Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is now open on Saturdays from 8am to 1pm.
  • Monitor rows in garden open ends of rows that have water pooled up in them.
  • Check tomatoes for leaf spot diseases. You can prune all leaves below the first fruit set.
  • Monitor tall fescue for brown patch disease, especially if you fertilized later than March 15th.
  • Treat fire ants now. Use fire ant bait.
  • Keep lawn mower blades sharp.
  • If you have young children or grandchildren, teach them how to work in the garden. They are our future gardeners.
  • Consider drip irrigation in your garden.
  • Use row covers to protect your garden from wildlife.
  • Continue your fruit tree spray program according to the label directions of the product that you are using.
  • Keep your garden journal up to date.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

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Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is now open on Saturdays from 8am to 1pm.
  • Cooperative Extension has publications on most vegetables and fruits that can be grown in  the central piedmont of  North Carolina call 252-438-8188 or come by the Cooperative Extension Offices during 8:30am til 5pm M-F.
  • Harvest herbs frequently. Young foliage is more tender and flavorful Clipping promotes new growth.
  • Sharpen Garden hand tools with a file, makes chopping weeds much easier.
  • Treat fire ants now. Use fire ant bait.
  • Try electric fencing to keep wildlife out of your garden.
  • Identify your insects on plants before buying a control chemical.
  • Consider drip irrigation in your garden.
  • Use row covers to protect your garden from wildlife.
  • Continue your fruit tree spray program according to the label directions of the product that you are using.
  • Monitor strawberries closely. They ripen quicker than you know.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

Thank you to our caller for calling in and leaving a question!

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

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Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Vance-Warren Beekeepers Association will have their May meeting on May 12th, 2025 at 7:00 pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market.
  • Cooperative Extension has publications on most vegetables and fruits that can be grown in  the central piedmont of  North Carolina call 252-438-8188 or come by the Cooperative Extension Offices during 8:30am til 5pm M-F.
  • Weed killers will work well after the recent rains.
  • If you plan to grow vegetables in containers be sure to use a container mix or potting mix rather than compost or garden soil.
  • Prune azaleas after they have finished blooming only if they need it. Prune back no more than ⅓ of the plant.
  • Check ponds for aquatic weeds and identify weeds before applying any weed control to your pond.
  • Identify your insects on plants before buying a control chemical.
  • In order to protect Bees avoid spraying insecticides on plants that are blooming.
  • Attract pollinators by planting wildflowers.
  • Continue your fruit tree spray program according to the label directions of the product that you are using.
  • Monitor strawberries closely. They ripen quicker than you know.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Integrated Pest Management For The Home Garden Workshop will be on May 5th, 2025 at 6:30pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market.
  • If you have questions about insect and disease problems call or come by the Cooperative Extension call (252) 438-8188. During 8:30 am until 5pm M-F.
  • When using weed killers try to spray the weeds when they are actively growing, 2 to 3 days after a good rain, and always follow the label directions.
  • Recycle metal discarded window blinds into garden row markers.
  • Check planted vegetables that are turning yellow. They may be nitrogen deficient.
  • Check ponds for aquatic weeds and identify weeds before applying any weed control to your pond.
  • Use row covers to keep birds from picking young seedlings from out of the ground.
  • In order to protect Bees avoid spraying insecticides on plants that are blooming.
  • Try planting a wildflower bed from seed.
  • If you are purchasing transplants directly from the greenhouse, keep plants outside for a few days before planting.
  • Monitor strawberries closely. They ripen quicker than you know.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Integrated Pest Management For The Home Garden Workshop will be on May 5th, 2025 at 6:30pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market.
  • Plant transplants on cloudy windless days.
  • Top dress your raised beds with compost or aged manure plus some slow release fertilizer and incorporate that mixture before planting.
  • Remember your personal protective equipment such as a wide-brim hat, a long sleeve shirt, gloves, etc.
  • Lawnmower safety read the owner’s manual, protective eyewear, hearing protection, NO EXTRA Riders.
  • If you limed in the fall, you might want to take another soil test to see if the PH has changed.
  • Identify insects before you spray. It could be beneficial! Bring us the insects and we can identify them for you.
  • Purchase a good rain gauge.
  • Purchase healthy transplants.
  • If you are purchasing transplants directly from the greenhouse, keep plants outside for a few days before planting.
  • Check areas for mice. Greenhouse, storage, and shed.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Integrated Pest Management For The Home Garden workshop will be on April 28, 2025 at 6:30pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market. Wayne Rowland will be hosting this workshop.
  • Read the back of seed packets lots of useful information. Ex: days to maturity, how to plant.
  • Top dress your raised beds with compost or aged manure plus some slow release fertilizer and incorporate that mixture before planting.
  • Read the label on all chemicals before you purchase them to see if it is the right product for the job.
  • When setting out transplants put a cardboard collar around the transplant to prevent cutworm damage.
  • If you limed in the fall, you might want to take another soil test to see if the PH has changed.
  • Identify insects before you spray. It could be beneficial! Bring us the insects and we can identify them for you.
  • Purchase a good rain gauge.
  • Purchase healthy transplants.
  • If you are purchasing transplants directly from the greenhouse, keep plants outside for a few days before planting.
  • Check areas for mice. Greenhouse, storage, and shed.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Vance-Warren Beekeepers Association meeting will be on Monday April 14, 2025 at 7pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market.
  • Soil samples are now free as of April 1st.
  • Start spraying fruit trees as soon as blossoms fall.
  • Refrain from tilling garden soil if it’s wet.
  • Purchase a good soil thermometer.
  • Use Personal Protective Equipment when doing garden chores.
  • You can plant spinach, irish potatoes, mustard, beets, kale, lettuce, carrots, peas, onions, and radish. Get your copy of the central piedmont planting guide.
  • Keep your garden journal updated each day.
  • Purchase healthy transplants.
  • If you are purchasing transplants directly from the greenhouse, keep plants outside for a few days before planting.
  • Check areas for mice. Greenhouse, storage, and shed.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

/by

On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.

  • The Vance Warren Beekeepers Association meeting will be on Monday April 14, 2025 at 7pm at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market.
  • Soil samples are now free as of April 1st.
  • Start spraying fruit trees as soon as blossoms fall.
  • Refrain from tilling garden soil if it’s wet.
  • Use row markers to identify what is planted in each row of your garden.
  • Reread owners manual of all power equipment.
  • You can plant spinach, irish potatoes, mustard, beets, kale, lettuce, carrots, peas, onions, radish. Get your copy of central piedmont planting guide.
  • Provide ventilation for plants in the greenhouse and cold frame.
  • Remember to wear Personal Protective Equipment when doing all garden chores.
  • Start checking your lawn care equipment.
  • Check areas for mice. Greenhouse, storage, and shed.
  • Check houseplants dust weekly with a soft cloth.
  • Check storage areas for mice.      

The Vance County Cooperative Extension is located at 305 Young St, Henderson, NC 27536

The Vance County Regional Farmers Market is located at 210 Southpark Dr., Henderson, NC 27536

Click Play!

Home and Garden Show

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The Vance County Cooperative Extension is hosting a community event on the eve of Opening Day of the Vance County Regional Farmers Market – perfect timing to learn more about how what we eat and how we move affects our overall health and wellness.

The Food Farmacy, as it’s called, will take place at the farmers market on Friday, May 2 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

It’s a time for the community to come together to learn how food choices and physical activity can have a positive impact on health while addressing some health-related challenges facing the community.

Event organize and community developer Tyler Chisholm joined County Extension Director Dr. Wykia Macon and Extension Agent Michael Ellington on Wednesday’s edition of The Home and Garden Show.

Chisholm said a similar event held in downtown Henderson in 2022 was well received and he’s looking to build on that success at the upcoming event.

Vance County has higher rates of heart disease, diabetes and obesity, Chisholm said, and a goal of The Food Farmacy is to promote broad access to food and also to spotlight exercise and physical activity as important components to overall wellness.

Chisholm said there will be many opportunities for education from a variety of vendors who plan to attend the event, but he also is confident participants will enjoy themselves, too.

Macon agrees. “It’s a time to hang out at the farmers market – time to talk to people about health and wellness,” she said.

Extension staff and others are working to reimagine the farmers market campus as a way to bring more foot traffic to the facility, now in its 10th year of operation.

It can be a gathering spot for the community, she said, whether it’s visiting the memorial garden filled with native pollinator plants to health and wellness fairs, the farmers market can be “that” place in the community for a variety of events.

And just like gardening, the idea is to start small and grow over time, Ellington said. Sustainability is key, Macon said, so sponsorships are being accepted for the new community garden being installed now.

The garden is taking shape, said Macon. With funds from Triangle North Healthcare Foundation, plans are underway to construct a couple of garden plots that individuals or groups can rent for the year to plant, cultivate and harvest their own vegetables. There are a couple of volunteer work days coming up, too, if you’d like to help.

Visit https://go.ncsu.edu/vcrfmgarden to learn more and sign up.

But the community garden is the first step, she said.

There’s room to grow, she said – literally. The future could bring a walking trail or a food forest, hydroponics or aquaponics, and more.

Supporters want the farmers market to be “a place that people want to come to,” Macon said, “definitely for the market, but not just for the market.

Visions for the farmers market will help to create a brighter future for a healthier Vance County.

 

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Vance Co. Regional Farmers Market

Home and Garden Show: VCRFM Gardens

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The beautiful memorial garden that greets visitors as they drive into the parking area at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market once was a triangular plot of grass.

Eileen Novak, president of the Vance Warren Master Gardeners said it not only serves to beautify the farmers market campus, but it also is a place for gardeners of all sorts to get ideas about what may grow in their own home landscapes.

Novak and N.C. Cooperative Extension Agent Michael Ellington talked about the existing garden and another that is under construction at the farmers market on Wednesday’s Home and Garden Show.

“We started with a plan,” Novak explained. “And we have kept to that plan…we started it bit by bit,” she said. Over time, the garden’s focus has narrowed to native plants that support pollinators.

“We’ve got a huge variety of plants that will feed the insects in most of the seasons,” she said.

The garden has even contributed to an N.C. State University study to provide information about overwintering insects.

The garden requires regular maintenance and care, and you’ll find a core group of Master Gardeners most Fridays – when the weather allows – weeding, pruning, dividing and generally caring for a garden space for the whole community to enjoy.

One of the perks of gardening is sharing plants with friends, so when bulbs need dividing or bushes need thinning, Novak said the “extra” plants can help improve the environment in other places as well as the market garden.

Ellington said he takes calls from people who have visited the farmers market and are interested in achieving the same look as the memorial garden.

“They want that look at home, but they want easy plants that they don’t have to maintain,” he said.

That’s where native selections are perfect fits, Novak said. “Natives grew up here, they are familiar with the soil, familiar with the environment, the weather,” she said. “Rose bushes are finicky because they’re not natives.”

Novak said members of the Master Gardeners are regularly stationed at the farmers market to answer questions from the public.

“We’re like librarians,” she said. “We don’t know everything, but we know where to look for the answers.” They can help make suggestions, provide information about native plants and how to support pollinators in their own yards and landscapes.

One piece of advice Novak offers to novice gardeners: Start small.

A 4 x 8 foot garden is a perfect size to get started, she said. And that just happens to be the size of the raised beds that will be part of a community garden that is being installed at the farmers market.

Ellington said the raised beds will be rented out for $40 each during the growing season and it’s the perfect way for people who either don’t have space for a garden or who want to get a little extra support from experienced gardeners and from Extension agents.

There are upcoming workdays to come out to help with the garden installation – come out to volunteer on Mar. 21, Mar. 29 or Apr. 11.

Can’t volunteer? No problem. Plans are in the works to offer sponsorship opportunities as well, Ellington said.

If all goes according to plan, the community garden will be ready just about the time the market opens for the season on Saturday, May 3.

By that time, said Novak, gardeners can plant lettuce slips and tomato slips, as well as beet seeds and carrot seeds.

Learn more at the following sites:

Community Garden Volunteer Form (March 21st, 29th, April 11th)

https://go.ncsu.edu/vcrfmgarden

Planting: A Spring Vegetable Planting Guide (March 31st)

http://go.ncsu.edu/vancespringgarden

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