GARDENING

Charlottesville Daily Progress
Published: September 6, 2007

Clubs

People who enjoy gardening will find more than 10 clubs in the area that support and encourage the pastime.

The Charlottesville-Albemarle Council of Garden Clubs has many of the organizations listed on its Web site at www.gardeninginvirginia.org/council.html.

Those who enjoy seeing beautiful flower gardens have opportunities to do so during Historic Garden Week, which is held every spring.

Renting a plot

If a person has a green thumb, but nary a plot of ground to put it to work on, there is a solution for that as well. Charlottesville's parks and recreation department offers two locations in the city where people can rent 30-foot by 30-foot garden plots. The sites are at Azalea Park and Meadow Creek Garden Park.

Nearly 100 plots are gardened from March through November. The rent is $40 a year for city residents and $60 for nonresidents.

Current renters are given first opportunity to renew each year. Renewal registration begins on the first Monday in February. Two weeks later new rentals for city residents begins. A week after that registration is open to everyone.

Applications for garden plots are made available at the City Hall Annex, 705 E. Market St., and at the Web site http://www.charlottesville.org. For more information about renting a garden plot, call 970-3592.

Extension agents

For those who have a gardening question, be it about soil, pests or whatever, an answer is usually just a telephone call away. Peter L. Warren is the local horticulture extension agent with the Virginia Cooperative Extension.

Warren or other extension agents are glad to answer gardening questions and to provide advice. Questions are fielded at the extension office Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Call 872-4580.