Rockbridge Area
Master Gardeners Association
Help Line/Help Desk
The Help Line/Help Desk is a vital part of the VCE Master Gardener Program assisting, when possible, the professional staff in providing information to the public regarding a huge variety of plant-related questions. Staffed by the local Master Gardener Volunteers during the growing season (April to October), the Desk is located in the VCE office on the second floor of the Rockbridge County Office Building on Main Street. Individual Master Gardeners usually volunteer for a two hour period in either the morning or afternoon one day a week.
The Master Gardener Volunteers perform a variety of activities including taking calls from the Public with plant-related questions, distributing soil sample kits, preparing Plant Disease Diagnosis Requests which are forwarded to Virginia Tech for review, and responding to the Public with results.
The Help desk has an extensive reference library to help diagnose plant problems. In addition we can use the resources of Virginia Tech in identifying plant problems and diseases. We are available to help you with your gardening questions. You may call us at (540) 463-4734, fill in the form below, or email us at helpline@ramga.org.
Rockbridge Master Gardeners has developed online libraries of common plants and seeds that may be available at nurseries and garden centers. The libraries provide detailed information on each plant or seed. To access these libraries click on the "Plant Library" or "Seed Library" boxes below. Prices listed are from our most recent Plant Sale and do not reflect pricing at nurseries and garden centers.
Question of the Month
Q: What is an Asian Jumping Worm and why should I care about it?
A: Amynthus worms, aka Asian Jumping Worms, are the latest invading insect from East Asia. They have a characteristic thrashing, snakelike movement when disturbed along with an encircling white band called a clitellum near the head. The worms voraciously consume the nutrients in the topsoil converting it into dry, grainy castings susceptible to erosion and causing loss of habitat for native plants and other organisms. To learn more, click on the links below:
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/ENTO/ENTO-427/ENTO-427.pdf
https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/horticulture/jumpingworms.shtml
Virginia Tech publications: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/
American Horticultural Society: http://ahsgardening.org/gardening-resources
Missouri Botanic Garden: http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/
United States Botanic Garden: https://www.usbg.gov/
Chicago Botanic Garden: https://www.chicagobotanic.org/