The Real Dirt

Flowers blooming

The Real Dirt blog covers regional gardening issues from soil health to planting for pollinators; from fire resistant landscaping to attracting wildlife. Read all about it!

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Caring for roses is one of the new workshops offered in the Master Gardener Spring Workshop Series. Jan Burnham
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Master Gardener Spring 2023 Workshop Series

January 27th, 2023
A new season of Master Gardener Workshops is about to start! The series kicks off with Seed Starting on January 31, and will conclude on May 23 with a workshop on drip irrigation. In all, this Spring series totals 17 workshops, including five all-new topics.
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Lavender rings a bird bath in a formal 18th-century style garden in Cornwall, England. J. Lawrence
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Herbs in History, Legend and Lore

January 20th, 2023
Humans have been fascinated by herbs and their uses for millennia. Some of the earliest written documents contained information about herbal remedies, and the use of herbs for medical treatment was first recorded on papyrus scrolls in ancient Egypt.
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No matter what the season, local nurseries carry a variety of herbs. Debi Durham
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Herbs as Houseplants

January 13th, 2023
Counting the time spent at work and at home, urban dwellers spend 80-90% of their time indoors.
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Stormy tree. Andrea Craig
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The Dye Creek Preserve is “One Cool Place”

January 6th, 2023
This is the second of two articles on projects The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is involved with in our part of the North State. The Nature Conservancy is one of the world's most effective and wide-reaching environmental organizations.
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