Central Maryland Research and Education Center
Summer/Fall 2015
Bay-Wise Master
Gardener Update
To:
From:
Subject:
Date:
Bay-Wise Master Gardeners and MG Coordinators, Sherry Frick; Mike Ensor; Anna
Glenn; Herb Reed; Steve Allgeier; Doris Behnke; Luke Gustafson; Susan Trice;
Ashley D Bodkins; Joyce Browning; Georgia Eacker; Esther Mitchell; Molly
Garrett; Jennifer Horton; Michaela Boley; Annette Cormany; Ginny Rosenkranz;
Alicia Bembenek and Jon Traunfeld
Wanda MacLachlan
Bay-Wise Update
February 2016
Greetings
This is a special year for the Bay-Wise Landscape
Management Program. This fall will mark the 20th
anniversary of the program. On November 6, 1996,
sixteen Master Gardeners completed the first BayWise advanced training in Howard County. How
should we mark the occasion? If you have an idea
for how to celebrate our 20th year of training,
contact me at wtm@umd.edu. This year,
periodically check the Bay-Wise website. There will
be trivia questions pertaining to our Bay-Wise
history.
Certified Landscapes
According to my records, there have been fifteen
new Bay-Wise Master Gardener landscapes
certified as demonstration sites since our last
newsletter. One additional certification is included
in this report since the Master Gardener had her
landscape certified two years prior to becoming a
Bay-Wise Master Gardener. The names of the
proud owners, the counties where they live, and
the dates of certification of these special
landscapes are listed on the following page.
This summer/fall issue covers the last half of 2015
(7/1 through 12/31).
to you for your landscape certifications.
(410) 531-5973  FAX (410) 531-5567  WTM@umd.edu
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT  11975 HOMEWOOD ROAD  ELLICOTT CITY, MARYLAND 21042-1545
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS  U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE COOPERATING
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS
Page 2 of 13
2015 Certified Landscapes Between 7/1 & 12/31/15
(listed by certification date)
First Name
Last Name
County
B-W Training Demo Certification Date
Cheryl
Tritt
Talbot
11/11/2015
11/7/2013
Melanie
Crowder
Calvert
5/5/2014
7/1/2015
Bob
MacFarlane
Queen Anne's
11/11/2015
7/9/2015
Merle
Blair
Calvert
5/5/2014
7/23/2015
Sharon
Sollenberger
Washington
5/29/2015
7/24/2015
Marie
Bikle
Washington
5/29/2015
7/24/2015
Fay
Wastler
Washington
5/29/2015
8/6/2015
Karen
Loerich
Washington
5/29/2015
8/6/2015
Ann
Aldrich
Washington
5/29/2015
8/6/2015
Lynn
Partridge
Talbot
3/11/2011
8/24/2015
Renee
Padmore-Baccus Prince George's
4/3/2014
9/12/2015
Karen
Rita
Cecil
11/16/2013
9/22/2015
Judy
Duffy
Cecil
11/16/2013
9/28/2015
Phyllis
Clements
Baltimore
9/13/2014
11/15/2015
Shane
Brill
Kent
11/11/2015
11/15/2015
Ralph
DeMarco
Talbot
11/11/2015
11/24/2015
Bay-Wise Advanced Trainings
This fall we conducted two Bay-Wise Advanced
Training sessions educating 35 new Bay-Wise
Master Gardeners.
In November, Queen Anne’s and Talbot Counties
co-hosted a training that graduated 12* new BayWise Master Gardeners – and 9 returnees sat in for
an update. Congratulations to Shane Brill from
Kent; Elizabeth Hammond, Deane Horowitz, Gayle
Jayne, Edith Lewis, Denise Malueg, Cindy Riegel,
and Nick Stoer from Queen Anne’s; and Ann Davis,
Ralph DeMarco, Janis Trainor and Cheryl Tritt from
Talbot Counties for completing the advanced
training. We were also happy to see Barbara
Massetti from Dorchester County, Kit Foster,
Margaret Gardener, Deborah Pusey, and Susan
Seth from Queen Anne’s County, and Melinda
Hudson, Carol Ann Meholic, Chris Myles-Tochko,
and Phyllis Rambo from Talbot County returning
for a refresher course.
* one person did not complete the training
Howard County hosted a training which culminated
in mid-November and graduated 21* new BayWise Master Gardeners. Congratulations to
Margaret Collins, and Carolyn Dunmire from
Baltimore; Doris Wilcher from Carroll; Darcy
Bellido de Luna, James Cimaglio, Anne Cottle,
Carolyn Cradler, Melissa Farris, Dick
Hammerschlag, Maria Gisila Hoffman, Penny
Jacobs, Barbara Klein, L. J. Mauceri, Linda Olson,
Sue Polise, Sharon Smith, Chris Toth, Ruth Vriend,
Janice Winter, and Phyllis Yigdall from Howard;
and to Cecilia Pao from Montgomery County, for
completing the advanced training. We expect great
things from you all!
* one person did not complete the training
Page 3 of 13
Upcoming Advanced Trainings
Currently, there are two Bay-Wise advanced
trainings scheduled for this spring. The first is on
Saturdays, March 5th and 12th in Baltimore City and
County and the second is on Saturdays, April 9th
and 23rd in Charles County. Bay-Wise Co-chair,
Dorothy Wells is taking registrations for the
Baltimore training and Administrative Assistant,
Elizabeth Solis-McGarry is taking registrations in
Charles County. For specific dates, sites and times,
visit the Bay-Wise website,
www.extension.umd.edu/baywise and look for the
link in the top right corner.
Also, if you haven’t attended one in a while and
would like a refresher, you are welcome to sit in on
these trainings if space is available. Ask Dorothy or
Elizabeth whether there is room in the class for
you. You don’t have to pay the registration fee but
you must bring your own HomeWork binder
because you won’t receive a new one (unless you
pay the registration fee).
To schedule an advanced training for your county,
assemble a group of at least 20 Master Gardeners
(don’t forget you can work with other counties to
reach your minimum of 20 attendees), select three
training dates and a venue and then contact
Wanda MacLachlan to work out a schedule.
have had your landscapes certified as
demonstration sites (of which 456 are still
maintained as such)!
Since our inception, we have trained a total of
1,250 Master Gardeners as Bay-Wise volunteers
and 368 of you are still actively participating on
your local committees.
News From the Counties:
Anne Arundel
Co-chairs, Jim MacNicholl and Robin Gill, report
that their committee has grown from 35 to 41
members this year. During the last half of 2015,
they have certified 32 landscapes, in addition to 2
non-residential sites (Tawes Gardens, Willow Oak
Herb Farm). They currently have 7 ongoing
consultations that should lead to certifications later
this year. Because they did not submit a narrative
for the first half of the year, this one covers all of
2015. Jim and Robin report that, “The Bay-Wise
Committee started this year’s season with several
presentations in February and March. As part of
our ongoing efforts to work with Galesville to
certify a large percentage of the community;
Cyrena Simons organized a Yardstick Program on
Saturday, March 7th. Despite snow, the Bay-Wise
overview presentation by Mary Yee and Becky
Peterson was well received.
“Saturday, March 14th was the date for the
Davidsonville Green Expo. We had a good
response, despite rainy weather; attendance was
estimated at approximately 300 people. Anne
Biddle along with Brenda Darr, Mary Yee, Jean
Aden and Kay Stringfellow presented information
on proper lawn care.
Bay-Wise Statistics
Thank you to each and every Master Gardener who
has taken the Bay-Wise advanced training. Since
the beginning of the program in 1996, you have
certified a total of 1,583 client landscapes and 186
non-residential landscapes. In addition, 587 of you
“West Annapolis Heritage Day was held on
Saturday, Mar 21. Marietta Schreiber and
Christine Scee set up a table to discuss Bay-Wise
practices with those attending the celebration.
“In February, Pat Mitchell represented Bay-Wise at
the annual State of the Magothy address. – she had
Page 4 of 13
a BW table at the annual meeting of the Magothy
River Civic Association and suggested that local
groups have BW talks.
“Our Bay-Wise committee kicked off the 2015
season with a meeting on March 15th, followed by
training for New Leaders and New Members on
March 23rd. Special thanks go to; Denise Elliott,
Brenda Darr and Mary Yee for organizing and
presenting the training to 14 Bay-Wise members.
“Jim MacNicholl and Pat Mitchell of the Bay-Wise
Committee helped Crofton Village Garden Club
plant a new Pollinator Garden at the Crofton
Library on May 9. Jim worked closely with the club
to design the garden entirely of native plants per
their members' wishes. Last year, the club invited
our team to present two Bay-Wise programs with
nearly half of their membership becoming Bay-Wise
Certified in the following months. They are fully
embracing the principles of bay-friendly gardening
and encouraging their Crofton neighbors to choose
best practices as well.
“Nancy Landers and Denise Elliot were asked to
give a Bay-Wise presentation to the Severna Park
Lions club. The presentation was well received by
the group on July 21st.
“Mary Yee has developed a relationship with the
Crofton Village Garden Club and was again asked
to present to the club in September of this year.
Her presentation on “Bees and the importance of
native plants to sustain them” was well received by
the group.”
Baltimore City
Chair, Lynn Supp, reports that their committee
grew from 8 to 10. They certified 11 client
landscapes and 3 non-residential sites (Filbert
Street Community Garden, Mt. Washington
Elementary/Middle School and Mt. Washington
Arboretum). They also have 3 ongoing
consultations that may lead to certifications later
this year. They taught 87 city residents in 5
different classes about Bay-Wise principles. They
taught an additional 21 maryland residents at the
MD State Fair. Here is Lynn’s report: “Baltimore
City Master Gardeners, chaired by Lynn Supp,
certified 14 properties between July and December
2015. Three were non-residential: Filbert Street
Community Garden in Curtis Bay, Mt. Washington
Arboretum and Mt. Washington Elementary/
Middle School.
“In early August, a short Bay-Wise talk, primarily
focused on the Yardstick, was given to 32 members
of the Butcher's Hill Neighborhood Association.
Prior to the meeting, a tour with the community
association president of a few of the gardens in
that community highlighted several tiny hidden
gems, one already Bay-Wise certified. It was helpful
to see the gardens beforehand to identify some of
the issues the residents dealt with on a regular
basis, like typical storm-water management
problems from being at the top or bottom of the
many hills. This helped focus the short talk that
followed on the residents' specific information
needs. At the end of August, the Bay-Wise
Committee and Baltimore City Weed Warriors
partnered and held a weed pull demo/talk at
another of the city's hidden gems, St. Peter's
Cemetery. This beautiful 22 acre historic cemetery
is located in the heart of the city, just a few blocks
from April's civil unrest. Master Gardeners and
Interns, Weed Warriors, members of the faith
community and the general public learned about
the worst of the invasive species and how to
properly pull and manage them. The English ivy
was tackled first and we plan to return in 2016 with
the new Interns. A delicious picnic, of dishes
contributed by all, was enjoyed afterwards under a
Page 5 of 13
lovely old ash tree (no emerald ash borer evident).
Everyone's favorite desert, a delicious apple
crumble, was made from the apples from trees
planted by the Baltimore Orchard Project. Everyone
was invited to take apples home, like the residents
of the surrounding community, free of charge.
“In September, two Bay-Wise related talks were
given at the Maryland State Fair. One was an
introduction to native plants called, "Going Native".
The other was "Fall Blooming Native Perennials for
Pollinators". Both, though moderately attended,
had enthusiastic audiences. Also in September, a
talk that included a Bay-Wise certification was
given for the Guilford Garden Club. The Bay-Wise
Committee had been chasing this garden club for a
while as, in the past, they had proved rather elusive
to pin down for talks. The property of one of the
garden club members was Bay-Wise certified prior
to the meeting. After the talk and overview of the
Yardstick, members toured the certified garden
with their Yardsticks and saw, first-hand, why the
garden scored so high (64!). This garden has
everything. It has solved multiple storm-water
issues, due to being at the bottom of a huge hill,
with berms, retaining walls, ground covers and rain
gardens. It has a stream, hundreds of natives, a
vegetable garden, two compost piles, bee hives,
chickens, goats and hummingbirds. It is a true living
classroom and was a delightful learning experience
for all.
“In October, two Master Gardeners joined a small
group in Wyman Park's "Dell" to plant 50 swamp
milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) obtained from
Project Milkweed. Several scouts, their parents and
friends of the park learned the proper way to plant,
water and mulch milkweed in this relatively new
rain garden.
“In December, Michael Andorsky (Intern), Betty
Walke (Intern) and Lynn Supp (BW Chair), attended
the first ever Statewide Pollinators Initiative. They
were so inspired that they and several other Master
Gardeners will be starting up a sub-committee of
the Bay-Wise Committee. Our Board thought that
Bay-Wise was the best place to house our Pollinator
Initiative, at least to start. There will be more to
share in 2016, since we're just getting started.
Please let us know how you are incorporating the
Statewide Pollinators Initiative into your Master
Gardener chapters. Lynn and Michael will co-chair
the Pollinator Initiative.
Lynn will step down as Bay-Wise Committee Chair,
but will stay on the committee. The new Bay-Wise
Co-Chairs will be Dorothy Wells and Gail Ritscher.
Gail co-chaired in 2014 and is the undisputed
Queen of the Bay-Wise and Beautiful Garden Tour
and its planning team. Look for an even better
BW&B Garden Tour in 2016!
”All of us on the Bay-Wise Committee and
Pollinator Initiative are looking forward to a 2016
full of rewarding volunteer opportunities that let us
share with others what we've learned, and are still
learning, about the stewardship of our planet.”
Baltimore County
Co-Chairs, Leslie Erickson and Carolyn Vane inform
us that their 20 active committee members have
been busy this year. The committee has certified a
total of 17 landscapes in the past six months. All
were client sites (except one demo site belonging
to a Bay-Wise Master Gardener).
So far this year their team taught Bay-Wise
principles to 736 adults and 200 schoolkids at five
different events. Carolyn and Leslie also inform us:
“A Betula nigra ‘Dura Heat’, River Birch, was
planted in the Bay-Wise area of the Baltimore
County Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden.
The next phase of the expansion of the garden will
focus on Wildlife Habitat.”
Page 6 of 13
Calvert
placement of the plants. The Bay-Wise plans were
accepted by the Park Planning Committee and were
closely followed during the plantings. The ribbon
cutting ceremony in August was attended by
several hundred people including the Governor of
Maryland and other leading political figures.
During the ceremony the Master Gardener Program
was recognized for its contributions to the new
park. A Bay-Wise non-residential certification visit
to the park will be conducted in early spring. Also,
the Calvert MG Garden Smarter workshop series for
2016 includes both spring and fall educational tours
of the park.
“Calvert County Bay-Wise Master Gardeners
responded to the interest in the B-W program
generated from Federated Garden Clubs of
Maryland competition in 2014. The yards of 7
additional members of the Chesapeake Garden
Club were certified in 2015. Three additional yards
maintained by Calvert Garden Club members were
certified. This brings the total for these two clubs
to 24 in the past 2 years. In addition, the
Chesapeake Beach Garden Club, not an affiliate of
the Federated Garden Clubs, expressed interest in
the B-W program late in 2015. A Bay-Wise trained
MG presented the program to the club in
September and distributed Bay-Wise brochures and
Yardsticks. The presentation resulted in one
certification in November 2015 and 2 visits
scheduled for spring of 2016. Additional activity in
the Bay-Wise program was generated from Garden
Smarter workshops, the MG booths at the Green
Expo, North Beach Farmer’s Market and the annual
plant sale.
“A non-residential Bay-Wise certification of the
Chesapeake Beach Fishing Creek Trail was
conducted in October. The certification team
included Bay-Wise trained MGs who participated
over the past 2 years in identifying native plants
and invasive species along the trail and helped
write much of material used in the educational
signage placed by the town. A 26”x 24” sign
proclaiming the certification was prepared for the
Trail by the Calvert Bay-Wise program and
presented to the Mayor of Chesapeake Beach at a
Town Council meeting on November 19th. It is now
located in a high traffic location near the beginning
of the Trail.”
Chair, Dom Raino reports that the Calvert County
committee is 27-strong and has certified 18 sites
since the end of last June. Two are Bay-Wise demo
landscapes, 15 are client sites and there’s one nonresidential site (Town of Chesapeake Beach Fishing
Creek Trail). There are 2 pending certifications, as
well. Dom shares, “Calvert County Bay-Wise Master
Gardeners set two goals for 2014. The first was to
expand the Bay-Wise Committee and the second to
partner with local garden clubs to increase the
percent of club members’ gardens certified as BayWise.
“A team of MGs responded in June to a Bay-Wise
certification request from the Park Planning
Committee of North Beach. The Town had begun to
construct a new park across the street from the
boardwalk on the Chesapeake Bay. A series of BayWise consultation meetings took place to prepare
and present suggested plant lists and annotated
site drawings to the Committee. These documents
detailed the selection of mostly native perennial
plants and shrubs to be used in the Park and the
The Bay-Wise Fishing Creek Trail Certification Team with
Chesapeake Beach Officials
Carroll
Acting Chair, Dick Heiger, has been trying to turn
his chairmanship over to another person for the
Page 7 of 13
past few years. He laments that no one has
accepted his offer yet. As a result, there has been
no reported activity for this year. Let’s hope that
someone will kick start the program again this year.
Cecil
New Chair, Judy Duffy informs us that they’ve
increased their ranks to 17 active committee
members this year. The relatively new committee
has certified two demo and two client landscapes
in the past six months. Judy reports, “The Cecil
County Bay Wise Committee is already planning for
2016 with participation in a number of events this
year including making the Bay Wise Program the
centerpiece of the Master Gardeners exhibit at the
annual county fair. With the addition of 3 new
members of the Master Gardeners class of 2015 the
committee has grown to 17 active members. We
are currently reaching out to Garden Clubs, home
owners associations, watershed associations, etc.
This spring we hope to partner with the Elk and
North East Rivers Watershed Association on a bioretention project in the middle of North East which
should give us high visibility.”
Charles
After years of chairing this committee, Ronda
Goldman is stepping away and has been replaced
by Rose Markham. Ronda has lead her committee
to greatly influence the spread of the Bay-Wise
philosophy throughout Charles County. We thank
her for her service. Co-chairs, Rose Markham and
Janet McGrane inform us that their team of 28
recently certified 1 non-residential landscape
(EatWell Natural Farm, a vegetable garden) during
the last half of the year. Janet and Rose report that
“Bay-Wise Master Gardeners began a Speaker’s
Series in August. “Green Roof Forum and
Conservation Landscaping” was held in August as
advanced training for Master Gardeners Training
was conducted by Rick Lanore of MRW Landscaping
and UME‘s Lyle Almond. Rick Lanore gave a talk on
the logistics costs and maintenance for the green
roof he has at his business. Lyle Almond talked
about Conservation Landscaping, where many of
the principles are similar to Bay-Wise approaches.
Frederick
Chair, Telly Encarnación, reports changes to her
committee also. Beginning 2016, Ellen West is the
new chair supported by Subcommittee chairs: Jann
Rabin, certifications; Suzanne Hill, education; Suzy
Bailey, hedgerow. The Frederick Co. Committee of
51 certified 7 client landscapes (one belonging to a
Master Gardener) and 1 non-residential site
(Frederick News-Post Community Garden).
Additionally, they made 1 consultation visit which
should lead to a certification later this year. They
also reached 64 residents during 4 different
classes. Read below to find out what else the
committee has been doing:
“Seven landscapes and one community garden
were certified as Bay-Wise. One landscape did not
qualify for certification; however, we expect that
the homeowner will make changes and re-apply in
2016. Several of the certified landscapes had
difficult storm-water management issues that the
homeowners were dealing with effectively.
Certification of the Frederick News-Post Community
Gardens, managed by Master Gardener David
Muns, was featured in the local newspaper with a
photo and caption highlighting the Bay-Wise
program. In more than 130 plots, garden
participants primarily use compost made from
plant waste to feed and fertilize the soil; conserve
water; manage pests using organic methods;
protect the soil with straw mulch, cover crops, and
walkways between garden beds; and provide food
and shelter for bees and other beneficial wildlife.
The photo below shows certification team, NewsPost COO Will Randall and Muns. (Frederick NewsPost photo by Bill Green).
Page 8 of 13
392 county residents (including youth) Bay-Wise
principles in 9 classes and public events.
Collage of Frederick County Bay-Wise Master Gardeners at
Frederick News Post Community Garden
“Our committee is posting short stories about
certifications on our Facebook page and also
sending these stories to local media, in an effort to
increase awareness of the Bay-Wise program. In
addition, committee member Mary Riesch wrote an
article about the Frederick County Bay-Wise
program for the local Beekeepers Association
newsletter.”
Harford
Chair, Beatrice Filburn, informs us that their
committee of 25 members certified 9 client
landscapes (5 belonging to Master Gardeners).
They also reached 146 residents (including 79
youth) during the Eden Mill Fall Festival. Beatrice
shares this: “Harford County Bay-Wise Master
Gardeners worked to certify gardens of 9 applicants
from various contact sources around the area. Our
list includes several more applicants which we will
work to certify this spring. We continue to
participate in any scheduled STEM nights at
Harford County schools, demonstrating various MG
resources for students and parents, and including
classroom sessions with the watershed model. We
staffed a Bay-Wise information table at the Eden
Mill Fall Festival distributing information and
teaching best practices.”
Howard
Bay-Wise Master Gardener Chair, Linda Decker
reports that their committee of 50 was pretty busy
the second half of 2015. Although they’ve only
certified one non-residential site, the Ilchester Girl
Scout Camp, in July, they have 15 landscape
consultations pending. They have also taught over
Linda reports, “A number of our Master Gardeners
were featured speakers at the new Howard County
Miller Library. Topics included Chesapeake Bay
Gardening, Trees, Wonderful Trees and Attracting
Bluebirds. We also accepted an invitation from the
Howard County Beekeepers to speak on Gardening
for Pollinators. In a new approach we invited the St
Francis garden club to a presentation on pruning
followed by hands-on training at a local elementary
school rain garden that had become overgrown.
The garden was tidied and the garden club
members received valuable instruction. We may
have even established a relationship between the
school and the garden club that will help with ongoing maintenance at the site.
The premier event for the Howard County Bay-Wise
team is the fall garden tour. In September BayWise Master Gardener Holly McFarland graciously
opened her property to the community for tours.
Over the past two decades Holly has transformed a
once lean suburban plot into a lush garden oasis.
Holly’s yard exemplifies the Bay-Wise maxim
“Better water quality through smarter gardening”
solving problems with water management
effectively and imaginatively. For example,
pathways and retaining walls made use of recycled
materials. The yard, comprised of many different
garden and entertainment areas, gives the
impression of a property much larger than its ½
acre and raised bed vegetable and herb gardens,
rain barrels, composting and tool storage have
been cleverly incorporated into the design.
Selection of plant material reflects the reality of
living in deer country but the combinations and
siting of plants made it a pleasurable yard to
explore. Master Gardeners were on hand to point
out the features of the garden and signage
throughout identified plants and gardening
practices. In addition John McCoy, Storm Water
Manager for Columbia, Maryland, had a station to
provide information on the Columbia Rain Garden
cost share program. A vendor was on hand selling
native plants and we also provided free compost
Page 9 of 13
bins. The garden tour team headed by Pat
Harrington and Cathy Latham included a dozen
volunteers who made the day work. We were
fortunate to have lovely weather and 246 members
of the community toured the yard. We conduct an
exit survey to determine which areas of the garden
most impress visitors and what ideas they are likely
to incorporate in their own yards. Tops on the list
were the storm water techniques and native plants.
Seventeen of the visitors requested consultations
for assistance in applying the ideas to their own
landscapes.
on how to equip and use the barrels and asked to
sign a pledge guaranteeing that the barrels will be
placed in service.
“Based on our survey of clients receiving
consultations, we have positive feedback that
clients have taken the following actions:
Installed rain garden
Installed rain barrels
Installed conservation landscaping
Increased native plantings
Reduced erosion
Reduced fertilizers/pesticides
Reduced lawn area
Began composting
Added to stream buffer
1
2
1
2
5
1
1
1
1
Because the response rate to our survey was only
30% (which is a good response rate for surveys) it
probably under-reports the impact of our
consultation program.”
Prince George’s
Howard County Bay-Wise Master Gardeners at Fall Garden Tour on
Holly McFarland’s suburban property
“We continue to provide onsite consultations for
members of the Howard County community to
assist them with solving their landscaping
challenges. In order to evaluate the effectiveness
of the program, Sylvia Huestis and Caroline Feil
developed a questionnaire that was emailed to our
2014 clients and could be submitted on-line. The
questionnaire focused on the quality of the
consultation and the result: were the
recommendations implemented and if not why not?
After tallying the results, we were gratified to learn
that our efforts have been appreciated. We do
believe however that we can improve the program
further and to that end are planning to conduct a
training session for our Master Gardeners in early
2016 before the next influx of requests.
“The rain barrel distribution program at Alpha
Ridge Landfill concluded in October. A total of 79
rain barrels were adopted by Howard County
homeowners. Each recipient is given information
Franchella Kendall, Chair, reports that their 21
member-committee has certified 1 Bay-Wise demo
sites and 1 client Master Gardener) site within the
past six months. Franchella adds that “As part of
their education and experience the Master
Gardener Interns are invited to shadow Bay-Wise
Master Gardeners when they conduct Yard
Certifications. Several of our Interns participated
and a few have had their yards certified. The
picture is from the yard certification of Renee
Baccus it was a rainy day but we did not let that
stop us.” (See picture below)
Prince George’s County Master Gardener Intern, Renee Baccus
(holding certificate), gets her landscape certified
Page 10 of 13
Queen Anne’s
New Chair, Debbie Pusey, is settling into her
position and she reports that their committee of 26
have certified 4 landscapes, over the last 6 months,
including 2 demo sites and 2 client landscapes.
They currently have 1 ongoing consultation that
should lead to a certification later this year. Debbie
shares, “Queen Anne’s County hosted a Bay-Wise
Advanced Training course at the Wye Research and
Education Center in Queenstown in November. It
was well-attended by MG’s from both Queen
Anne’s and Talbot Counties. We now have eight
new Bay-Wise certified Master Gardeners in QAC as
well as seven who took the course as a refresher.
Our site visit, which concluded the training, took
place at the property of MG Shane Brill, Class of
2015. What an educational experience that was
for all of us! In the eight years that Shane has lived
in his current residence, he has taken a property
that had only two trees, one in the front yard and
one in the back, and developed multiple gardens
throughout the front, back, and side yards. His
goal is to have all gardens and no lawn, with only
pathways between the gardens. Have you heard of
Permaculture? None of us attending this site visit
had heard of it before. Shane is a walking
encyclopedia on this topic. As we walked around
his yard, Shane educated us on how the various
plants in each of his gardens are helping each
other. Of course he had much more than a
yardstick full of inches.
Kent County Master Gardener Intern, Shane Brill (kneeling and
holding sign), gets his landscape certified
“Moving forward into 2016, we know that we have
many new interns and recently recognized MG’s
from the Class of 2014 who have not have their
gardens Bay-Wise certified. One of our goals for
the coming year will be to have as many of them
certified as possible.”
St. Mary’s
Committee Co-Chairs, Linda Crandall and Jennifer
Horton, report that although their committee of 5
has not certified any landscapes the second half of
the year, they do have 3 consultations that will
probably lead to certifications in 2016. They taught
a personal enrichment class in Sustainable
Landscaping Techniques at The College of Southern
Maryland to 10 attendees in November and
reached over 1,000 people during the St. Mary’s
County fair and the RiverFest at St. Mary’s City.
Jennifer and Linda say, “This year our small BayWise team put our focus on creative outreach. To
more actively engage with those who come to the
events where we set up our Bay-Wise display, we
created a new game called “Bay-Wise – TRUE OR
FALSE??” It proved to be a very successful way of
connecting with families at the St. Mary’s County
Fair in September. We were able to interact with
kids and talk with their parents at the same time
about the basic Bay-Wise practices. That same
weekend we also provided information about the
Chesapeake Bay Watershed and the Bay-Wise
program to those attending Riverfest in St. Mary’s
City.
“During October 2015 we put together a personal
enrichment class about Sustainable Landscaping
Techniques that we taught in early November at
The College of Southern Maryland in Leonardtown.
The feedback we received was good and we have
been invited to teach the class again next fall. Over
the next several months, we will be working to both
improve our presentation and to publicize the class
more.
“The fall of 2015 was also when we published our
second issue of the “The Bay-Wise Brief”
http://extension.umd.edu/st-marys-county/homegardening/bay-wise-brief. This short newsletter is
made available to St. Mary’s County residents who
have already certified their properties, with the
goal of encouraging folks to continue their Bay-
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Wise practices while beginning to learn and
implement more. We finished the year by getting
a jump start on the third edition of “The Bay-Wise
Brief”, which will be distributed in the early spring.”
Talbot
Chair, Lynn Freeburger, reports that her committee
certified one residential and three demo
landscapes within the past six months. Talbot
County Bay-Wise Master Gardener, Rosemary
Noble, was excited to spy a Bay-Wise sign while she
was bicycling through the town of Oxford one
Monday afternoon in August. Over the past ten
years, they have certified 13 different nonresidential sites in their county.
More Assorted Stuff
Upcoming Anniversary
As mentioned at the beginning
of this newsletter, this fall
will mark the 20th
anniversary of the first BayWise advanced training.
Talbot County Lisa Marie
Ghezzi has offered to chair
a committee to figure out ways to mark the
occasion. Confer with your fellow Bay-Wise
committee members for ideas and join us in
coming up with fun ways to celebrate our program.
Nifty Tool for Measuring Area
As Bay-Wise Master Gardeners, we often make
recommendations based on square footage of the
landscape. But obtaining the area is often not easy
to do – but it just got a little easier.
Washington
Master Gardener Coordinator, Annette Cormany
and Co-chair, Ann Aldrich report that their
committee is 7-strong as a result of their last BayWise advanced training. The newly regrouped
committee has certified 5 demo landscapes during
the last half of 2015.
Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) has a
measurement feature on their website that allows
you to easily measure the square footage of an
area. It was developed as a tool for pesticide
applicators to identify sites containing crops that
are sensitive to pesticide damage so they can take
special care when making applications. A link to
the tool can be found on their Sensitive Crop
Locator webpage. Here are instructions for
measuring the area of a property.
1. Click on “the tool” link above
2. Bookmark the site in your web browser
3. Click “Basemap” and select “Imagery with
labels” option
4. Type address in the search box and close Image
search box after image appears
5. Click “Measure” button near top of page
6. Click on first box (Area) and click down arrow to
right to select square feet option
7. Now, you are ready to define the property
boundaries.
8. Place cursor on edge of property line and click.
This will begin drawing the boundary lines. Drag
cursor to each corner of property, clicking when
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While not perfect, this tool will give you a ballpark
measurement. It is only as accurate as the
information you put in. So practice your skills on a
known area before using the tool for a “real”
measurement. Let me know if it works for you.
Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)
requirements (TMDLs or Total Maximum Daily
Loads), rain gardens, and how Master Gardeners
can help verify those federal requirements by
tracking homeowner BMPs through their new
Stormwater Management and Restoration Tracker
(SMART) tool. The SMART tool has run into a few
glitches so there hasn’t been much progress lately
on training you to validate sites. We’ll keep you
posted on their progress.
Chesapeake Stormwater Network
Bay-Wise Promo Brochures
you reach each corner. Double click cursor
when you reach the starting point.
9. The area should appear in the Measurement
Result box.
This network of professionals in the stormwater
management field has an informative website
which lists news, events, and publications related
to managing stormwater in the Chesapeake Bay.
Below is an excerpt from their November, 2015
newsletter:
New Urban BMP Credit Available!
Last fall the Shoreline Management urban BMP
review panel was approved by the Chesapeake Bay
Program as a credit for use by localities for meeting
their Bay TMDL load reductions. While the credit
is not applicable everywhere in the Bay watershed,
it is another load reduction strategy for communities
with shoreline areas within their jurisdictions.
The full final report can be accessed on our website
here. And for those of you who are interested in
learning more about shoreline management
techniques and the credit available for them, we
conducted a webcast on this very topic earlier in the
year which can be viewed on our website here.
SMART Tool Update
Our Sea Grant Extension Watershed Restoration
Specialists began teaching a few sessions in our
advanced training in 2014. They spoke on the state
of the bay, meeting
county Phase II
Watershed
Implementation
Plans (WIPs)
imposed through
Maryland's NPDES
Back by popular demand! We’ve
updated this brochure which
you can use to educate your
clients about our program.
Thanks to editing by Trish
Moore, Baltimore County
University of Maryland
Extension’s Desktop Publishing
Technician, the two-fold
brochure can now be
downloaded from the “For BayWise Master Gardeners Only”
page of our Bay-Wise website.
Interested in Planting Trees?
The Maryland Urban and Community
Forest Committee (MUCFC) is a
volunteer group of citizens,
professionals, and government
officials united to protect and enhance
Maryland's forest ecosystems. MUCFC
is a sub-committee of the Maryland Association of
Forest Conservancy District Boards. Every county in
the state has a Forestry Board. The primary
functions of the Committee are to 1.) Promote and
coordinate the Maryland
Community PLANT award
program that officially
recognizes communities
planting and caring for trees,
and 2.) Administer grants to
communities, through their
local Forestry Boards, that
promote planting and care
Page 13 of 13
of trees. If you are interested and would like more
information about membership, please contact
Wayne Lucas, 301-324-2684 or me, at 410-5315973.
If you are interested in applying for a grant of up to
$1,500, or learning more about MUCFC, visit:
http://dnr2.maryland.gov/forests/Pages/programs
/urban/mucfcgrant.aspx
100% Certified?
Sadly, many of you have not had your landscapes
certified yet. So far 587 “demo landscapes” have
been designated throughout the state. Over the
years, 1,583 of you have taken the Bay-Wise
advanced training. This means that only 37% of you
have certified landscapes. If you aren’t among the
few, the proud, the “certified,” consider having it
done this year. Contact your county’s Bay-Wise
committee chair to set up an appointment. The
process is easy & fun and one of the rewards is
increased visibility in your neighborhood as an
expert on ecologically sound landscaping.
One of the successful indicators of the Bay-Wise
Landscape Management
Program is to have all
Bay-Wise Master
Gardeners’ landscapes
certified as
demonstration
landscapes. Let’s see
how many more we can
get certified in time for
our 20th anniversary in 2016.
Wanda MacLachlan
Contact Information:
wtm@umd.edu
410-531-5973
11975 Homewood Road
Ellicott City, MD 21044