Project Spudnik will put more taters into the ground this year thanks to a grant from Keep Maryland Beautiful.          Inspired by the improbable garden Matt Damon grows in the movie The Martian, Project Spudnik teaches teens to live sustainably through gardening. This year, what started as a container garden grows $1,000 richer.

     There’s nothing like the sound of a chainsaw to catch Judy Taylor’s attention.      That’s because following it may lead her to an opportunity that could keep her husband Larry Taylor happily engaged for hours at a time. When he disappears into his woodturner’s equivalent of a man cave, magic happens.

      Trained to retrieve items, alert their partner to important sounds such as a doorbell or alarm, operate light switches and seek help in an emergency, service dogs help many veterans and first responders with disabilities achieve independence. Partnering with a service dog is free.        But preparing those dogs is an expensive and specialized business. The cost of the dog, medical fees and training can run close to $25,000.       Now, Maryland will help pay the bill.

       A debate on Asian oysters engaged Sunderland Elementary School students in reading, writing and speaking — skills the world’s first universities considered essential for leading and for promoting the best ideas.       Rising to the challenge, students went beyond arguing pro or con.

      St. Patrick’s Day, celebrated on March 17, is the anniversary of the death of the patron saint of Ireland. Kidnapped as a teen, Saint Patrick was brought to Ireland but eventually escaped to his native Britain. He later returned to Ireland and is credited with bringing Christianity to the Irish. He died in the fifth century. But on March 17, at least in America, everybody is Irish. Indeed, more than 30 million Americans have predominantly Irish roots. Between 1820 and 1930, 4.5 million Irish arrived in America.

      When you hear a sparrow, do you envision only those birds under your bistro table? Bonnie Ott is here to expand your view to the many native sparrow species in our area. An expert naturalist, photographer and lifelong Howard County resident, she is more familiar with little brown birds than just about anyone.

      Another domino has fallen in the war on plastic, toppling close to home.        A bill banning polystyrene, the chemical that gave us Styrofoam, has been introduced for the second year in the Anne Arundel County Council. If passed, it will prohibit the use of food-service polystyrene products in the county by next January.

      Love is tricky. The adage goes, you never know where you’ll find it. Maybe it’s out on a dock by the Bay or under the awnings of a local coffee shop. For me, love was where I’d least expected to find it: Tinder.

     It’s a packed house and the crowd is warmed up as the emcee introduces the next comic at D.C.’s celebrated Comedy Improv.      “Please put your hands together for Adam Keys, ladies and gentlemen!” Cheers and applause.      As Keys climbs the stairs below stage left, the audience registers something different about him. Is it his rocking gait? His height? His outfit, maybe?

     Two local Sugar Face dachshunds, Sherman and Annie, may out-cute Puppy Bowl rompers as they show their skills on the football field at the Second Annual Dog Bowl on Animal Planet.          Aged 14 and 12, the doxies represent Sugar Faces Senior Dog Rescue of Southern Maryland.