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May 12, 2025

Chestertown Spy

Nonpartisan and Education-based News for Chestertown

Food and Garden

Liverworts & Hornworts? Learn all About Them at Adkins March 24

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Mosses, liverworts, and hornworts, collectively known as bryophytes, are a fascinating group of nonvascular plants that are an important component of the many habitats of the Delmarva Peninsula. Join Bill McAvoy to learn the basics of bryophyte morphology, their life-cycles and ecology, and their place in the ecosystem.

McAvoy is the botanist for the Delaware Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and has studied and published on both the vascular and nonvascular flora of the Delmarva Peninsula for over 20 years.

Registration required. Fee: $15 members, $20 general public

To register click here

Saturday, March 24, 2012
10:00 am – 11:30 am

Adkins Arboretum
2610 Eveland Road,
Ridgely, MD 21660
410.634.2847
[email protected]

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Nature Writer to Discuss Old Growth Forests March 14

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Joan Maloof

What is happening to our forests, and what can we do to save them? Biologist and nature writer Dr. Joan Maloof, author of Among the Ancients: Adventures in the Eastern Old-Growth Forests, will discuss her love affair with ancient trees and the myriad flora and fauna that live in their midst. A scientist with a poet’s heart, she will transport you to some of the 26 forests she explored for this book and invite you to care about these imperiled lands as much as she does.

Maloof has worked with trees from all angles: as a horticulturalist, as an ecologist, and now as a writer and activist. She will read from Among the Ancients and from her first book, Teaching the Trees: Lessons from the Forest, and will discuss her latest venture—the Old-Growth Forest Network, an organization that aims to identify and protect at least one forest in every county in the nation that is capable of supporting a forest ecosystem.

This will be a celebration of the arboreal. Join your fellow tree huggers for an engaging and inspiring afternoon.

Registration required. Fee: $15 members, $20 general public
Click here to register

 

Among the Ancients
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
1:00 pm – 2:30 pm

410.634.2847, ext. 0
Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Road
Ridgely, MD 21660

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Popular Adkins Soup ‘n Walk – Saturday March 17

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Track the changing landscape from winter to spring on Saturday, March 17 at Adkins Arboretum with their popular Soup ‘n Walk program. Following a guided walk with a docent naturalist, enjoy a delicious and nutritious lunch along with a brief lesson about the meal’s nutritional value. Copies of recipes are provided.

Buds and Early Blooms
Many trees and shrubs are sporting new spring buds, fiddleheads are emerging on Christmas fern, and early pink and purple blooms are beginning to appear. Register for a one-hour or two-hour walk to check out skunk cabbage, spring beauty, and bloodroot blooms and the soft buds of paw paw, dogwood, hickory, and tulip tree.

Menu
Carrot and cauliflower soup with herbs
Avocado and pink grapefruit salad
Dill rye bread with strawberry jam
Chocolate walnut cookies

Registration required. Click here to register. Fee: $20 members, $25 general public

Saturday, March 17, 2012
11:00 am – 1:30 pm

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Favorite Perennials Program Offered at Adkins March 8 & 10

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Echinacea purpurea (coneflower)

Adkins Arboretum Nursery Manager Joanne Healey will introduce twelve native perennials that have proven themselves worthy of the home garden. Intended for beginners, this program will review characteristics of each perennial—color, foliage, cover and size, and light, moisture, and soil requirements—in addition to garden placement, compliment plantings, and wildlife benefits.

Registration required. Fee: $15 members, $20 general public
Click here to register

Favorite Perennials
Thursday, March 8, 2012 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Saturday, March 10, 2012 10:00 am – 11:30 am

410.634.2847, ext. 0
Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Road
Ridgely, MD 21660

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum to Host 7th Annual Arbor Day Run

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Young runners dart off the starting line at Adkins Arboretum. The Arboretum’s sixth annual Arbor Day Run, scheduled for Sat., April 7, includes a 5K run, a 100-yard dash for kids and a one-mile fun run/walk for families.

Runners, walkers, families and nature enthusiasts are invited to enjoy emerging signs of spring when the Arboretum hosts its seventh annual Arbor Day Run Sat., April 7.

The event features a 5K Run, a One-Mile Family Fun Run/Walk and a 100-yard dash for kids. Participants will catch glimpses of spring as they run the cross-country trail plotted along the Arboretum’s network of scenic forest and meadow paths. Registration begins at 8 a.m., with the Kids’ Dash at 8:45 a.m. The 5K Run and Family Fun Run/Walk commence at 9 a.m.

“Green” prizes will be awarded and refreshments provided. 5K participants will receive white oak saplings in honor of Arbor Day. For fee information and to register, visit www.adkinsarboretum.org, call 410-634-2847, ext. 0 or e-mail [email protected].

The Arbor Day Run is sponsored in part by Dr. Julio Ramirez and Cindy Draper Massage Therapists.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Landscape Design Workshop at Adkins Arboretum – March 3

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Adkins Arboretum is offering a landscape design workshop on Saturday, March 3 which will address the typical challenges of homeowners in the Chesapeake Bay region. Three experienced landscape designers and avid gardeners will lead you through an all-day intensive design session. Come with your challenges and dreams, and leave with a landscape plan, ideas, and confidence to transform your home landscape for your enjoyment and pride.

Topics include analyzing the challenges and opportunities of your property; developing a plan for circulation and unique features; designing “rooms” for outdoor living; choosing materials for patios and walks; incorporating sustainable practices; and selecting ornamental plants. The day will be organized around presentations followed by breakout sessions for you to work one-on-one with designers. The designers will offer practical advice on to get started, what to do with wet areas, how to lay out a path, how to screen an undesirable view, and plants recommended for specific conditions. Step by step, you will develop your own landscape design.

Workshop leaders are Arboretum Executive Director Ellie Altman; landscape architect Barbara McClinton, formerly of the Baltimore landscape architecture and land planning firm Daft, McCune, Walker; and landscape designer and native plant enthusiast Chris Pax, a graduate of the George Washington University sustainable landscape design master’s program.

Bring your own lunch. Arrive at 8:30 am for coffee and a light breakfast. The workshop will begin at 9 am. Break refreshments will be provided. Also bring a property plat, photos, and other documentation of your property.

Registration required. Click here for info and to pay.  Fee: $85 members, $110 general public

Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Rd
Ridegely, MD 21660
410 634 2847

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

2012 Art Competition, Discovering Native Landscapes, on View Now at Adkins Arboretum

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From the wild flurry of a flock rising over a corn field to a bright-eyed fox stalking its prey, Discovering the Native Landscapes of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Adkins Arboretum’s thirteenth annual Art Competition, is a varied portrait of the Eastern Shore. Including

First place: “Native/Invasive,” Christine Neill’s combination of watercolor and digital photography

paintings, photographs, prints, and ceramics, the show is on view in the Arboretum Visitor’s Center through March 30. There will be a reception to meet the artists Sat., Feb. 25 from 3 to 5 p.m.

The Arboretum was honored to have Erik Neil, executive director of the Academy Art Museum in Easton, as the juror for this year’s show. Of the 122 entries drawn from as far away as California, Neil chose 22 of them to be in the show.

It was also his task to choose the winners of the annual Leon Andrus Awards. Named for the Arboretum’s first benefactor, these prizes were awarded by Neil to four of the artworks in the show.

First prize went to “Native/Invasive,” Baltimore artist Christine Neill’s nearly four-foot-tall scene combining watercolor and digital photography. Painted with confident strokes of subtle color, its two graceful plant forms float one above the other over a background of tangled underwater plants and watery reflections.

Neil said, “I selected this watercolor and digital print because I admired the ambitious scale, the sensibility of color, and the

“Mill Creek,” an acrylic painting by Mark Wotherspoon, 2nd place

satisfying composition.”

There’s a very different atmosphere in the second-prize winner, “Mill Creek,” an acrylic painting by Mark Wotherspoon of Dover. Still and hazy as an old mirror, its waterway runs through a wetland thickly bordered with billowing trees.

“I liked the mood and the combination of the intense green with an almost naive definition of the forms,” Neil explained. “The painting has a dreamy or even surreal feel.”

Neil also awarded two Honorable Mentions. The first went to “November Adkins Arboretum,” a photograph by Karen Klinedinst, of Baltimore, for her use of new technologies to create mood. In this case, it’s the bittersweet beauty of late autumn. Captured with her iPhone while she was walking in the Arboretum, the shadowy edges of this photo intensify the warm golden glow of a bare oak tree standing in a weedy clearing.

Very different is the second Honorable Mention. Chosen for its simple composition and mastery of technique, “Wild Ginger” by botanical artist Jerry Kurtzweg is a giclée print of a graphite drawing with every curve of its scalloped leaves precisely captured in a soft, understated drawing style.

This is a diverse and lively show. There’s beauty in the patterns of river birch twigs imprinted on a ceramic vase by Paul Aspell, and in the soft light slanting through the trees in a photograph taken with a pinhole camera by Mary Agnes Williams. There’s also food for thought in “Scarey House,” Julia Burr’s painting of the long-abandoned home, and the distant cooling tower rising over a quiet marsh in Richard Hall’s photograph, “Wetlands in the Balance.” Neil’s choice of these works reflects the wide variety of landscapes on Delmarva, from wetlands to farmlands to forests, as well as offers a view of the many ways that artists see them.

This show is part of Adkins Arboretum’s ongoing exhibition series of work on natural themes by regional artists, supported in part by Caroline County Council of Arts. It is on view through March 30 at the Arboretum Visitor’s Center located at 12610 Eveland Road near Tuckahoe State Park in Ridgely. Contact the Arboretum at 410-634-2847, ext. 0 or [email protected] for gallery hours.

Artists Reception Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012
3 to 5 p.m

Show runs through March 30, 2012

Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Road
Ridgely, MD 21660
410-634-2847

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins to Offer Class on Planting for Native Bees

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On February 19, from 1:00pm-2:30pm, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center Wildlife Biologist Sam Droege will teach a course on Planting for Native Bees at Adkins Arboretum.

More than 75 percent of flowering plants rely on pollinators, but pollinator populations are in decline in North America. Without them, the ability of agricultural crops and wild plants to produce food products and seeds is jeopardized. Learn why “bees are not optional,” identify native bees, manage your landscape and lawn for them, and choose a variety of plants to attract native bee species.

Registration required. Fee: $15 members, $20 general public
Visit https://adkinsarboretumorg.presencehost.net/programs_events/event_calendar.html/event/2012/02/19/planting-for-native-bees to register.

Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Rd
Ridegely, MD 21660
410 634 2847

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Popular Soup ‘n Walk @ Adkins – Saturday, Feb. 18

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Docent Julianna Pax points out the architecture of the winter forest during a Soup ’n Walk program at Adkins Arboretum. The winter Soup ’n Walk series begins Sat., Feb. 18.

Adkins Arboretum has announced the winter and spring lineup for its popular Soup ’n Walk programs. Discover green plants in winter, early blooms and fleeting ephemeral flowers. Following a guided walk through the Arboretum’s woodland, meadows and wetland, enjoy a delicious and nutritious lunch along with a brief lesson about the meal’s nutritional value. Copies of recipes are provided.

Each Soup ’n Walk program is $20 per person for members, $25 per person for the general public. Register at www.adkinsarboretum.org or call 410-634-2847, ext. 0. To schedule Soup ’n Walk programs for groups of 15 or more, contact Ginna Tiernan, Adult Program Coordinator, at 410-634-2847, ext. 27 or [email protected].
Walks are 11 am–1:30 pm.

The Saturday, February 18 walk, titled, ” Seeking Snow and Winter Warmth,” encourages participants to p.m.
search out green plants that cherish the warm winter sun, and possibly snow-covered plants, on this wintry walk. Plants of interest include mosses, cranefly orchid, magnolia and holly leaves, pine and red cedar needles, Christmas fern and the stems of strawberry bush and greenbrier. Menu: Chicken soup with greens and sweet potatoes, broccoli bud salad, pumpernickel bread with mint jelly, and gingerbread with lemon sauce.

The Saturday, March 17 theme is “Buds and Early Blooms”
Many trees and shrubs are sporting new spring buds, fiddleheads are emerging on Christmas fern, and early pink and purple blooms are beginning to appear. Register for a one-hour or two-hour walk to check out skunk cabbage, spring beauty, and bloodroot blooms and the soft buds of paw paw, dogwood, hickory and tulip tree. Menu: Carrot and cauliflower soup with herbs, avocado and pink grapefruit salad, dill rye bread with strawberry jam, and chocolate walnut cookies.

April’s walk, Fleeting Ephemerals is set for Satursay the 21st.
Appearing in early spring, ephemerals flower, fruit, and die back in a short period of time. Join a one-hour or two-hour walk to catch glimpses of pink spring beauty, Mayapple, dogwood blossoms, yellow trout lily, golden groundsel, sassafras and spicebush blooms, and white beech tree blossoms. Menu: Kale, corn, and black bean soup, golden carrot salad, whole wheat cinnamon raisin walnut bread, and pumpkin spice bars.

Adkins Arboretum
12610 Eveland Rd
Ridegely, MD  21660
410 634 2847

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Adkins Arboretum Staff Participates in Sentinel Plant Network Training

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Two Adkins Arboretum staff members participated recently in training at Harvard University’s Arnold Arboretum to support Adkins Arboretum’s partnership with the Sentinel Plant Network (SPN).

A collaboration between the American Public Gardens Association and the National Plant Diagnostic Network, SPN contributes to plant conservation by engaging public garden professionals, volunteers and visitors in the detection and diagnosis of high consequence pests and pathogens. The network is committed to identifying outbreaks of exotic plant pests so that strategies can be employed for their control, with the goal of avoiding devastations such as the loss of the American chestnut in the 1930s and the more recent Emerald Ash borer that is disseminated in native green ash populations.

Arboretum Youth Program Coordinator Jenny Houghton and ecologist Dr. Sylvan Kaufman attended the two-day conference along with 40 other professionals representing public gardens in the Northeast. Participants learned about best practices for scouting and reporting plant pests and diseases, as well as how to use SPN training modules and other resources in the Arboretum’s internal operations and public programming.

“I have offered several programs on invasive plants at the Arboretum, and the resources provided by the Sentinel Plant Network make it possible to share information on other invasive species that could appear in our region,” said Kaufman. “Many of the potential insect and disease threats are to trees, and this provides an early warning system for the Arboretum and local community that could save our forests.”

“The Emerald Ash borer has been found in Maryland but is not yet present on the Eastern Shore,” Kaufman explained. “Early detection of this insect could help save street trees and important specimen trees on the Shore. My hope is that people who walk regularly at the Arboretum and at Tuckahoe State park, volunteers, Master Gardeners, Master Naturalists, boaters and community tree stewards will all learn how to detect signs of new invasive species and will learn how to report suspected problems.

“The Network provides training modules that can be used to create educational sessions for people who want to be able to detect invasive species threats in our area,” added Houghton. “These sessions will provide the public with information about the Sentinel Plant Network and will inform in-depth training of volunteers interested in monitoring the Arboretum’s woodland for plant pests and pathogens.”

The Arboretum will offer a program this spring about the Sentinel Plant Network. For more information, visit adkinsarboretum.org.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.