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Rose Behnke's Love Of Orchids
~ Stephanie Fleming
Rose Behnke's Sunroom
Rose Behnke's Sun Room in Burtonsville, MD.
My grandmother, Rose Behnke, loved beautiful flowers. Her home was always filled with so many plants that when they moved to their home in Burtonsville, MD, my grandfather built her a sun room on the side of their house. This room had windows all around and stone flower beds that she was able to place her plants in. I remember in the corner was the waterfall (see above) that she loved. She would take the grandchildren for hikes in the woods looking for moss and little flowers to place on the stones of the waterfall.

NCOS SHOW Among her favorite plants were orchids. Back then, I seem to recall she had the biggest Cattleya ever! (see photo) One of the benefits of owning her own garden center was she was able to leave the orchids in the greenhouse till just before they started to bloom again. Then they would carefully bring them to the sun room for her enjoyment.
I know she would be so excited that we have been able to host these wonderful orchid shows the last few years. She would be especially pleased that for the second year in a row the National Capital Orchid Society is holding their big Fall Show and Sale at Behnke's, in the same greenhouses where she used to keep her prized orchids.
I hope you can stop by the garden center this Columbus Day Weekend and wander through the show. You will be amazed at the hundreds of different orchids that will be there. All week long, the NCOS has been busy setting up their displays and making sure each orchid is placed in the perfect position. And there will be thirteen vendors selling beautiful orchids and orchid-related gift items. I can't wait to discover which orchid will be "calling my name" this year.  Bring your cameras and enjoy!
Behnke Garden Club Special: Entire Perennial Department 25% OFF!
Perennial Sale
Who says membership doesn't have its privileges? Our last trucks of the season have already arrived, so only members will have the freshest pick of the litter at discounted prices. Plant now and enjoy your garden later. With a little bit of planning this fall you can save lots of time and money in the spring. SAVE 25%! 


fall decorating
Plus, Selected Fall & Halloween Decor ~ 35% OFF
for Garden Club Members Only! Pick out your scarecrow and Fall & Halloween decorations and SAVE.  (Excludes the live stuff--pumpkins, gourds, corn stalks etc.)   

Must be a Behnke Garden Club member to get this special price. To join, just  Sign Up Here!  Or you can sign up at check out.  It's FREE.

National Capital Orchid Society
67th Annual Orchid Show & Sale  This Weekend
NCOS orchid On Columbus Day weekend, The National Capital Orchid Society will present its 67th annual Orchid Show at  Behnke Nurseries -- "Orchid Wonderland" Celebrating 67 Years: FREE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC! Plan to visit, bring friends, see thousands of unique orchid plants in bloom, partake in our educational lectures, meet our 'Orchid Doctor' to help answer questions, visit our Sales Area with top-quality vendors for plant and supply sales, unique orchid-themed gifts, and MUCH MORE! Fall is one of the best blooming seasons for orchids in DC, so come prepared for a wonderful selection of orchids to see and buy.

 

Show Schedule

(Saturday, October 11th through Monday, October 13th) 

Saturday8:30-9 amSales area open for NCOS members only
 9 am - 6 pmSales area open to the public
 9 am - 10 amExhibit open for photography
 10 am - 5 pmExhibit open to the public
Sunday9 am - 10 amExhibit open for photography
 10 am - 5 pmExhibit open to the public
 9 am - 6 pmSales area open to the public
Monday9 am - 10 amExhibit open for photography
 10 am - 3 pmExhibit open to the public
 9 am - 3 pmSales area open to the public
 3 pmEXHIBIT AND SALES CLOSE

   

Educational Lectures

Throughout the show, one hour educational lectures will be presented, covering topics of interest to orchid hobbyists.

Saturday, Oct. 11

11:00 amJoseph FrancisSuccess with Orchids - Key points
12:30 pmChryss and GeneNo Greenhouse, No Problem - Grow under lights
2:00 pmStephen MaleSomething Different - growing unusual orchids
3:00 pmSusan KulhaviFukiran- The art of growing Neofinetia falcata

Sunday, Oct. 12  

11:30 amKen MeierSelecting the Right Orchid for You!
1:30 pmThomas VoytillaHow to grow orchids semi-hydroponically
3:00 pmStefanie JarrellPot 'em up....The DIRT on potting orchids

Monday, Oct. 13  

12:00 pmGene SchurgABC's ...Orchids Made Easy

NCOS orchid

There will be guided tours of the exhibit area by senior members of the NCOS immediately following the classroom lectures. Start times will be posted outside the exhibit entrance.


 
Attention Photographers!

Back by popular demand: Orchid Show Photo Sessions 


Saturday, October 12, 9:00 - 10:00 am 

Sunday, October 13, 9:00 - 10:00 am 

Monday, October 14, 9:00 - 10:00 am 


Photograph rare and exotic blooming orchids set in spectacular museum-quality displays without the worry or space constraints due to crowds of visitors. Each session (9 am to 10 am) gives you early access to the Orchid Show Exhibit Area before it opens to the public.

 

Orchid Diagnostic & Re-Potting Clinic
with Carol Allen
October 11,12 & 13 (9:30 am - 4:30 pm)
Orchid Re Potting photo D. Nejako This month Carol will be re-potting all 3 days of the Columbus Day Weekend! 
Bring in your orchids and ask Carol for her advice! For a minimal fee she will expertly repot your plants.
Screening Evergreen Sale! Buy 1 get 1 FREE
Two Week Sale ~ October 6 thru 19th
Green Giant Great for blocking a view of neighbors, roads, parking lots and other eyesores. Fast-growing and large-statured, they'll do the job quickly and with minimal fuss. The Arborvitae and Japanese Cedar are deer-resistant; all are happy in full sun (though the hollies can also take shade) and good drainage. Plant now before we get too close to winter!
Buy One, Get One Free
Green Giant Arborvitae
Eastern White Pine
Japanese Cedar (Cryptomeria)
Leyland Cypress
select Hollies (Robin, Oak Leaf, Oakland and Nellie Stevens)
 
Holland Bulbs Have Arrived!
This week look for our Extra Large "Loose" Bulbs
Loose means individual bulbs NOT in packages. Now you can choose as few or as many as you need to bring your landscape to life next spring.

bulb planting Extra Large Loose Tulips Bulbs

reg. price 79� each

Extra Large Loose Daffodil Bulbs

reg. price $1.19 each

Extra Large Loose Paperwhite Bulbs

These are used for indoor forcing
reg. price 99� each

NOW 25% off 


Date: Saturday, October 11th
Time: 11 am & again at 2 pm

Discover how to..... 
  • Select and plant spring flowering bulbs for a longer spring display.
  • Use deer resistant bulbs.
  • Force bulbs for winter indoor displays.



Ornamental Cabbage and Kale
~Larry Hurley, Behnke's Horticulturist
kale Ornamental cabbage and kale are becoming increasingly popular with gardeners looking for a cool-season ornamental to complement pansy plantings.

They are at their best in late fall, and depending on the weather, may look good into the following spring. Round-leaved types are called ornamental cabbage, while lacy-leafed types are called ornamental kale, but in the garden center biz we use the generic term  "ornamental cabbageandkale," as the culture and uses are the same.

rest of the artice   

Kale Cabbage Fall color that won't quit! Ornamental cabbage and kale empower the fall garden and containers with leafy color and texture that just gets better as the weather cools down. Mix them with grasses, pansies and mums for fabulous displays. 


8 inch pots
reg. priced $5.99 each 
Now $1.00 off
Fall Color Season Extenders: Mums & Fall Pansies
mumspansies

Season extender mums, beautiful plants with flowers just starting to open.  

This Week In Jessica's Garden ~ Backyard Bounty

Jessica Crawford Nasturtium gooseberry Well, I felt adventurous this week. Amongst many other mini adventures, my main excitement came from foraging in the backyard. I spent a little time scouring the trees, plants and grass for potential crafting materials while Grayson tortured wildflowers and swung around big sticks. This time of year, once the weather starts to cool, I find that all kinds of new stuff start popping up to save and craft with later. I picked up a few handfuls of acorn hats, as we call them, out of the lawn and combed the yard for bright fall leaves for pressing. For the sake of experimentation, I also picked a handful of gooseberry and black nasturium leaves out of the garden for pressing.  


Mushrooms Chicken of the Woods Jessica CrawfordBut the biggest excitement of all was certainly of the fungi variety. I was combing  the woodpile, looking for funky fungi when I spotted about four clumps of an alluringly bright mushroom growing from the oak logs. Something in my head sparked and I felt like I had seen and heard of this particular mushroom before. I checked with a few reliable resources and did quite a bit of research online, and sure enough, it was exactly what I had hoped it was. It turned out to be an edible wild mushroom commonly called Chicken of the Woods but also referred to as Shelf mushrooms.

Note from the Editor at Behnke Nurseries: We would like to emphasize strongly that you Must Know What You Are Doing if you are foraging for wild mushrooms/fungi.  There are many mushrooms out there that can make you very ill or even kill you.  Take a class, take a field guide, and make sure your will is written.  Just sayin'.   Larry Hurley
rest of the artice
Bonsai Ducky

As you probably know, Ducky Hong has been exhibiting and selling his bonsai here at Beltsville for the last several years.  Prior to that, he had a bonsai nursery in South Korea. Ducky has expanded his offerings and inventory, and will now be working full time at our location, continuing as an independent business.

He has an inventory of 3,500 bonsai plants, 1,000 of which are on display now at Behnke's in Beltsville. In addition to selling the plants, he will be selling a line of supplies, and teaching bonsai technique classes here. (He has been offering classes in English and Korean, he will be teaching more classes during the week.)

He says that the plants are primarily Japanese and Korean in origin, and there are many specimen plants available here at Beltsville. Ducky's enthusiasm is contagious: you may come in to look and leave with a whole new hobby!

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Tips
October's Gardening To-Do List
Weekly Sales
Garden Blog
BPPS
Taking appointments for Fall planting and yard clean up.
 
Our Holiday Lighting provides professional installation of Brite Ideas lighting products. This full-service approach to holiday lighting includes installation, removal, storage and maintenance of your lights. 
Contact Bill Mann [email protected] and find out just how easy & beautiful this can be.
Activities
SAVE THE DATES:
 WORKSHOP - Plant a Fall Themed Porch Pot - w/ Carol Allen
Date: Saturday, October 18th

FREE Talk - Attractive Winter Interest Shrubs & Trees to Add to Your Landscape - w/Christopher Lewis Saturday, October 25th

 Saturday, October 25th and Sunday, October 26th
Halloween Hunt - Wear your favorite costume! - For children 10 yrs and younger
2 pm each day

Potomac Rose Society Meeting - Open to the Public
w/ Special Guest Speakers Gary Rankin and Monica Valentovic
Growing Roses the Organic Way
Date: Sunday, October 26
Time: 2 pm


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Behnke's Summer Hours 

Beltsville
Sunday  - Friday ~ 9 to 6
Saturday ~ 8 to 6 Open Early
 
Behnke Nurseries Contacts:

Beltsville: 301-937-1100
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: www.behnkes.com
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