Welcome to the Derwood Demonstration Garden
This website was created for the volunteers that work at the Derwood Demonstration Garden. Other Master Gardeners from Montgomery County may use the pictures and information for not-for-profit endeavors only.
The Master Gardener Demonstration Garden is located in the beautiful Agricultural Farm History Park, 18410 Muncaster Road, Derwood, MD. The garden is free to visit. If you're in the area, please drop by. As you can see from the map, our garden is divided into many sub-areas.
The Master Gardener Demonstration Garden is located in the beautiful Agricultural Farm History Park, 18410 Muncaster Road, Derwood, MD. The garden is free to visit. If you're in the area, please drop by. As you can see from the map, our garden is divided into many sub-areas.
1. Shade Garden is a woodland garden of full shade primarily under black locust, oak and hickory trees. Most of the plants found here will also grow well in part sun and will stand a moderate amount of drought. Most are deer-resistant.
2. Conservation Garden is a fairly self-sustaining garden, requiring no pesticides or fertilizers. Conservation gardening helps to protect the Chesapeake Bay watershed through the use of native plants, which are adapted to local soils and climate and thus require minimal care. One of the goals of a naturalistic garden design is to provide something of interest in every season of the year.
3. In this Kitchen Garden, you’ll find easy-to-grow varieties of perennial and annual culinary herbs which you could plant right outside your kitchen door.
4. Our Edibles Garden is the largest garden because so many good things to eat will grow in our area if good soil and full sun are present. Look for the many different kinds of fruits and vegetables, both familiar and unusuaI. We are planting cover crops for the late fall/winter to help keep our soil fertile.
5. In the Herb/Fragrance Garden, you will see that many herbs originate from areas of the world with hot, dry climates and poor soil, so there should be an herb or two that will grow even in the worst conditions. Herbs are not a botanical classification, but rather a group of plants that benefits mankind, primarily by providing medicines and seasoning.
6. Therapeutic Horticulture and Garden by Youth with Autism -- Our raised beds help the disabled to more easily participate in gardening. And the demonstration gardens provide plant material for therapeutic horticulture projects at various area institutions.
7. The Children’s Garden contains plants that children will enjoy. Each plant is selected for its fragrance, texture or color or for its unusual name. Almost every plant has an animal name.
8. In the Butterfly Garden, our goal is to show how you can help sustain butterfly populations by creating a “micro-habitat”. Our butterfly garden provides habitats specifically suited for both adult butterflies and their young, and shows how drought-tolerant plants can be used to create low-maintenance gardens.
9. The Demonstration Garden maintains two ponds; one, using a rigid plastic form, located in the Conservation Garden and another, using a flexible plastic liner and underlayment, at the Butterfly Garden.
10. In our Compost Production Area, most of the organic material from the gardne is "recycled " back into the garden by composting. WE use a "Hot" composting method, stockpilling "browns"/carbon, such as leaves, and then collect "greens"/nitrogen organic material from the garden to make the compost. We use our compost to build the health of our soil and to replenish nutrients.
Turf Plot ( not numbered)
This area demonstrates tall fescue, the main type of grass recommended for Maryland lawns. Your lawn care practices can have a negative effect on the Chesapeake Bay. DO NOT OVER FERTILIZE. Follow University of Maryland Extension fertilization recommendations.
2. Conservation Garden is a fairly self-sustaining garden, requiring no pesticides or fertilizers. Conservation gardening helps to protect the Chesapeake Bay watershed through the use of native plants, which are adapted to local soils and climate and thus require minimal care. One of the goals of a naturalistic garden design is to provide something of interest in every season of the year.
3. In this Kitchen Garden, you’ll find easy-to-grow varieties of perennial and annual culinary herbs which you could plant right outside your kitchen door.
4. Our Edibles Garden is the largest garden because so many good things to eat will grow in our area if good soil and full sun are present. Look for the many different kinds of fruits and vegetables, both familiar and unusuaI. We are planting cover crops for the late fall/winter to help keep our soil fertile.
5. In the Herb/Fragrance Garden, you will see that many herbs originate from areas of the world with hot, dry climates and poor soil, so there should be an herb or two that will grow even in the worst conditions. Herbs are not a botanical classification, but rather a group of plants that benefits mankind, primarily by providing medicines and seasoning.
6. Therapeutic Horticulture and Garden by Youth with Autism -- Our raised beds help the disabled to more easily participate in gardening. And the demonstration gardens provide plant material for therapeutic horticulture projects at various area institutions.
7. The Children’s Garden contains plants that children will enjoy. Each plant is selected for its fragrance, texture or color or for its unusual name. Almost every plant has an animal name.
8. In the Butterfly Garden, our goal is to show how you can help sustain butterfly populations by creating a “micro-habitat”. Our butterfly garden provides habitats specifically suited for both adult butterflies and their young, and shows how drought-tolerant plants can be used to create low-maintenance gardens.
9. The Demonstration Garden maintains two ponds; one, using a rigid plastic form, located in the Conservation Garden and another, using a flexible plastic liner and underlayment, at the Butterfly Garden.
10. In our Compost Production Area, most of the organic material from the gardne is "recycled " back into the garden by composting. WE use a "Hot" composting method, stockpilling "browns"/carbon, such as leaves, and then collect "greens"/nitrogen organic material from the garden to make the compost. We use our compost to build the health of our soil and to replenish nutrients.
Turf Plot ( not numbered)
This area demonstrates tall fescue, the main type of grass recommended for Maryland lawns. Your lawn care practices can have a negative effect on the Chesapeake Bay. DO NOT OVER FERTILIZE. Follow University of Maryland Extension fertilization recommendations.
