Potomac Almanac

10/31/2025

📣 ATTENTION WJ, WATKINS MILL, WHEATON & WHITMAN!

🗳 Register to vote or become an election worker! Montgomery County Board of Elections staff will be present:

🎒 Walter Johnson & Watkins Mill: NOV. 4-5
🎒 Wheaton & Walt Whitman: NOV. 6-7
🥙 Cafeteria Hallway

ℹ️ You must be a U.S. citizen, live in MD & be at least 16 years old.
📝 To apply in person, bring a MD driver's license, permit, MD ID, or know the last 4 digits of your SS #.

🖨 OR download & submit the following forms to staff present:

📝 MD Voter Reg.
https://elections.maryland.gov/voter_registration/documents/English_Internet_VRA.pdf

📝 Election Worker App.
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/Elections/Resources/Files/pdfs/EJ2023/EW%20Forms/Election_Worker_Application_Website2024_Revised_03282023.pdf

📝 Permission Slip (for workers under 18 years old)
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/Elections/Resources/Files/pdfs/EJ%202022/Permission%20Slip%20for%20EW%20under%2018%20yo%20v2%20Fillable.pdf 🇺🇸

10/31/2025

NEW! It's here...the Maryland Native Plant Guide for the Piedmont Region!

Produced through a partnership between University of Maryland Extension, the Maryland Native Plant Society, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Maryland Department of Agriculture, this 180-page downloadable PDF booklet includes:

- educational articles to support gardening success
- photos and descriptions of over 300 featured plants
- plant lists for specific site conditions
- aquatic plant recommendations suitable for ponds
- advice on managing invasive species
- planting approaches in the face of climate change
- an index of plants native to the Maryland Piedmont
- planting strategies from nature writer Nancy Lawson
- tips for dealing with deer (includes deer-resistant plants)

Hard copies will be available for purchase ($10 cost recovery, plus shipping and handling if applicable) at the Maryland Native Plant Society's online store, select Master Gardener events, and participating retailers starting November 2025. Guides for the Coastal Plain and Mountain regions are planned for 2026 and 2027, respectively. We hope this guide will inform, inspire, and move you to plant native!

MNPS store: https://mdflora.org/online-store
PDF download (28.1MB; free; login not required): https://umd.app.box.com/s/wor658gif8nm79jd7gc0i8m89fbpvojz


Maryland Department of Agriculture
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Maryland Native Plant Society

10/31/2025

Friendly reminder that tomorrow, November 1, from 7:30 - 8:30 AM, we will be hosting our next Pet Food Pantry distribution in partnership with MCPAW at the Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church (12701 Veirs Mill Rd, Rockville, MD).

If you or someone you know is in need of pet food and supplies, please come by! We’re here to make sure no pet in our community goes hungry. If you’re unable to attend this Saturday’s distribution, please see the upcoming dates listed below and plan to join us at a future event.

As always, MCASAC remains dedicated to supporting the people and pets of Montgomery County. Thank you for allowing us to be a resource to our neighbors in need! To learn more about MCASAC, visit https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/animalservices/

If you would like to donate unopened food towards the pantries, donations can be brought to the shelter at 7315 Muncaster Mill Rd, Derwood, MD 20855 any day of the week!

10/31/2025

PJM Interconnection, the organization that manages the power grid for 13 states including Maryland, said the grid cannot handle more data centers unless they bring their own source of power.

Developers are planning a large facility in upper Montgomery County. Data centers have sparked protests and legal pushback in neighboring communities, but local officials appear to want the project to move forward.

10/28/2025

Americans brace for food stamps to run out: ‘The greatest hunger catastrophe since the Great Depression’
See:
https://apple.news/A-kFJrkNhSM6hZUkP3dMoFQ
For more on resources that can help and how you can help:

https://montgomerycountymd.gov/ofsr/food/index.html

10/28/2025

Some great news in the Valley! Mark Frondorf, Shenandoah Riverkeeper, reports sightings of the Fisher -- an elusive and in some areas endanger species. Related to the weasel but the size of a house cat, these lovely animals were trapped almost to oblivion and dramatic overlogging nearly finished the job. But with a broad spectrum of improvements in environmental conditions, let's hope to see more of them.
PC- MD DNR

10/28/2025

It is with great joy that we announce that the 2025 Royce Hanson - Ag Reserve champion award will be presented to Montgomery Parks. The Montgomery Parks department of MNCPPC is the largest landowner...

10/28/2025

10/28/2025

10/28/2025

10/24/2025

Found pets. Is one of these yours?