Western Mountains: Workshop

Topic: Latin Lovers Make Better Gardeners 

Speaker: Suzanne Hill, Frederick County Master Gardener and Master Naturalist intern

PLEASE NOTE: Despite emails to the contrary, registration is not required!

Botanical names contain valuable information about plant origin, growth habit, flower or leaf form, color, historical use, etc. Today few people speak Latin or classical Greek, so there is no need to fear pronouncing them incorrectly. Learning just a few new terms like decapetalous (10 petals) or umbellata (flower arrangement term using same Latin root as English umbrella) will get you started. You already know a lot of them! Botanical Latin can be fun, even humorous, and is a great aid in plant identification.

In addition to being a certified Master Gardener, Suzanne Hill is a Maryland Master Naturalist intern. She teaches a Weed Warrior training program for Frederick County Parks, which she developed. Hill became a Master Gardener in 2000 in Minnesota where she was encouraged to learn and use scientific names. To accomplish this task she found flash cards incredibly helpful. Since then, personal experience has taught her the importance of knowing the correct botanical name as many in the nursery and landscape industry do not. This is especially true when dealing with native plants which she promotes in every way possible.

The public is welcome to attend this free program which will start promptly at 10:00 am. 

Directions: From I-68 take exit 22 and follow signs for New Germany State Park. Turn left into the park onto McAndrews Hill Road. The program will be held in the Lake House.