Category Archives: Community

Art Reception This Week, and Earth Day

Posted on April 18, 2012 by AnnieRie

Two events this week at the Howard County Conservancy. The art reception and auction is tomorrow evening starting at 6 pm. I will be working the event, and who knows if I will get something to finish off the foyer. Lots of good stuff to bid on, particularly these pieces done on reclaimed wood by SOGH.

I keep hearing there is nothing to do in HoCO. For $12, come drink wine, hear entertaining judges, have some My Thyme appetizers, and maybe go home with interesting art for your place. If you have never heard Rebecca Hoffberger, you are in for a real treat. What is showing here is similar to what they are showcasing at the American Visionary Art Museum, or AVAM. All Things Round.

Then, for more to do, this weekend is Earth Day. The Conservancy has a full day planned. For singles, couples, families, retirees, whatever category that fits, there is something to do. Winter is hard on the trees and streams. Sprucing up the property in spring time means lots of little things to do. Easy to hard. Pick your pleasure. Stream cleanup, for example.

Some of us are going birding at 8 am. We may be out for two to three hours, depending on what we hear and see. We have recorded sightings of rare birds, and we have two very talented leaders. Even if you are just getting interested in what is singing in your yard, they are great to walk with. They bring the high powered scopes and generously share the sightings. We have seen eagles on the property, lots of raptors, rare sparrows, and it is spring. Can you say Orioles? We see them often. Baltimore and Orchard orioles. Here is a link to the bird club page with photos of Mt. Pleasant, the farm where the Conservancy is located.

After the bird walk, there are lots of activities that the staff are organizing. Clean up tasks, crafts for children. Check the web site if it rains. Come spend some time outdoors.

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Brighton Dam Azalea Gardens

Posted on April 15, 2012 by AnnieRie

The perfect place to spend Sunday afternoon. The azaleas are peaking early this year. There may not be much left in May.

We headed out to grab some food at Boarman’s including a couple of pulled pork sandwiches and iced tea to have a picnic and walk the gardens. Took along the cooler to put the rest of the groceries in, so we were consolidating shopping, dining and exercising.

The gardens were established when I was a very little girl. My parents brought us out here countless times to walk the five acres of gardens.

They are located on the Montgomery County side of the reservoir, and besides the gardens there is a rec area with picnic tables. On the rec area side is the only place you can have food, drink and pets. Most were just strolling, enjoying, taking pics like me, and just taking in the beauty of a spring day.

We found a few of our pollinating friends enjoying it too.

There are some very lovely specimens in colors other than the normal ones you see in azaleas, like this one, almost an apricot.

A few side paths were squeezed by the sheer size of the bushes, some of which are more than 50 years old.

We wandered for about an hour before returning to the car, just as things were beginning to get crowded. Go early or go during the week to avoid crowds.

This is one of our area’s best spring traditions and a fun day you can spend without paying anything. Take a picnic, wear your sneakers, bring your camera, and enjoy the flowers.

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Posted in Community, Day Trips, Food, Gardening, GGSAC, Howard County, Local Businesses, Nature, West HoCo and tagged azaleas, community, day trips, gardening, GGSAC, hoco loco, Howard County, local businesses, photography, spring flowers, traditions, weather, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

An Exhausting But Fun Day at Greenfest

Posted on April 14, 2012 by AnnieRie

Every year, it seems to get bigger and better. Greenfest at HCC was the place to have fun for young and old alike, with indoor and outdoor activities, booths, classes and with live animals in one of the areas. The Conservancy was out in the main corridor this year, since we left the owl home. Crowds and other animals aren’t Ranger’s favorites.

But, we did bring some interesting things for the kids to touch, like a coyote pelt and a black snake’s discarded skin.

The children were fascinated with the snake skin and loved to touch the softness of the coyote pelt. It did seem to escape the notice of the County Executive who we saw stopping at booth after booth and conversing with the exhibitors.

Just kidding. It was nice to meet Ken Ulman, and we are glad that the county sponsors events like this one. After my volunteering time at the Conservancy booth, we spent time wandering, learning and just having fun, so I couldn’t believe how quickly the day went.

We purchased some cheese from Bowling Green Farms, and brisket from TLV Tree Farms. Thanks to both Howard County Farms for providing the mini farmer’s market. Their web sites are linked on my local resources page.

I will be stopping out at TLV since they are open on Saturdays to add some new herbs to my garden. They had a wonderful array of plants and herbs there today. They will be at the Wednesday, Friday and Sunday markets, I believe.

The list on the farmer’s market web site of vendors is slated to come out this week. Kathy Zimmerman of the HCEDA office confirmed that. The Howard County Farmer’s Markets open three weeks from Wednesday, the first market at the new Miller Library in Ellicott City. I think it is great we have so many young farmers here. Supporting them and helping them succeed makes the county a better place.

My husband did the circuit of the vendors, took a few classes and thankfully restrained himself from bringing home dozens of samples and giveaways. After all, we are retired and trying to rightsize. I do like the notepad with a cover from recycled cardboard.

We were very proud to see that HoLLIE and Ann Strozyk received Robinson Foundation awards. I worked with Ann on curriculum ideas as part of my HoLLIE internship last year.

What I love most about Robinson and the Conservancy? Anne Robinson donated to start the Foundation, and the Nature Center is a tribute to a Howard County woman who believed in giving something that our children and their children will enjoy. Just like Ruth and Frances Brown donated their land to the Conservancy to connect people with nature. The children seemed to have fun today, too.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I love living here. I think Money Magazine had it close but not quite correct. Maybe to them we were number two in the best places to live, but to me, the whole county is special and we are the best place to live. Call me Pollyanna, but being here for 38 years is a testament to how much this county means to me.

Not that I didn’t come home today and collapse for a nap, after all day out and running around. At least, being retired, I can excuse the two hour nap before dinner.

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Posted in Commentary, Community, Farmer's Markets, Food, Gardening, Howard County, Local Businesses, Locavore, Nature, People, Volunteering and tagged commentary, community, farmer's markets, Food, gardening, hoco loco, Howard County, howard county conservancy, local businesses, Locavore, nature, volunteering. Bookmark the permalink.

Too Much To Do This Weekend

Posted on April 13, 2012 by AnnieRie

Like everyone else around here in the Howard County area, I am seeing lots of things to do every weekend now that spring has arrived.

It is funny how all the big events start clustering together in April and May and cluttering our calendars.

What to do? What to do?

Greenfest is where I will be, since I volunteered to spend three hours manning a booth for the Conservancy. The hike to the river is where I’d like to be, but can’t navigate treacherous hills until I have more mobility in my neck.

The Housing Fair is happening, but since we aren’t in that market, it didn’t make my short list.

HoCoConnect did a really good summary of what is going on at Greenfest, and I will add what I want to see. He also highlights two other events I missed.

Well & Wise has a list of upcoming events, too. They include the announcements of the Conservancy events this week and next.

At Greenfest, I will be attending at least two workshops, one on stormwater management in your yard, and one on backyard composting. We do compost some, but I can always use more tips and tricks. I wish I could do the watershed walks, but they conflict. Hubby is going to hear Cathy Hudson talk about raising chickens in the morning at 11am, while I am working at our table. And, just walking around talking to vendors is interesting. I applied last year for the lottery for a free energy audit, and won. We now know what we need to do to finish the weather proofing of our house, making it more energy efficient. As I said above, what to do, what to do?

Don’t forget, there will be a mini farmer’s market there too.

Sunday morning I may make the trek into Baltimore to check out the market for some herbs from Knopps Farm, one of my old favorite vendors when I went to visit family in Severn. If you have never taken a Sunday morning drive to this market, you are missing one of the largest and craziest markets around here. Worth the drive up I-95. There are 45 vendors registered for this year, some with crafts, some with food products, others with produce, meat and dairy, and we love the excitement.

Go early if you do want to find things. It is just an amazing array of food, people and good times. South Mountain Creamery and Zahradka Farms are there. My source of dairy most of the time, and my winter CSA. Both of these vendors will be at Glenwood in four weeks, but until then Baltimore is a good place to get their products, particularly for Elkridge and East Columbia Hoco residents. The market is set up under the Jones Falls Expressway.

And, then of course, I get to come home and file income tax. Not letting MD get those few dimes of mine until the very last minute. At least we broke even and get a few bucks back from the Feds. Hmm, I didn’t check, do we get an extra day or two? Yes, google my friend, says we have until Tuesday, so if the weather is nice, we can spend more time downtown.

I love spring!

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Posted in Community, Day Trips, Farmer's Markets, Food, Gardening, Howard County, Local Businesses, Locavore, Nature, People, Volunteering, Weather and tagged community, day trips, farmer's markets, Food, gardening, hoco loco, Howard County, howard county conservancy, local businesses, Locavore, nature, spring flowers, volunteering, weather. Bookmark the permalink.

Choosing Community in Howard County

Posted on April 12, 2012 by AnnieRie

Last night’s bloggers party in Second Chance Saloon in Columbia reminded me of why I love living here, and wouldn’t change it without serious thoughts on what could possibly be better. I moved out here in 1975 to find a sense of community. In those early days, it was really small here, and felt like a small town with that sense of community. I mean, I still have my original ADC map from 1976, back when there were just a fraction of the number of people in Howard Couny than today. In 1975, less people lived in the entire county than there are now in the city of Columbia.

The Choose Civility bumper stickers miss the point, I believe. Civility isn’t enough. Community is.

The bloggers here are incredibly welcoming, friendly, willing to assist new bloggers, welcome readers and bloggers equally, and so much more. If you read hocoblogs, you can see that. Until you attend your first get together and are welcomed as if “Everybody knows your name”, you won’t understand the power of that community.

My hubby came with me last night. He was a bit worried that he would be bored by all of us talking blog stuff. He didn’t need to be. He came home and told me he had a great time. Everyone was friendly. Talkative. Mixed and mingled. No cliques. No awkward silences or sense of exclusion anywhere.

Ask Nicole of HoCo Loco, our newest blogger, who has been welcomed just like I was at my first party in February.

When I first contacted HowChow and got linked into his blog roll, the welcome was amazing. We exchange emails, and do pingbacks to each other’s blog. He told me he was helped immensely in the beginning by bloggers like Jessie Newburn who is behind the curtain at hocoblogs. Jessie helps all of us by keeping us out there, keeping us motivated. And for organizing the bloggers parties over how many years now?

So, last night I met Marshmallow Man, Sarah and Julia, who cohosted this party, Duane of HoCo Connect, Matt of the newly restored Lost in Columbia blog, Anne from Annethologie, Jeff from Green Floss, Frank from FrankHecker, and others whose names escape me at the moment. Ginger Breadgirl was there as well. Love the pic tweeted last night.

I missed talking to LisaBMrsS, I think I saw Dennis of To2C fame pop in but never got to say Hi, and I was surprised at how many people I remembered from February. As you can see, there are dozens of active bloggers in Howard County who turned out for this event.

One by one, we are losing papers and magazines around here. More and more, we turn to social media to stay in touch, but we don’t always connect. I think this community of bloggers here, connects. In a good way.

Hoping to attend many more get togethers and keep Howard County as great as I personally think it is today.

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Some History of Mt. Pleasant

Posted on April 11, 2012 by AnnieRie

We recently took a guided walk around the Howard County Conservancy property looking at the buildings through the eyes of the historians. Much of the property is being preserved, in order to keep examples of agricultural heritage so important to Howard County. The farm was named Mt. Pleasant by the Brown family members who lived there. The family owned the land from 1692 until they donated it to the Conservancy almost 20 years ago. Parcel names and boundaries changed over the years either by marriages, or bequeathing of properties to the various children, and the 232 acres are what remained that Ruth and Frances Brown donated. Together the sisters taught school in Howard County for a combined total of 97 years.

Head up the driveway towards the top of the hill where many of the buildings still stand.

The farmhouse is the centerpiece of the property, and you can’t see it until you get far into the grounds. It sits high on the property with vistas in many directions. I can only imagine how peaceful and quiet it was before Waverly Woods and I-70 were added. You can hear the interstate traffic faintly these days.

It was built in stages, with the front of it, seen from the parking lot, a newer addition. New, being relative, that is. The original log cabin is still under the siding covered walls near the rear of the house, the logs were covered over as the family grew and expanded the house. Inside there are three separate staircases, and connections between the different parts of the home.

The front of the farmhouse is used for offices now, and the rear is the home of the caretaker’s family, so it is not open to the public. This view from the rear shows where one of the “front” entrances is located, which faced west-northwest.

There are numerous outbuildings as well. Many of these are in stages of preservation. Some are used for demos. Besides the ones I picture, there is a carriage house, a corn crib, a bank barn, and wagon shed. One of the two coops now holds the resident chickens.

The smokehouse and second coop, once used to house guinea fowl. No one knows why those cut outs are there.

When can you see much of the property used as it may have been used years ago?

At the annual Fallfest in October is one time. Including demonstrations in the blacksmith shop. Also this year, there will be a wonder walk in July that showcases what it was like to live and farm on the land.

The Montjoy barn, which is always a draw for people visiting, was moved to the Conservancy from Ellicott City and reassembled. It would have been torn down to make way for development in its former location.

There is also a three acre honors garden on the grounds, where you can find examples of plants native to this area.

Finally, stop in and get the arboretum guide, and you will find trees on site that are beautiful specimens like this American Elm behind the farmhouse, and while back there look carefully and find the outhouse and the foundation for the ice house. Lots of history on the property. So much to discover on your own, or on one of the Conservancy wonder walks. I volunteer here and never get tired of exploring the trails, walking the pathways, visiting the chickens and goats, looking for birds, or just chilling out.

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Posted in Community, Gardening, Hobbies, Howard County, Nature, People, Volunteering, West HoCo and tagged community, gardening, hoco loco, Howard County, howard county conservancy, nature, spring flowers, volunteering, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Second Chance Today

Posted on April 11, 2012 by AnnieRie

OK, when I moved here it was about to become the Last Chance when Claire Lea named it that. They already had JK’s in Wilde Lake, which we loved to frequent.

When it closed in 2004, many of us mourned the loss of another of our favorite watering holes.

Tonight at the Second Chance, in Oakland Mills, the local blogging community is converging to raise a pint or two (or 53) and share stories, tips, enjoy the face to face camaraderie of being local writers about All Things Howard County (and beyond).

And, for us locavores, maybe buy a pint of local beer. One of my favorites. Love the names of Flying Dog beers.

See you there!

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This Saturday: Hike to the Patapsco River

Posted on April 10, 2012 by AnnieRie

With all my talking about Greenfest, I forgot that this is the second Saturday, when the free wonder walks take place at the Howard County Conservancy.

At 10 am, join the leaders, two of the volunteer naturalists, as they lead you on a spring hike across the property and down a stream side trail in Patapsco State Park, to the Patapsco River. Last year, we did this hike in March, with little spring foliage or flowers. This year promises a real treat, with lots in bloom.

The hike starts at the Gudelsky Center, and there will be opportunities to turn around and return easily to the center, if the hike proves too strenuous or long.

It will take at least two hours, total, to do the hike and explore the area where the railroad tracks border the river. There is much to see down there, including some ruined remains of old structures.

You can do the hike in the morning and come hit Greenfest for its final few hours, if you are ambitious.

If you can’t make it to the Conservancy this Saturday, never fear. The Earth Day celebration, bird walk, and clean up is scheduled for the 21st. Or, stop in at Greenfest this Saturday, at the Conservancy’s table there, and pick up the event flier for the rest of 2012.

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Spring Cleaning: Visiting the Landfill & Getting Ready for Greenfest

Posted on April 9, 2012 by AnnieRie

Mondays are my favorite day to hit the landfill. No lines. Things are cleaned up quite a bit. Since we have had less rain than normal, there is no mud back in the yard waste dumping area.

We were up there today dropping off invasive plants we pulled, plus I don’t know how many bags of shredding. I noticed that the hazardous waste collection site opened last Saturday. That means, though, to us we need to brave the large number of county residents who come up on Saturdays. We will at least be able to get rid of all the CFLs in the bag in the garage. Now, if they would just take batteries. We never remember to take them to Radio Shack.

For those with pickup trucks, the county has mulch, top soil and compost for sale at better prices if you need large quantities to do yard work.

For small wood projects, you can also wander into the pallet drop off area and look for scraps. There is no one there today, but many days I see people looking for materials to do wood work, or make bird houses, or frame compost bins. Amazing what you can find there.

I also noticed on the way out, that the 55+ housing is pretty close to the landfill property. Not my idea of a great view. But, they will be close to the Goodwill truck that comes twice a month to that location. Good for spring cleaning and downsizing.

This week, though, we will be taking things on the 14th to Greenfest as part of our cleaning. The boxes of old homeowner association records to shred, some clothing too big to wear anymore for Goodwill, and lots of shoes for the Nike recycling.

If you can’t make it to the landfill to do spring cleaning, don’t forget Greenfest at Howard County Community College.

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Baby Chicks at Tractor Supply

Posted on April 7, 2012 by AnnieRie

This weekend is baby chick weekend at Tractor Supply. The ad came in the mail the other day. Last year was the first year we were up there when the pens full of little fuzzy ones were set up in the back of the store.

You have to buy a minimum of six. You also have to give them information when you check out. I took a couple of pics but they weren’t clear enough to post. I know that some people believe the chicks are there for Easter pets, but they aren’t. There are pullets if you want egg layers and there are also meat chickens.

There were four black wyandottes left. I really wanted to buy them, but I need a sturdy coop to keep the fox from getting to them. Maybe next year.

Tractor Supply was hopping today. Lots of folks buying seeds and plants. Trailers, too. And, lots of equipment being demonstrated.

I buy much of my bird seed there, too. They have the best prices for basic seed, and not a bad price on the shell free seed that I put up near the patio. Don’t want husks up there. Particularly, since the birds like to shove things off to get to their favorites.