We help people in our community learn about plants and gardening.

What’s coming up

  • bumble bee on Appalachian blazing star, a purple flower

    Oct. 18: Pollinator gardening in a warming climate

    Join us on Sunday, Oct. 18, 2-3:30 p.m., for a free Dig Deeper talk on “Gardening for Pollinators in Our Changing Climate.”

    The talk will be at the Orange County Public Library, 137 West Margaret Lane, Hillsborough, NC 27278.

    The speaker will be Danesha Seth Carley, a horticultural science professor at NC State University. If you’re thinking of starting or expanding a garden that encourages pollinating insects, this talk will be helpful!

    At the November Dig Deeper talk (Nov. 15 at 2 p.m.), you can hear about The Plant Toolbox. The speaker will be: Scott Zona, a botanist at NC State University who coordinates the North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. The Toolbox, with information on more than 4,000 plants that grow in North Carolina and the Southeast, is a go-to resource for gardeners.

    (Photo of American bumble bee on Appalachian blazing star, by Debbie Roos.)

  • Flyer with date/time/activity information about PlantFest.

    PlantFest: Oct. 10

    Mark your calendar for PlantFest 2026, the annual plant sale and garden festival hosted by the Master Gardener volunteers of Orange County, NC.

    This year, PlantFest will be held on Saturday, Oct. 10, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Blackwood Farm Park, north of Chapel Hill. Parking will be available at the park entrance on New Hope Church Road. New this year: A tram will shuttle people between the parking area and the event.

    We’ll have a big plant sale, kids’ activities, helpful gardening exhibits, music, food, free seed packets and more!

    We’ll share details in the coming weeks.

    Visit the PlantFest website www.PlantFestNC.org for more information. A plant list for the plant sale will be available later in September!

  • Photo of woman standing at table, talking to two people and pointing to soil and plant information sheets.

    Find us at farmers' markets

    The Master Gardener volunteers of Orange County host booths at the Carrboro Farmers’ Market and at the Eno River Farmers’ Market in Hillsborough.

    We have a booth at the Eno River Farmers’ Market (144 East Margaret Lane, Hillsborough) on the third Saturday of each month, March to October. On Oct. 17, our last market day of the year, we’ll be there from 8 a.m. to noon.

    Our booth at the Carrboro Farmers’ Market (301 West Main St., Carrboro) - is open from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturdays through Oct. 31. On Nov. 7 and 14, our last market days of the year, it will be open 9 a.m. to noon.

    At both markets, we love to answer gardening questions or talk about plants. We offer soil testing boxes and other information. Please stop by and say hi!

    (Photo by Eric Kurtz.)