2015 Douglas County Master Gardener Programs. May Monthly Meeting May 2015 Vol. 27 No. 5. Susan Phillips Vice-President

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1 Update K-State Research and Extension Douglas County 2110 Harper Street Lawrence KS (785) Update A monthly newsletter for Extension Master Gardeners in Douglas County Douglas County Agent- Horticulture Marlin Bates Association President Diane Oakes Vice President Susan Philips Treasurer Lisa Larson Secretary Sharon Laverentz Public Relations Connie Turner Board Members Eddy VanVleet Kathy Reed Mica Willis Ginny Turvey Dg Horticulture Program Assistant Stan Ring Editor Bekki Heckman K-State, County Extension Councils, Extension Districts, and U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperating All educational programs and materials available without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, or disability. May 2015 Vol. 27 No. 5 May Monthly Meeting 2015 Our next monthly meeting will be Saturday, May 16, from 10-11am in the Dreher Building, at the Douglas County Fairgrounds in Lawrence. Our speaker, Kristin Sanderson, will be introducing us to Backyard Beekeeping. This presentation is open to the public. Susan Phillips Vice-President Learn about bees and how you can keep them in an urban setting. Kristi Sanderson is a Double Master Beekeeper. She has earned the honor of being an EAS master beekeeper and has earned the title of Master beekeeper from Dr Marion Ellis's master Beekeeping program in Nebraska. She has won many first place awards at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson for her honey. She has her hives in her small backyard in Olathe. Kristin will have some of her own honey for sale after her presentation. ATTENTION!!! Special Note about the June Program!!! Next month's Advanced Education will be a bus trip to Olathe Research Center. A bus will be rented for the tour scheduled 10 am-noons. Come join your EMG friends for the trip after the business meeting on Wednesday, June 17. A $5 fee will be collected when you board the bus Douglas County Master Gardener Programs For Advanced Education June 17 - Wed. Bus Tour to the Olathe Research Center and JoCo EMGs Backyard Demonstration Garden. Meeting at 9am. Tour; 10am-noon. Not Open to the Public. July 18 - Sat. Bonsai. Kathy Schlesinger from Bonsai Society of Greater Kansas City. Meeting at 9am. Presentation; 10am-11:30am. Open to the Public. August 19 - Wed. Tour of Harmon Garden and lecture Pond & Bog Plants. Cheryl & Jim Harmon. Meeting at 9am. Tour 10am-11:30am. Not Open to the Public. September 19 - Sat. The Collections at Powell Gardens. Alan Branhagen. Meeting at 9am. Presentation; 10am- 11:30am. Open to the Public. October 21 - Wed. Designing and Maintaining City Gardens. Park & Rec/Crystal Miles & Brad Hoppe. Meeting at 9am. Presentation 10 am-noon. Open to the Public. November 21 - Sat. Small Fruit for the Home Garden. Marlin Bates. Meeting at 9am. Presentation 10 am-11am. Open to the Public. Update May 2015 Page 1 of 6

2 Monarch Watch Updates! On April 27th the MWG committee and JMG committee teamed up to participate in the 2015 Deerfield Kindergarten Science Day. The event is sponsored by the Dg. Co. Conservation District. This was our second year participating. We had Monarch caterpillars to hold, Milkweed seed bombs to make, and an educational story time. They learned about metamorphosis and why we need pollinators for our food. We had four classes rotate through our area for a total of 100 kids and 35 adults. Thanks to Debbie Zabel, Jane Stiles-Potts, Karen Clark and Mary Wolfington for helping to enrich these young minds! Making Milkweed Seed Balls Holding A Caterpillar Monarch Story time Monarchs at the Library! The EMG Public Education committee had its first public presentation on Sunday, April 12 in the Lawrence Library auditorium. It was a family offering on Monarch Butterflies by Eileen Grosser and several EMG volunteers. There was a formal introduction of information and several tables for children and adults to inspect and hold Monarch caterpillars. Over 100 attendees passed through all the exhibits, and the library was very pleased with the session. There are many more presentations scheduled for adults, teens and children. Watch for the dates that Stan publishes for EMG presentations open to the public. Thank you to Eileen and the volunteers who made this first session a big success. Monarch Watch Demo Garden Update Boy Scout "Train the Trainer" workshop Saturday, April 25, we had 17 participants join us for the Boy Scout "Train the Trainer" workshop on "Creating a Monarch Habitat". Workshop packets were created for the troop leaders who were unable to attend. Cheryl Thomas, Ed Burrichter, Kathy Reynolds, Jan Butin and Jane Stiles-Potts presented an exceptional program. They were so good Stan would like them to repeat the program! Thank you for a job well done! Farmers Market On Saturday, May 2, we staffed the EMG table at the Farmers Market. We had Monarch Caterpillars and Chrysalises. We promoted the MW Demo Garden and Plant Fundraiser. Thanks to Jan Butin, Bobbie Frances McDonald, Joan Reiber, Monica Ferrell and Kate Forinash for helping. Our contact count was 508 people! Cub Scout Learning Activity Help is still needed for this project. The dates are June 1st and June 2nd. from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the fairgrounds. You can help one or both days, Morning or afternoon. There will be 5 groups rotating through. We will have three in the morning and two in the afternoon. Each session is about an hour. This will be a fun hands on learning activities involving monarchs, migration and fun facts. me at babagrosser@gmail.com Update May 2015 Page 2 of 6

3 What s Happening Upcoming Events May 28th, Thur.9am 3:30 pm Growing Growers Healthy Soils and Conservation Agriculture Workshop. Sustaining soil health is an important aspect for maintaining the productivity, profitability, and sustainability of any farming operation. This advanced soil management workshop will focus on easily-adoptable practices and conservation agriculture technologies for fruit and vegetable growers. $30/person/register online. June 4 th Growing Grapes in the Home Garden - 11:30am to 1:00pm at the Sunflower Room, Wyandotte Co. Extension Office, 1208 N. 79 th St., KCK. This session is presented by Marlin Bates, our Douglas County Extension Horticulture Agent! Come learn about the science to producing highquality grapes, whether you re interested in table grapes or growing grapes for home winemaking. Free admission to active Master Gardeners, $5.00 for all others. June 8th, Mon. 4-7 pm Growing Growers Postharvest Handling. Learn the basics of maximizing shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables through postharvest handling techniques including washing, storage, packaging, cold chain management, and equipment considerations. This workshop will also highlight the principles of food safety practices for fresh fruit and vegetable producers. $15/person. BE SURE TO MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Douglas County Master Gardeners Tour & Plant Sale Thursday, June 4: At 3:45 p.m. we meet at the Dreher Building. EMG member pre-tour of six home gardens will begin promptly with carpooling as there are limited parking spaces at some of the residences. We will gather after the tour for a pot luck dinner with the homeowners in the Dreher Building. A short presentation will be made to all the homeowners in appreciation for the generosity and hard work to help EMGs have a successful fundraiser. Saturday, June 6 From 9 a.m. -1 p.m. - Native Plant Sale at the Extension Office under the walkway plants of 20 different species will be offered. Mary Locniskar, coordinator. From 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. The tour is open. We still need ticket takers and garden guides! Sunday, June 7 11 a.m. 4 p.m. Final day of the tour. We still need ticket takers and garden guides! Please mark your calendar for the EMG Native Plant Sale on Saturday, June 6, 9:00 AM 1:00 PM. Twenty different plants will be featured, all appropriate for bees and other pollinators. The plants are being obtained from Applied Ecological Services, Inc. (AES). For your information, AES does not use neonicotinoids in their greenhouses. Extension Master Gardener Native Plant Sale Saturday, June 6, :00 AM 1:00 PM Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds (In front of the Extension Office Building) Mary Locniskar If you are not able to attend the plant sale because of commitments related to the Garden Tour, you may place an order for plants and pick them up on Monday morning. Please see the order form that follows. Update May 2015 Page 3 of 6

4 Organizational Reports to Members EMG Executive Board Meeting Minutes April 8, 2015 Present: Diane Oakes, President; Susan Phillips, Vice President; Lisa Larsen, treasurer; Sharon Laverentz, secretary; Connie Turner, Public Relations; Kathy Reed, At large; Ginny Turvey, At Large; Mica Willis, At Large; Marlin Bates, Horticulture Agent; Stan Ring; Roxie McGee, Guest. Meeting called to order at 9 a.m. Roxie McGee presented the Memorandum of Understanding between the Douglas County Extension Master Gardeners and the Kansas Biological Survey regarding management of Specified areas of the KU Native Medicinal Plant Research Garden and the Memorandum of Understanding among the Douglas County Extension Master Gardeners, the Kansas Biological Survey and the KU Student Farm regarding a Shared compost system at the KU Native Medicinal Plant Research Garden site. Roxie McGee agreed to be the Chairperson of the committee and to assist in recruiting members for the committee. Kathy Reed moved that the committee to help maintain the KU Native Medicinal Plant Research Garden would be Ad Hoc until 12/2015. At that time the project will be reviewed and evaluated. The MOU for the shared compost system will not be signed. Instead, the EMG public education committee will work with the KU student farm leaders to develop and support the implementation of a sustainable shared-use compost space and system. Ginny Turvey seconded. Motion passed. Kathy Reed moved to approve the paying of bills. Sharon Laverentz seconded. Motion passed. The finance committee will report in May on ideas concerning the use of the extra money in the EMG treasury. Ginny Turvey will talk to Mary Locniskar about allowing EMG members to pre-order plants from the native plant sale. Mica Willis reported that the Fairground Demo Garden chairperson has requested a sign for that garden that would be visible from the street. The sign would let passersby know what the garden is and that visitors are welcome. Stan announced that Dr. Allen Stevens is interested in leading another EMG tour, probably in the fall. Marlin Bates reported that he would be teaching several upcoming classes. He also mentioned that he is very pleased with all the activities and projects that EMG members are engaged in. Sharon Laverentz, Secretary EMG Business Meeting April 15, 2015 The meeting was called to order at 9AM by president Diane Oakes. Lisa Larsen presented the treasurer s report: $ was spent in March; $ has been spent in 2015 to date leaving a balance of $8, in the operating budget. Susan Phillips reported on Community Partnerships: a. The first EMG presentation at the Lawrence library went well. About 100 people were in attendance. Eileen Grosser and the Monarch Watch committee gave the presentation. b. Jane Cram and Susan Phillips will have a booth at Deerfield school with information about EMG activities. c. Susan Phillips presented a program on Container Gardening for age 50 and up on April 25 at the East Lawrence Center. Garden Tour: The pre-tour potluck and viewing of gardens will be on June 4 th beginning at 4PM. Attendees are asked to bring a dish, which may be dropped off at 3:45 at Building 21. Stan Ring provided information on a possible EMG trip in last summer or early fall. Members were asked to indicate whether or not they might be interested in going. He also indicated there could be a three day course on landscaping if there is enough interest. Please let Stan know if you are interested in either event. Marlin Bates thanked all Master Gardeners for their work. He said he is pleased with all he has seen. Marlin also reported that he is on the Food Hub committee. This group is working hard to find ways to get local fruit and vegetables into local institutions such as schools, hospitals and grocery stores. Meeting adjourned at 9:45AM and was followed by an excellent advanced training program on plant diseases in Kansas. Submitted by Sharon Laverentz, Secretary Update May 2015 Page 2 of 6

5 The Monthly Update is your chance to make your committee or activity known. If you are having organizational meetings, activities, or a call for volunteers, let the Update help you get the word out. Send the write up to Stan Ring at Sring1@ksu.edu or Bekki Heckman at bekheck@gmail.com by the 5 th of the month to be included in the newsletter. To assure your place on the next regular meeting agenda send a request to Susan Phillips at susan.farm@hotmail.com, 3-5 days before the meeting. You will also get a chance to speak at the meeting but this will reserve a space on the agenda. If you are planning to distribute handouts, papers, or publish advertisements on behalf of EMG s, these need to be reviewed by Marlin Bates, prior to distribution or publication, to make sure we are on track with Kansas State University requirements. Update May 2015 Page 3 of 6

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