I Won!

What a surprise! I learned last night that two of my entries into the 2009 photography contest of Gwinnett County Master Gardeners won prizes. My Black Widow Spider got 2nd prize in the "wildlife" category and my "almost-open-sunflower" third in the "plants" category. See July 10 and July 21 posts, respectively.

Wow - I've got to take this photography stuff a little more seriously from now on . . . :-)

Rain Garden Authors

Also speaking last Saturday were Helen Kraus (left) and Anne Spafford (right), the authors of "Rain Gardening in the South: Ecologically Designed Gardens for Drought, Deluge, and Everything in Between". Conference M/C Mike Doyle (DeKalb Master Gardener) is in the photograph with them.

Master Gardener Conference

This past week-end's conference, held at the George Busbee International Center for Workplace Development at Gwinnett Technical College in Lawrenceville (GA), included several prominent speakers, including Mike McGrath, the former Editor-in-Chief of Organic Gardening magazine, pictured here with Conference Registration Chair (and Cobb Master Gardener) Pam Bohlander.

Fall 2009 Master Gardener Conference

Not yet officially open, the informal kick-off of the conference has begun! The North Fulton group came to the Busbee Center this afternoon, to set up the luncheon tables. I would not have chosen the black table cloths (this is not a funeral), or made the floral arrangements for the tables 2 and 3 feet high, but my opinion was not solicited, so I am not complaining! The arrangements, of which there are about 20, are beautiful. This is only one of them - very attractive.

Weeds

Weeds, I learned in Master Gardener training, are plants that grow where hey are not wanted. That was the case with this one; it popped up in my lawn and instead of pulling it out and throwing it away, I dug it up, cleaned it up a bit and put it in a small clay pot. Its leaves are a healthy green (they look like mint) and the flowers are a pale, pale blue. I don't think I'm going to form any particular attachment to this plant, but it looks nice enough to keep it until it's finished for the season.