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.

Pond Management Workshop in Whitfield County

Pond Management Workshop offered through Whitfield County Extension will explain pond biology and proper management techniques.

When:
Tuesday, March 3, 1-4 p.m.

Where:
Cohutta Fish Hatchery
5350 Red Clay Road
Cohutta, GA 30710

Topics will include:
Water quality
Weed ID and control
Liming and fertilization
Population assessment and management
Hatchery tour

Who should attend?:
The program is for pond owners, managers, and others interested in pond management and fishing.
Includes CEU's for Commercial Pesticide Applicators (Category 26 - Aquatic Pest Control).  

Cost:  $5

Registration deadline is Monday, Feb. 23

To register: call 706-278-8207
or mail your contact information and a check made out to Whitfield County Extension to

Brenda Jackson
PO Box 1385
Dalton, GA 30722

Farming in Cobb County?

"The U.S. Agricultural Census of 1850 reports that in Cobb County the county's largest crops were cotton, wheat, corn, oats, rice, and sweet potatoes." (from Mable Property Rural Preservation Plan)

The Mable House planning document linked above also tells that, after the Civil War, chickens became a larger part of agricultural activity in the county, and, after WWI, cotton ranked higher in productivity. By 1935, Cobb County's farms were producing "cotton, corn, hay, truck garden crops, and sweet potatoes." After WWII, agriculture in Cobb County was still an important economic activity, but the amount of land in agricultural production has been in decline, generally, since then.

Today, as area residents consider beginning new agricultural businesses, UGA's consumer horticulturalist Bob Westerfield has some words of advice, offered through an interview published on Georgia FACES: 

“Think small to begin with, unless you have a lot of help and equipment,” he said. “I recommend a quarter- or half-an-acre plot.”

Upcoming Events

The Art of Pruning: Tools, Timing, and Technique

Tuesday, February 10, 7:00-8:00 p.m. Presented by Master Gardener Pam Bohlander, as part of the ongoing Gardeners Night Out presentation series of the Master Gardener Volunteers of Cobb County, at West Cobb Regional Library, 1750 Dennis Kemp Lane NW, Kennesaw, 30152. Free and open to the public.

Thyme to Read Book Club

Friday, February 13, 10:15 -11:30 a.m. Book club sponsored by Cobb County Master Gardeners will meet at the Training Room of the Cobb County Water lab, 662 South Cobb Drive (at the intersection with Atlanta Rd.). This month’s book is Brother Gardeners, by Andrea Wulf. Schedule and information can be found at www.cobbmastergardeners.com. Free and open to the public.

Dahlias!

Friday, February 13, noon-1:00 p.m. Renae Lemon, Cobb Extension, will share information about some of her favorite among those beautiful and varied bloomers, the dahlias, as part of the ongoing Lunch & Learn series of the Master Gardener Volunteers of Cobb County, at the Training Room of the Cobb County Water lab, 662 South Cobb Drive (at the intersection with Atlanta Rd.). Free and open to the public.

Starting Seeds for Transplants for the Vegetable Garden

Tuesday, February 24, 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. Free and open to the public. Learn what you need to know to start your own garden transplants from seeds. Presented by Amy Whitney at UGA Extension/Cobb County, second floor classroom, 678 South Cobb Drive, Marietta, GA, 30060. For additional information and to preregister, call 770-528-4070.

Annual 4-H Plant Sale

Annual fundraiser and source of great new plants, including fruit, shrubs, and perennials, for your yard is ongoing through March 11. For the list of available plants, see our home website or contact our office, at 770-528-4070.

IPM for Vegetable Gardens, UGA Video

UGA, in cooperation with University of Tennessee and Alabama Cooperative Extension, has put together a short video about pest management in the vegetable garden. As we all gear up for spring planting, keeping the ideas of promoting good health in our crops and of relying as much as possible on beneficial insects for pest control can help us in planning productive, beautiful gardens:

Annual 4-H Plant Sale

Flyers for the 4-H Plant Sale are here! 

A great way to keep a landscape fresh and inviting is to update with a few new plants, and Cobb County 4-H is offering a great selection of ornamental and fruiting plants for sun and shade again this year as part of its annual fundraising activities.

Among the new plants offered this year are the "Ruby Slippers" Oakleaf hydrangea, whose foliage turns ruby red in autumn, "Goldmound" Spirea, with color-changing foliage that will liven any landscape, "Rose Creek" Abelia, with evergreen leaves and butterfly-friendly flowers, and the high-yielding "Granny Val" Muscadine grape.

Orders for plants can be made now, continuing until March 11. Plants can be picked up at Jim Miller Park on March 21. For order forms and additional information, visit our office website or call our office at 770-528-4070.

To learn how to care for new fruit plants, you can attend the presentation "Growing and Caring for Fruit Plants," by Cobb County Horticulture Agent Neil Tarver, Monday, March 9, 6:30-8:00 p.m., at the Cobb County Water System training lab, 662 South Cobb Drive, Marietta, GA, 30060. Please preregister for the class by calling 770-528-4070.