MSU Tollgate Gardens Volunteer General Meeting in the Conference Center Thursday, June 19, 7:00 PM

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1 The Tollgate Farm News Volume 20 Issue 6 June 2014 MSU Tollgate Gardens Volunteer General Meeting in the Conference Center Thursday, June 19, 7:00 PM ALL ABOUT GARLIC On Thursday, June 19, join Tollgate volunteers in the conference center to learn about hardneck garlic. After onions, garlic is the second most widely consumed allium. Les and Donna Abel of the Michigan Garlic Farm will share information about their 35,000 hardneck garlic plants that are planted, weeded and harvested by hand on their farm in Livingston County, where they do not use pesticides or herbicides. Based on 25 years of growing gourmet garlic, the Abels will talk about the differences between hardneck (or topset) and softneck garlic and between bulbs and scapes. Of the many cultivars of garlic, the Abels grow Northern Jewel, a variety from the purple stripe group. Les and Donna will discuss growing (popping, planting in October/November, fertilizing, mulching and watering), harvesting in June/July, cleaning, drying, curing, storing (including freezing, but not refrigerating) and replanting. The Abels sell their garlic products bulbs, granules and powders (regular or smoked), braids and scapes at farmers markets in Ann Arbor, Brighton, Canton, Dearborn, Farmington, Howell, Milford, Pittsfield and Saline. They will be selling seasonal items at Tollgate on June 19. The Michigan Garlic Farm website contains extensive information including recipes at Tollgate Garden Volunteer Important Dates and Events JUN MEETINGS JUL MEETINGS 19 TGV General Meeting 7:00 PM 1 TGAC Meeting 7:00 PM 9 Fall Fair Meeting 7:00 PM 17 TGV General Meeting 7:00 PM JUN ACTIVITIES JUL ACTIVITIES 21 Dry Shade/Rain Garden 9:00 AM 12 Open House Clean-up 9:00 AM 28 Rose/Heritage/Rock Ledge 9:00 AM 19 OPEN HOUSE Art in the Gardens 10:00 AM TO 3:00 PM 26 Children s/nursery/activity Center 9:00 AM Page

2 GREETINGS Greetings All, from the Tollgate Farm Manager Roy Prentice Plant Sale: Thanks to all that helped make the plant sale a success. Due to the efforts of the many volunteers that donated plants, prepared the nursery, and helped customers on the day of the sale, we made $4751.! This was our best sale ever. I especially appreciate all of the hard work that went into getting the nursery into such great shape before the sale. It presented very well to all of our customers. I am sure that all who attended the sale appreciated the improved organization and upkeep of the garden. All of the money raised goes directly into the Tollgate Garden Volunteer account and helps us to help us keep the gardens looking great for our many visitors. A big thanks are due also to George Papadelis of Telly s Greenhouse. George very generously donated a trailer load of wonderful annuals for the plant sale. George has been a long-time friend of Tollgate and has donated lots of plants over the years. Page 2 A Few of the Many Annuals Donated by George Papadelis of Telly s Greenhouse Eagle Scout Extravaganza: Several Eagle Scout projects are planned for the site this year. Scouts will be working on irrigation and hardscaping projects in the pond area and will be performing some improvement work on the animal fences for the animal education area. Eagle Scout projects are a great way to get major projects completed around the farm. The scouts and their crews are young and inexperienced, but very enthusiastic and anxious to help Tollgate and their community! Many visitors and garden groups came to Tollgate during May to view the gardens. As the site becomes more and more prominent in SE Michigan, I really appreciate all of the effort that goes into keeping the grounds looking their best. We have a lot of new volunteers on the farm these days. These extra hands are much appreciated as we strive to keep the farm looking good and fulfilling its educational role. If you are considering volunteering at Tollgate, now is an ideal time to get those hours in. Spring and early summer are the busiest time around the farm. As the season progresses, there is less to be done around Tollgate. Please check out the Tollgate web site and make note of our upcoming volunteer days. I really appreciate all of the work and dedication that goes into keeping Tollgate looking good. See you around the farm! Roy Photos by Mike Janczarek

3 Notes from the President And since all this loveliness cannot be heaven, I know in my heart it is June. Abba Goold Woolson PLANT SALE SUCCESS!!- Thanks to all volunteers who contributed your plants, time or sales talent and knowledgeable help to put together our most successful Plant Sale ever. The added efforts of the Nursery Team for the addition of pictures and reference information had the desired result of increased sales. These funds go to our gardening account to continue to upgrade and maintain the current garden sites and projects. Any AGL that would like to send a revised budget request should do so at this time. Tollgate Open House Art in the Gardens is on July 19th! There will be local artists working, displaying their talents, musicians to provide entertainment and other garden item related vendors to satisfy your shopping urges. We will continue with educational talks and the garden walking tours. We hope to educate and entertain our guests and hopefully stimulate local volunteer interest. See the activity calendar for the organized clean-up day Saturday July 12 th. We ask that you take announcement flyers to friends, family and neighbors to share this event and showcase the Tollgate Gardens. We will have them available at the meeting and in the volunteer communication center. A sign-up sheet for volunteer tasks, finger food donations for the event will be circulated along with an request going out soon or you can me at rmcottrell4@att.net. We will be looking for lots of volunteer support to be garden docents, runners, lunch and parking attendants, informational speakers and set-up/clean up crews. See the activity calendar and come out and enjoy the gardens! As Always, Thank you for being a Tollgate Garden Volunteer. Renee Cottrell, TGV President Volunteers Led by Peg Palmer (center) Pot Plants Weeks before the Plant Sale Minette Prentice, Roy Prentice and Renee Cottrell at the Plant Sale Photo by Darretta Ferasin Photo by Mike Janczarek Page 3

4 2014 Tollgate Plant Sale Photos by Mike Janczarek Page 4

5 Fall Fair Submitted by Dennis Roggers Fresh from June s Fall Fair meeting we are happy to announce the return of two of last year s favorite additions to the Fair. The Grand River Band along with 2 new additional members will perform form 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. And Thor, the Giant Tortoise will make a return performance much to the enjoyment of all our visitors last year. These along with all the other great activities will guarantee another fantastic Fall Fair. The Grand River Band Returns with Two Additional Members Do you Face paint? Know someone who does? Maybe you know someone who wants to learn how to face paint. We can use your help the day of the fair. Please contact Betsy Wilds she is handling the volunteer sign up. You can reach her at either her cell phone or at betsywilds389@yahoo.com. Do you work for a company that does an employee match for charitable causes? We can arrange for a reimbursement of your expenses so that you do not have any out of pocket cost. Just arrange the donation and upon arrival of the matching funds we can arrange for another private donator to reimburse you. For more information get hold of me at fallfair@supmac.com or call me at Don t forget to donate your returnable bottles and cans for our Fall Fair Can Drive. You can drop off your returnable containers in the Volunteer Communication Center to the left of the fridge in the box marked Fall Fair. Your donation is very important for the can drive can cover as much as 5% of the total fair costs. Last year the budget was over $4, so you can understand on how every source of revenue is important. The Fall Fair has been a self-supporting activity for the last 6 years and does not use any money from the Tollgate garden funds, but it can only continue to do that with new sources of income, so if you have any ideas or donation sources please contact me or Roy. Enjoy your summer at the Farm! The July Fall Fair meeting will be on the 9 th at 7:00 PM. Hope to see you there. Dennis Roggers Thor, the Giant Tortoise Photos by Cindy Prentice Page 5

6 ACTIVITY DAYS Photos by Darretta Ferasin Page 6

7 A Group of Agile Tollgate Bucketeers, Wheel Barrowers, Weeders and Mulchers Quickly Mulched the Entire Farmhouse Garden in Record Time on May 31 Thank You from Darretta Ferasin, Farmhouse AGL AGL, John Woodrich The PAR garden is really starting to take shape due to the hard work of some dedicated volunteers. Page 7

8 A Special Thanks! To all of you who made a donation to help the Tollgate Gardeners make Tollgate a more beautiful place. Your donation is greatly appreciated! The support that you have provided will continue to help our program prosper and grow. Thanks again and Happy Gardening! Frank Allen Deb Bender Maryann Chupa Joe Costa Kelly Gies Susan Grant Connie Gregory Karen Harris Martha Hart Graydon Johnson Kerry Kelly Judy Klein Laurey Konjarevich Tracy Krauss Becky Makanoff Paul Mazur Patrick McKinney Wanda Morrison Sherry Mueller Jamie Murphy Liz Novak Nancy O Çonnor Heather Pettijohn Nancy Prochazka Rama Ratnala Siva Ratnala Alex Sovel Gerald Spezia Lynn Strong T. Leonard Terry Melinda Thomas Pamela Truran Brad VanDerWege Carolyn and Jeff Volk Kathryn Wildfong Debra Yuhas The quilt raffle day grows near. Pick up your tickets at the next General Meeting Approximate Size: 71" x 71" Raffle Date: Saturday, July 19th at the close of the Tollgate Summer Open House, Art in the Gardens. Tickets: $2.00 each or (3) for $5.00 TICKETS AVAILABLE AT THE JUNE TGV GENERAL MEETING Tollgate Calendar 2016 I am accepting photos for the 2016 calendar now through December I know. I know it seems so far away and I just finished accepting photos for the 2015 calendar. This past year was a transition year. I had been putting the calendar together during the late spring, early summer which, for an avid gardener, is a pretty busy time of the year. I will now be able to do the calendar during the winter months and not feel so rushed. I prefer to have photos submitted in landscape format and on a memory stick, with your name on it so it can be returned. They can be given to Roy or myself. If you have any questions you can reach me at tollgatemembership@gmail.com. Nancy Roggers Please send your photos in. Without your participation the calendar will not be possible. Page 8

9 Tollgate Volunteer Information Activity Days Activity day hours are 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM unless otherwise noted on the Tollgate Garden Volunteer Important Dates and Events listed on the first page of the Tollgate Farm News or by the Area Garden Leader (AGL). Lunch will be provided - veggie alternatives are available upon request. This schedule does not exclude you from working independently on the site. However, on non-scheduled days, your efforts will need to be selfdirected with guidance from the garden area clipboards located in the Volunteer Communication Center. If you aren t getting The Tollgate Farm News , Check your SPAM folder Volunteer Activity Day and Meetings Information ext. 400 Garden Tools Available for Use at Tollgate Spades Garden Rakes Brooms Wheel Barrels Weed Buckets Leaf Rakes Garden Hoe Long Handled Garden Forks List of Suggested Gardening Implements to Bring from Home as Needed Trowel Hand Pruners Loppers Garden Scissors Your Favorite Weeding Implement Hand Saw Plant Division Forks Shrub Rake Sun Screen Gloves Knee Pads Insect Repellant Tollgate Garden Advisory Council Farm Manager Roy Prentice ext prentic1@msu.edu President... Renee Cottrell Vice President... Peg Palmer Secretary... Dave Komraus Treasurer... Sue Janczarek Membership... Nancy Roggers PR... Yvonne DeMattos Fall Fair... Dennis Roggers Programs... Jackie Stengel Hospitality... Yvonne DeMattos Farm News Editor... Darretta Ferasin For membership questions or to update your current membership information send to: tollgatemembership@gmail.com MSU Tollgate Gardens Volunteers For general information and questions Contact Roy Prentice The Tollgate Gardens Advisory Council next meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 1, 2014 at 7:00 PM in the Tollgate Office Building. All Tollgate Gardens Volunteer members are welcome to attend. Listings to contact individual Council Members and Area Garden Leaders are available at all general meetings and in the Volunteer Communication Center. Tollgate Volunteer Membership is renewed annually. The 2014 Tollgate Garden Volunteers membership is from December 1, 2013 to November 30, THE TOLLGATE FARM NEWS Tollgate Gardens Volunteer Office Meadowbrook Novi, MI, Page 9