler for the 3rd show of its 20th season
Read MoreFrom the age of 9, I grew up as Marion Louise Coble in Stanley, NC from 1955 through 1968. As a child I explored the woods about my home on North Peterson Street. An intersecting street was East Poplar where I found a woody plant with very large leaves. I even pressed some of the smaller leaves of this tree for my Girl Scout “Tree” merit badge. All of us children in the neighborhood called this plant “Elephant Ears.”
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RESOURCES AND LITERATURE – APRIL 2019
BY BETSY WASHINGTON - BWASH99@VERIZON.NET
For the second year in a row, our chapter conducted a successful plant sale at the St. Stephen’s Strawberry Festival held in Heathsville on May 25. The Festival is one of the largest community events in the Northern Neck.
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The following native plant oriented editorials are from the Richmond Times Dispatch. The first one is by RTD opinions editor, Pamela Stallsmith, and the second one is a response to Pamela by our own NNNPS President, Ted Munns.
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