WELCOME
We're glad you found your way to our NC State Extension Master Gardener℠ | Surry County website and hope that you find a lot of useful gardening information here!
Upcoming Classes
Workshops at YVEDDI* Senior Centers and at the Mount Airy Public Library
In-person workshops are held at the Surry County and Pilot Mountain Senior Centers, and at the Mount Airy Public Library. For more information, visit our EVENTS page.
September: Garlic Containers
October: Awesome Amaryllis!
November: Lasagna Planters
December: Holiday Swag
*Yadkin Valley Economic Development District, Inc
Workshops at the Demonstration Gardens at the Old Dobson Courthouse
Extension Master Gardener volunteers designed, planted, and maintain five distinct gardens at the Historic Courthouse Square in Dobson. The gardens include:
• a sensory garden
• a pollinator garden
• an edibles garden
• a memorial garden
• a Purple Heart garden
These gardens were designed to serve as tools for teaching horticulture to audiences including homeowners, youth, green industry professionals, and others and to provide opportunities for hands-on learning.
For more information, visit our Demonstration Gardens page.
Farmers Markets
DOBSON
903 East Atkins Street
Dobson, NC 27017
Tuesdays 10am – 1pm
Starting in June 2024
Ending in September 2024
MOUNT AIRY
111 South Main Street
Mount Airy, NC 27030
Fridays 9am – 1pm
Starting in April 2024
Ending in October 2024
ELKIN
226 North Bridge Street
Elkin, NC 28621
Saturdays 9 am – 12 noon
Starting in April 2024
Ending November 2024
For more information, visit the Surry County Farmers Market website.
Master Gardeners have education booths set up at each of the Surry County Farmers Markets. Do stop by! We have research-based gardening handouts and are happy to answer your gardening questions.
This Month in the Vegetable Garden
photo credit:
'Rouge Vif d'Etampes' Mature Fruit (Carrabus County, NC) Hope Duckworth CC BY 4.0
What's Happening in September in Surry County Vegetable Gardens?
PLANTING: Arugula, Mustard, Radish (early in the month), Spinach (early in the month)
TRANSPLANTING: Broccoli (early in the month), Cabbage (early in the month), Cauliflower (early in the month), Celery, Collard greens (early in the month), Garlic, Kale (early in the month), Lettuce, Onions (green), Pac choi
HARVEST: Beans, Beets, Brussels Sprouts, Celery, Corn, Collard greens, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Kale, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Lettuce, Melons, Mustard, Okra, Parsnips, Field peas, Peppers, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Squash (summer and winter varieties), Tomatoes, Turnips
Most of Surry County is in hardiness zone 7b, somewhat between the Western and Piedmont sections of the state. A Western NC planting calendar for the year and more vegetable growing detailed information is available at the following two links from the NC Extension Gardeners Handbook.
Shared by Jerry Potter, Extension Master Gardener volunteer
Updated Plant Hardiness Zone Map
In November 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a new version of its Plant Hardiness Zone Map, updating this valuable tool for gardeners and researchers for the first time since 2012. The revised map is available online at Updated Hardness Zones.
The 2023 map is based on 30-year averages of the lowest annual winter temperatures at specific locations, is divided into 10-degree Fahrenheit zones and further divided into 5-degree Fahrenheit half-zones. When compared to the 2012 map, the 2023 version reveals that about half of the country shifted to the next warmer half zone, and the other half of the country remained in the same half zone.
Notably, Surry County's hardiness zone shifted from 7a to 7b.
BOLO
(Be on the Lookout)
The spotted lanternfly is on our doorstep. It has been reported in Carroll County, Virginia and in Kernersville, NC.
If you see this destructive invasive insect in North Carolina, please collect a specimen and report it to badbug@ncagr.gov.
Photo credit: Lawrence Barringer, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Bugwood.org
Friend or Foe?
Dragonflies and damselflies...
Dragonflies were some of the first winged insects to evolve, more than 300 million years ago! Surry County is home to approximately 83 species of odonate: 57 species of dragonfly and 26 species of damselfly.
Dragonflies and damselflies do not harm people, pets, or plants. They are beneficial predators of mosquitoes and other insect pests. Odonate nymphs hunt aquatic insects, mosquito larvae, tadpoles, or small fish; adults eat insects. A single dragonfly can eat hundreds of mosquitoes per day.
