Growing and Cooking with Herbs - Upcoming Classes

In a recent Ga FACES article by  UGA's Stephanie Schupska, "Growing herbs can be grown in summer and dried for use in the winter", horticulturist Bodie Pennisi tells some of the uses she makes of the herbs in her own garden. She says,"I dry my own lemon balm and mint for tea."

Growing your own herbs and using them in the kitchen can be a great way to - as Pennisi explains - "help yourself in not eating too much salt and increasing the flavor in your food.”

UGA Extension in Cobb County's Family and Consumer Sciences program is inviting the public to learn about growing herbs and about the many uses of herbs in the kitchen. The class will be offered at local libraries on four dates:

Lawn and Garden Tips for March

Cobb County Extension staff member Louise Weyer assembles a list each month of tips for keeping your lawn and landscape in good order. As winter nears its end, following Louise's checklist of tasks can help your yard shift successfully to warmer-weather mode and improve the odds of its shining through the spring.

Louise's Tips for Trees and Shrubs for March includes this information:

• Prune roses, camellias, crape myrtles, late-flowering clematis, and butterfly bush.
• Delay pruning of early-blooming shrubs, such as forsythia, quince, and weigela, until after they bloom.
• Prune out dead stems on all shrubs and trees.
• Clean blades of pruning tools with alcohol or a bleach solution (1 part bleach to 9 parts water) to reduce spread of disease.
• Spray multipurpose fungicide on roses when leaves appear, to control black-spot.
• If major renovation of broadleaf evergreens is needed, prune those now.

Upcoming Events and Classes

Getting Ready for the Spring Vegetable Garden

Tuesday, March 10, 7:00-8:00 p.m. Learn the basics of vegetable gardening in time for spring planting. Presented by Amy Whitney, UGA Extension/Cobb County, as part of the ongoing Gardeners Night Out presentation series of the Master Gardener Volunteers of Cobb County, at Mountain View Regional Library, 3320 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta, 30066. Free and open to the public.

Clean Green This Spring: A Lunch & Learn

Thursday, March 12, noon – 1:00 p.m. Free and open to the public. Bring a lunch and learn how to clean green this spring! UGA Extension/Cobb County, second floor, 678 South Cobb Drive, Marietta, GA, 30060. For additional information and to preregister, call 770-528-4070 and ask for Terri, or email uge1067@uga.edu.