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VCE Publications &
Other Resources

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Go To VCE Lawn & Garden Publications

Annuals, Perennials, and Bulbs

Home Vegetable, Fruit, & Herb Gardening

Fruits & Herbs

Getting Started with Small Fruits and Hops
Herb Culture and Use
Home Fruit Diseases and Insects

Fruits & Herbs

Native Fruit and Nut Trees and Shrubs
Spice It Up!
Tree Fruit in the Home Garden
Weed Management in Small Fruit Crops

Vegetables

Fertilizing the Vegetable Garden
Integrated Pest Management for Vegetable Gardens
Intensive Gardening Methods
Kitchen Gardening Presentation by Henrico Master Gardeners
Mulches for the Home Vegetable Garden

Vegetables

Micro Tunnels in Vegetable Crops: Beyond Season Extension
Planning the Vegetable Garden
Season Extenders
Vegetable Gardening in Containers
Virginia’s Home Garden Vegetable Planting Guide: Recommended Dates & Amounts to Plant

Garden Insects and Pests

General

Bug Guide: Identification, Images & Information
Insect Identification Lab at Virginia Tech

Beekeeping and Bees

Entomologist’s Tips for Installing & Maintaining Native Bee ‘Houses’
Native and Solitary Bees in Virginia

Beneficial Insects

Beneficial Insects: Nature's Pest Control
Good Bugs, Bad Bugs
Pollinator Gardening Tips 101
Project Pollinator: Building Gardens for Polinators, A Comprehensive "How-to" Guide
Spiders: An Undeserved Bad Reputation

Insect Pests

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
Emerald Ash Borer
Emerald Ash Borer: Options for Landowners
Emerald Ash Borer Cost-Share Treatment Program
Insect & Mite Pests of Boxwood
Spotted Lanternfly in Virginia
Stink Bugs

Garden & Landscape Design

Garden & Landscape Design

Container & Raised-Bed Gardening
Gardening & Landscaping for Nature
Gardening Equipment
How to Meadowscape in Your Garden
Landscape Choices Inspired by Nature
Pollination Partners

Garden & Landscape Design

Rain Garden Plants
Selecting Plants for Virginia Landscaping: Showy Flowering Shrubs
The Value of Landscaping
Virginia Firescapes: Firewise Landscaping for Woodland Homes

Sustainability, Gardening & the Environment

General

Be a Steward of the Environment
BMPs for Non-Chemical Weed Control
How to Create a Bird-Friendly Yard
Landscaping for Less in the Landfill
Minimum-Chemical Gardening

General

Sustainability Landscaping Basics
Reducing Pesticide Use in the Home Lawn & Garden
Rethink Your Lawn: Adding Native Plants to Your Home Landscape (YouTube Video)

Indoor Plants

Invasive Plants

Invasive Plants

A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests
A Management Guide for Invasive Plants in Southern Forests
Control & Utilization of Tree-of-Heaven: A Guide for Virginia Landowners
Controlling Invasive Plants: Safely and Effectively with Herbicides
Exotic Invasive Plants
Garden Escape Artists: Many Frequently-Planted Garden Plants Cause Trouble in the Wild
How to Control Invasive Plants: Manual, Mechanical, & Biological Methods
Invasive Plant Species of Virginia
Invasive Plants: A Horticultural Perspective

Invasive Plants

Invasive Plants Fact Sheets
Managing Invasive Alien Plants in Natural Areas, Parks & Small Woodlands
Mistaken Identity? Invasive Plants & their Native Look-Alikes
Non-Native Invasive Plant Species Control Treatments
Non-Native Invasive Plants of Concern in the Central Rappahannock & Regional Native Alternatives
Phasing Out the Propagation & Sale of Invasive Plants
Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas
Pretty but pungent: the curious case of the Callery pear
Tree-of-Heaven: Control Strategies
Virginia Invasive Plant Species List

Turf & Lawns

Turf/Lawns

A "Lawn to Dye For" Video Series
A Virginian’s Year-Round Guide to Yard Care
Choosing & Establishing Warm-season Turfgrasses for Virginia Lawns
“Fall” Into your Cool-Season Lawn: Selecting the Best Grass
Fall Lawn Care
Hand Tools Safety: Lawn Care Training Guide on Hand Tool Care & Safe Use
Lawn Alternatives: Ways to Reduce Your Lawn
Lawn Fertilization in Virginia
Meadows & Prairies: Wildlife-Friendly Alternatives to Lawns

Turf/Lawns

Establishing Lawns
Mowing to Recycle Grass Clippings: Let the Clips Fall Where They May!
Reducing Erosion and Runoff
Selecting Turfgrass
Spring & Summer Lawn Management Considerations for Cool-Season Turfgrasses
Spring & Summer Lawn Management Considerations for Warm-Season Turfgrasses
Turf & Garden Tips Podcast
Turfgrass Seasonal Recommendations
Virginia Turfgrass Variety Recommendations
Weed Management in Lawns

Turf/Lawns: Brown Patch

Brown Patch: Lawn
Brown Patch & Large Patch Diseases of Lawns
Brown Patch in Turf

Turf/Lawn Maintenance

Maintenance Calendar for Cool-Season Turfgrasses in Virginia
Maintenance Calendar for Warm-Season Lawns in Virginia
Turf Care Calendar for Cool-Season Grasses

Native Plants & Habitats

Native Plants

Bringing Conservation From the Countryside to your Backyard
Gallery of all Wildflowers of the Year (Virginia Native Plant Society)
Piedmont Native Plants for Conservation, Restoration & Landscaping
Plant NOVA Natives
Plant Virginia Natives

Habitats

Backyard Wildlife Habitats
Earth Day Starts at Home: Plant Layers for Habitat Structure
For the Birds, Butterflies & Hummingbirds: Creating Inviting Habitats Habitat in the Home Garden
Habitat Gardening for Wildlife

Plants Lists & Databases

Plant Lists

Native Plant Lists
Piedmont Native Plants: A Guide for Landscape & Gardens
Special Collections: Virginia Recommended

Plant Databases

Native Plants Finder for Conservation, Restoration & Landscaping
Native Plant Search Tools
Piedmont Natives – Plant Database
USDA Plants Database
Virginia Invasive Plant Species Finder

Plant Disease & Integrated Pest Management

Disease & Pest Management

An Introduction to Integrated Pest Management
Biorationals: Ecological Pest Management Database
Boxwood Blight Task Force
Diagnosing Plant Problems
Glyphosate: Health Controversy, Benefits & Continuing Debate
Herbicide Basics
Integrated Pest Management For Vegetable Gardens
The Disease Triangle: a Plant Pathological Paradigm Revisited

Disease & Pest Management

Myth-busting IPM for Extension Master Gardeners
Organic vs. Conventional (Synthetic) Pesticides: Advantages & Disadvantages
Pesticide Storage & Disposal – A Quick Guide for Home Use
Reading Pesticide Product Labels
Understanding Pesticide Toxicity
2025 Pest Management Guide: Home Grounds & Animals
How to Use this Pest Management Guide for Home Grounds & Animals

Propagation, Pruning & Poisonous Plants

Plant Propagation

Plant Propagation From Seed
Propagation by Cuttings, Layering & Division

Poisonous Plants

Socrates Project: Poisonous Plants in Virginia

Pruning

Deciduous Tree Pruning
Deciduous Tree Pruning Calendar
Evergreen Tree Pruning
Evergreen Tree Pruning Calendar
Physiology of Pruning Fruit Trees

Pruning

Pruning Basics & Tools
Shrub Pruning
Shrub Pruning Calendar
Stop Topping Trees

Soil Information & Testing

Composting

Backyard Composting
Compost: What Is It & What’s It To You
Making Compost From Yard Waste
Tools & Techniques: Garden Equipment
Using Compost in Your Landscape

Soil Kits & Testing

Building Healthy Soil With Best Management Practices
Soil Information Program
Soil Sample Information Sheet
Soil Sampling For The Home Gardener
Soil Sampling For The Farm
State Soil Testing Lab: Fees & Forms
Web Soil Survey

Trees, Shrubs, Groundcovers & Weeds

General

Common Native Trees of Virginia
Common Native Shrubs & Woody Vines of Virginia
Designing Shrub Layers with Natives
Edible Landscape Series: Shrubs, Vines & Groundcovers
Fertilizing Trees and Shrubs
Identification of Virginia's Noxious Weeds
Managing Winter Injury to Trees and Shrubs

General

Problem-Free Shrubs for Virginia Landscapes
Problem-Free Trees for Virginia Landscapes
Resources for Trees, Shrubs & Groundcovers
Shrubs: Functions, Planning, Maintenance
Tree & Shrub Planting Guidelines
Trees for Acid Soils
Weed Identification
Weed Management

Wildlife

General

Backyard Wildlife Habitats
Nuisance Wildlife Trappers by County
Nuisance Wildlife: Wildlife Damage Management
When Wildlife Overstays Its Welcome
Wildlife Damage Management Fact Sheets

Deer & Bears

Community-Based Deer Management
Effects of Deer Herbivory on Hardwood Forests in the Piedmont of South Carolina
Landscape Plants Rated by Deer Resistance
Bear
Bearwise
Virginia’s First Bear Smart Community

Snakes

Managing Human Wildlife Interactions: Snakes
Snakes of Virginia
Virginia Snake Identification Guide

Mosquitos & Ticks

Mosquitos and Their Control
Asian Longhorned Tick
Common Ticks of Virginia
Tick and Disease Identification Chart

Other Resources & Publications

Albemarle Garden Club
Blandy Experimental Farm: State Arboretum of Virginia
Blue Ridge Prism
Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards
Garden Club of Virginia
Home Grown National Park
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Plant Database
Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
Native Virginia Now! YouTube Channel
North American Pollinator Protection Campaign
Sustainability Matters
United States Botanic Garden
Virginia Master Naturalists
Virginia Native Plant Society
Wildflowers of the United States