Extension Master Gardeners, Cumberland County NC

09/10/2026

Joining Together, by Janice Gardner, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

The real feel temperatures of 66 degrees were much welcomed this Wednesday morning - providing perfect weather for a morning in the garden. Tasks for the day at the Veggie Garden included: refurbishing the small teaching compost bin under the potting bench; re-weeding and thickly mulching parts of the walkway; harvesting; planting seeds; and cleaning beds.

Zack replaced broken boards in the compost bin with bricks separating them into three bins. Afterwards coffee grounds were added to bin one. Zara began work on the grass re-sprouting in the walkway, and was soon joined by new volunteers and FSU students Reagan and Hailey. Roots were pulled and a thicker layer of mulch was added. New volunteer Charles cleared out the mint strangling the Asparagus. Herbs were pruned by Theresa; a new daikon radish bed was prepared and sown by Jesse. Peas were harvested by Janice, while Alicia assisted new volunteers harvesting okra.

We discovered new things today: Nickie’s collard seeds planted last week are peeping; more eggplant fruit and blooms were spotted; Black swallowtail caterpillars are thriving on the fennel as well as a crab spider on zinnia; and a cleanup revealed a lovely honeydew melon. Turmeric ((Curcuma longa) donated from the Daylily Dames has its flowers. The genus name, Curcuma, is Latin, from the Arabic "kurkum or saffron." The species name, longa, is from the Latin, "longus," meaning "long." A member of the ginger family, turmeric was first cultivated as a dye. The bright yellow dye in the rhizomes is frequently used in food coloring, fabrics, and paints. It later became valued as a condiment, being the main ingredient in curry powder. The rhizomes may be boiled, dried, peeled, and then ground to produce the spice. Medically, the rhizomes are used in combination with other plants to treat headaches, wounds, snake bites, stings, sprains, and fractures. These flowers are a sign of maturation of the rhizomes and will be thinned at the end of the season for harvest or transplanting. https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/curcuma-longa/ .

Around a full picnic table, we enjoyed a well-earned break of snacks and fellowship. As was mentioned by one of our volunteers, we never know where the topics of conversation will lead; the same goes for our work in the Veggie Garden – tasks are planned, but the focus is always driven by the needs of the garden. And we join together to meet them.

📸: various photos of garden and volunteers at Cape Fear Botanical Garden submitted by Janice Gardner.

09/03/2026

🚂Please stop by and visit us at the Cumberland County Fair! 🧑‍🌾

🎉Our booth received “Best in Show”!

ℹ️ We will be onsite to answer all your home gardening questions!

📸: Sandra Williams provided the picture of the EMGV booth.
📸: Cumberland County Fair poster

08/28/2026

Old & New, by Janice Gardner, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

This last Wednesday morning in August was calm and quiet as staff and volunteers alike headed to their place. Over in the Veggie Garden we continue to nurture what summer crops survived, while starting to plant the fall ones.

Several regular volunteers arrived early and we welcomed new volunteer Zarah to our group today. Soon we worked on the south end before it heated up too much. We made efforts to save the deer damaged okra plants by transplanting them to the fenced-in patch. Squash was thinned with those plants also being transplanted or shared out. Alicia prepped a bed where broccoli seedlings were set in with the help of Barbara and Zach, while Janice transplanted homegrown lettuce seedlings. Both patches were covered with netting for protection from the deer. The collard and kale seed are not making much yet - Fingers crossed that the current rain forecast will prove true.

Theresa and Zarah worked on the perennial asparagus bed, picking up where volunteers left off last week. We are hoping for a little more mulch to cover the unsightly cardboard in the walkways to get us through the rest of this season. The calmer weather produced lots of visitors, particularly in the General Store. Brenda brought prospective volunteer Amy by to meet us as well.

Today’s harvest consisted of a quart of peas, a few okra pods, basil, and mint. The protected squash has lots of buds forming. The salvia and potted sunflowers seem to be thriving and luring pollinators.

Several squash bugs were spotted and quickly removed from the okra plants; there were also several lady bugs congregating. Our insect expert, Theresa, identified it and hopefully it is the good kind – so many species and varieties of things in the garden! https://pamlico.ces.ncsu.edu/news/lady-beetles-in-the-landscape/

We also checked on the status of the Black Swallowtail caterpillars aka parsleyworm Papilio polyxenes and discovered that the dill and other host plant was stripped of its leaves. We first suspected deer damage but there was one lone big feeder whom we are hoping will make it. The following link provides more information about the life cycle of butterflies. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/butterflies-in-your-backyard

Break today consisted of sourdough bread and fig jam made from a local gardener. Conversation covered a wide spectrum of topics where we get to know each other better, share some laughs, and usually includes gardening.

Our shift finished up by watering the new plants; checking on the dipping gourds and pomegranates; packing up the tools; and leaving with high expectations of the things to come. It was another lovely Wednesday at Heritage garden where we worked hard, tended much, and shared - together.

📸: Janice Gardner, photos of volunteers and landscape at Cape Fear Botanical Garden

08/27/2026

❤️

We had such a wonderful turnout for our Bulb to Bloom class! 🌷 A special thank you to Sandy Ritter, Extension Master Gardener, for sharing her expertise and passion for plants with us. We can’t wait to see what beautiful blooms come to life!

08/26/2026

Tuesday Tidbits, by Walter Wood, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

The summer has been so hot this month that the Tuesday team of Bill P. Bob F., Chris S., Wayne M., and me didn't know how to act. After yesterday days rain the temps were cool and early fall like.

Deadfall was not too heavy as we expected. We started off cleaning in the children's and camellia garden. We quickly finished there and went on to clean the reflection, woodland, cypress pond lawn, great lawn, and bluff gardens before it was time to take a break in the action.

We headed into the break area and refreshed ourselves with the cool air, coffee, and doughnuts. It was a great pick me up before we went back out to clean the rest of the garden.

Having had a nice pause we went back out to finish our cleanup for the day. We moved on from cleaning the great lawn to cleaning the pavilion garden. Before leaving there, we filled the trailer and I had to make a run to the refuse pile to dump the debris. I returned and we moved on to clean the heritage garden before time ran out for the day. After that, I put the tools, tractor, and trailer away and left.

Notes for the day:
1.)The reflection garden fountain area looked real nice!
2.)Chris discovered some worms on an azalea in one of the great lawn gardens
3.)Other than that, it was a great day in the garden.

Wednesday's workers, have a good day!

Everyone, have a great evening and I will see you next week.

📸: J. Gardner, photo of some of the Tuesday Volunteers and staff at Cape Fear Botanical Garden

08/24/2026

🐝 TODAY is the LAST DAY to count pollinators! Please remember to record your results at https://gsepc.org/

08/24/2026

Perseverance, by Janice Gardner, Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

The heat of August was in full force this Wednesday morning with temps already in the 80s when we arrived and an expected heat index of 107 degrees. In spite of the impending heat, many of the regular veggie volunteers showed up early to work.

After a quick walkabout the most pressing tasks included moving the Black-eyed Susan pots to the outside fence for support, thinning back the abundant Crocosmia which appears to have become a sort of deer bed; harvesting the ripe field peas; cutting down the spent sunflower stalk, pruning the oregano and basil; and a whole passel of weeding.

We planned to start work on the ‘cooler’ south end and move to the shadier north end as the temps heated up. With many hands, the day’s tasks were quickly completed with time left to pull a lot of aggressive perilla, and cleaning border beds.

We gathered around the picnic table a little earlier in order to cool off and enjoy some home grown muscadine grapes, ground cherries, and may pop aka passion flower (Passiflora incarnate). We caught up with all the happenings of our fellow gardeners before finishing our break.

The heat was very oppressive by the noon hour, but we counted the blessings of the garden: another quart of field peas and leeks were harvested; okra pods are forming; the little melon is growing; the eggplant finally has blooms; a slew of black swallow tail caterpillars is feeding on the fennel and dill; the transplanted celosia is growing; and the potted sunflower is making a lovely presentations. Despite the challenges of the weather and pests, we follow through to tend the veggie garden each Wednesday – working together to bring it to fruition – reaping the benefits as we go.

📸: Janice Gardner, various pictures of volunteers and Cape Fear Botanical Garden

08/22/2026

🐝 You still have TWO more days to participate in the Great Southeast Pollinator Census! 🦋

Ready to help us preserve pollinators? We've got your official counting sheet right here for you.

The Census ends MONDAY, August 24th! This community science project invites people of all ages to observe and count pollinators in their yards and neighborhoods.

Here's how to participate:

🔍 WATCH: Pick one blooming plant and watch it closely for 15 minutes
🐝 COUNT: Tally every pollinator that lands on the plant
🛜 SUBMIT: Enter your counts online, joining thousands across six states

Learn more and submit your counts: http://ncst.at/2ORg50ZCtYu

08/21/2026

We had a great turnout today for the 2026 Great Southeast Pollinator Census! TWENTY-FOUR Extension Master Gardener Volunteers (EMGV) and guests grabbed a clipboard, a pollinator census sheet, selected a plant, and patiently watched and recorded insects for 15 minutes at the Cumberland County NC - Cooperative Extension Demonstration Garden.

If you didn’t get a chance to count today, you still have time! The Census has been extended an extra TWO days thru Monday, August 24th. You can conduct the count in your own backyard!

Thanks to Sandra Rodgers Williams and EMGVs for coordinating the Census count in Cumberland County and submitting the amazing pictures of insects and Volunteers.

📸: Sandra Williams, EMGV (photos of various insects, volunteers, and their guests)

08/19/2026

🐝 The Great Southeast Pollinator Census is now FRIDAY, August 21 through MONDAY, August 24!

📆 Why are we adding TWO MORE days to the Census so close to the weekend, you may ask? The weather is looking rainy and poor over the two Census dates, so we want to make sure those who do a focused Census activity have opportunities to participate. That being said, it is still good to try to count in less than ideal conditions, as that is still valuable data!

Thank you!!