Johnson County Master Gardener Thymes

Transcription

1 Johnson County Master Gardener Thymes December 2017/January 2018 Save the Date for MG Winter Potluck, March 11 Details will follow in February and March issues of the Thymes. Project Green Second Sunday Garden Forums Meeting Room A, 2-4 p.m. Iowa City Public Library. Free to Public, Refreshments and Door Prizes MG Steering Committee Meeting There will be no steering committee in December. The next meeting will be Wednesday, January 10 at 7:00 pm; Johnson County Extension Office. All are invited to attend! Thymes Deadline Thymes information should be sent to Jan Denehy at Please send news, volunteer opportunities, stories, pictures, etc., for the February issue by Friday, January 26. Time to Report MG Hours!! MG Volunteer and Education hours need to be reported by the end of the year. Those still needing volunteer hours can contact Shannon Bielicke. To log in, go to Thanks to the Thymes Contributors Thanks to the many Master Gardeners who have contributed news, photos and/or articles for the Thymes during the last year. Also, special thanks to Chris Sedrel for compiling the monthly calendar of events column and Linda Schreiber for her series of articles during the year. Finally, Shannon Blelicke deserves recognition for posting the Thymes to the ISU Extension website for you to read. Your time and efforts make this publication a helpful resource for Johnson County Master Gardeners. Jan Denehy, Thymes Editor January 14 Creating Garden Rooms by Lisa Orgler. As a faculty member of the Iowa State University Department of Horticulture and creator of the website, PaperGardenWorkshop, ( om) Lisa knows that creating a landscape plan can often seem overwhelming. The good news is she will share her design process to create garden structure, which in turn, miraculously reveals garden rooms surrounded by printing beds. Lisa is an award winning designer, artist and educator from Des Moines. She uses her illustration skills to teach the topics she adores - garden design and landscape graphics. February 11 Laura Hawks presents Ashton House Landscape Revival. An Iowa City-based registered professional landscape architect for 29 years and principal of Hawks Design. Laura will discuss the transformation of the Project GREEN Gardens at Ashton House. She will also discuss projects she has completed for Project GREEN, as well as, past and present successful plantings throughout Iowa City s parkways. Throughout the presentation, Laura will share examples of her specialty and passion for plant materials. 1

2 March 4 Deb Walser presents Blueberries, Strawberries and Raspberries, oh my! and Introduction to the newest and coolest annuals and perennials Deb is a recently retired perennial expert from Peck s Green Thumb Nursery in Cedar Rapids and an active Master Gardener. Her love affair with berries began as a child in her grandmother s raspberry patch. She will share her experience and success in growing the best tasting berries in your backyard with tips for the right soil, location, watering and pruning techniques. Deb will also challenge you to add some spunk to your perennial gardens by introducing some new perennials and annuals and mixing them up for constant color throughout the season. Facilities. We talked with roughly 500 event attendees, ranging from facilities to deans to a variety of hospital employees, who stopped by the Attended Display tables to talk about their vegetable and flower gardens, pollinators, or to ask questions, and pick up publications. The Wellness team has also asked our group for ideas and suggestions for next year s event, and to possibly include a garden path with potted plants and small trees provided by a local nursery. Next year s event will be on Wednesday, November 7, 2018, and a mind-body theme is being planned. Submitted by Sharon Rude & Carolyn Murphy MGs Participate in Annual UI Health Fair The Johnson County Master Gardeners had an Attended Display with gardening-related publications at the Annual University of Iowa Health Fair again this year. This is the second year the Master Gardeners have been asked to participate as a community partner. The Health Fair is an annual event hosted by the UI Wellness team on the first Wednesday of November. This year s event was on Wednesday, November 1, from 7:30a.m. to 4:00p.m, on the main deck of the UI Field House. The Health Fair is open to all University faculty and staff. The theme this year was Walk this way, promoting movement and how to move more. 57 health and well-being related vendors were available to talk about their services and programs with event attendees. Master Gardeners helping with the event were Carolyn, Mike, and Angela Murphy, Gwen Elling, and Sharon Rude. We arrived at the Field House at 6:45a.m. to set up two tables with ISU Reiman Garden publications, composting, butterfly, and pollinator displays. As suggested last year by the Wellness Director, regarding adding real plants to our display if possible; Carolyn & Angela set-up a Welcome to our Sensory Garden display with real plants and ideas of how to incorporate the five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch) to a space regardless of its size; (out/inside gardens, office, your desk) using colors, scents, humorous garden signs, plants (real or not) & sound (real or not). Lavender, lambs ears, rosemary, & a small rabbit s foot fern were used as real plants in the display. To relate to the theme of the health fair, we had a rubber boot planter with a wind chime and a sign These Boots are made for Walking. We also addressed possible limitations with ISU Therapeutic publications, Creating Raised Bed Planters, Gardening Tips of Older Adults, and Resources & Benefits for Healthcare MG Display Table at UI Health Fair attended by Carolyn Murphy, Angela Murphy, Mike Murphy, Gwen Elling, and Sharon Rude. Visitors view MG Display at UI Health Fair Trouble-Free Tropicals: Getting the Holiday Cactus to Bloom (and Re-bloom) Submitted by Benjamin Batzer This time of year, holiday cactuses (or cacti) are to be found for sale everywhere, from the grocery to the hardware store. These plants come in a variety of colors and sizes, and you re likely to be amazed by the sheer number of blooms and buds on these greenhouse-grown plants. The plants on sale this time of year are generally either Thanksgiving cactuses (Schlumbergera truncata) or Christmas cactuses (Schlumbergera bridgesii). Both 2

3 originate from southern Brazil and are named for the famous plant collector, Frédéric Schlumberger. Many people, including sellers, confuse these two species. You can easily tell them apart by examining the edges of their stem pads: the Thanksgiving species has sharper, more pronounced edges, while the Christmas species has more rounded edges. Generally speaking, the plants are durable and long-lived. I ve talked to several people who have plants that are more than 50 years old. My Christmas cactus (pictured here) came from cuttings I took from a plant that once belonged to my great-greatgrandmother, a plant her daughter grew until her own death at 99 years of age. The plant now belongs to my grandmother. I cannot begin to estimate how old it is. The plants can be kept alive by remembering one important fact: they are not really cactuses. Rather, they are actually succulents, which means they need frequent moisture, rich potting soil, and plenty of room for root growth. If under-watered, these plants will wilt and drop stems without hesitation, and their recovery from drought is slow. The reason many of us keep holiday cactuses is for their seasonal display of blooms. I m sure at least a few of you like me have been disappointed after bringing a plant home and watching as it promptly dropped all of its buds. While blooming, plants are particularly sensitive to changes in light, temperature, and moisture. You might not see any more blooms after bringing it home, but you will surely see some next year with the right care. I ve heard several old-time tricks for getting holiday cactus to bloom. The best practice, however, is to let the seasonal daylight changes do the work for you: If your plant sits in a room where artificial lights are not often used, shortening days will automatically induce bud formation. I water my plants as usual, but I do not rotate them once buds appear. Even the minimal change in light exposure will cause some buds to fall off. As the blooms fade and dry, you can remove them by twisting them off the stem tip. After they ve bloomed, I like to rinse plants off in a warm shower to remove pollen and dust. I also like to prune or shape my plants at this time. Early spring is the best time for top-dressing, repotting, or taking cuttings, which can be rooted in bulb pans filled with sandy soil. For further reference go to [a quick overview of holiday cactus culture, written by our own Richard Jauron] Benjamin s family Holiday Cactus in bloom December Birthdays 1 Lavon Yeggy 3 Loren Leach 7 Stephany Hoffelt 9 Julie Hegmann 11 Emil Rinderspacher 12 Barbara Robinson 16 Cindy Goldammer 17 Arlene Donnelly 17 Jo Verts 18 Sandy Stell 19 Chris Sedrel 24 Alice Linhart 27 Margaret Hibbs 27 Sharon Rude 28 Melanie Haupert 31 Louise Murray 31 Doug Garretsk January Birthdays 1 Joan Dinnel 4 Fred Meyer 5 Jim Ridenour 7 Kris Jones 9 Lois Dusdieker 12 Amy Kakavas 18 Karen Martinek 21 Maggie Elliott 23 Mike Farran 25 Stella Clark 30 Beth Fisher 30 Catherine Kelly 3

4 On the Shoulders of Giants - Favorite Podcasts for Iowa Gardening by Caleb Ryder If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. - Isaac Newton About ten years ago, Jayne and I got our first place in North Liberty. We spent 3 years there as first-time gardeners. We pieced together vegetable gardens and flowerbeds, and experimented with many varieties of trees, shrubs, and flowers. Six years ago, we moved back to Iowa City and have since transformed a halfacre of nothing but turf-grass into our own personal botanical gardens.well, someday soon maybe. But, we are NOT geniuses. At first, we didn t know what varieties to pick or how to cultivate a certain species. We didn t know how to build a raised bed or best incorporate compost. We used the knowledge and recommendations of far better gardeners, scientists, and seasoned professionals than ourselves, and built our back yard sanctuary on the shoulders of giants. The digital revolution has made it easier than ever to find and absorb the nutrients we need to help us grow into healthy and thriving gardeners. Podcasts have given us a never-ending, ever-expanding amount of horticultural fertilizer to ingest and digest. (please don t eat fertilizer, it s just a metaphor) Although, if you re like me I can t get enough of this botanical boost. Over the last decade, I have stumbled upon various audio resources I would now consider priceless in their ability to explain the fundamentals and details of gardening. There can be a lot of misinformation, folk tales, and superstition in the air when it comes to gardening info, and in this article I will share some of my favorite resources I ve found to be accurate, knowledgeable, and helpful in the real world when planning one s garden. I hope you find them as useful as I have! Podcasts Many gardening podcasts are Internet radio shows that can be downloaded or streamed to your smartphone or computer. Some are interviews with specialists or call-in question & answer shows. Many have a new episode every week or twice a week. Here are a few of my favorites. You Bet Your Garden - WHYY Philadelphia - Hosted by former editor of Organic Gardening Magazine, Mike McGrath, this weekly public radio show is also available to download as a podcast. It is a call-in Q&A format where Mike uses his uniquely funny personality and lifetime of gardening know-how to entertain and educate. He also has an interview section of the show where an expert weighs in on a specific topic that week. Mike ends every episode with his Question of the Week segment where he answers a season-relevant listener submitted question in detail. Mike has compiled his decades of Questions of the Week into a wonderful A-Z database of garden answers available here. ( garden/a) It is a quick and easy A-Z resource to look up common issues. Go get lost and found on these topics. An amazing amount of information! Join Mike as he slays slugs, defeats deer, whacks weeds, mispronounces Latin words and saves plants across the nation every week on You Bet Your Garden Podcast - Garden Answers A-Z - arden/a Talk of Iowa - Horticulture Day - Iowa Public Radio - Hosted by Charity Nebbe, on Fridays they talk horticulture. She typically begins with an interview with an Iowa State University extension specialist, then takes call-in Q&A s from around our state. Charity often features ISU extension horticulturists Richard Jauron, Cindy Haynes, and Patrick O Malley, entomologists Donald Lewis and Laura Jesse, as well as our local district forester Mark Vitosh who works out of the Iowa City extension office. Iowa Master Gardener Coordinator Denny Schrock appears on the show occasionally, and Talk of Iowa is where I first learned about the Master Gardener Program long before joining. The cultivar recommendations and seasonally relevant, research based information dispensed each week are as local as it gets for our planting zone(zone(s) 4a/5b). Hort Day reminds us each week how predictably unpredictable our Iowa(City) climate can be. Podcast - The Joe Gardener Podcast w/ Joe Lamp l - Creator, Executive Producer and Host of the multiaward-winning PBS series, Growing a Greener World and previously as host of Fresh from the Garden on DIY Network. Joe s new podcast The Joe Gardener Podcast is an information junkie s dream! He gets to the main gardening objectives and practices quickly and explains things well. If you have ever felt bored or needing more details while listening to a podcast, then you will love Joe s show in contrast. He provides information in a start-to-finish way that holds the attention of both beginner and advanced gardeners. I find so many cross-over lessons from Joe s show and both You Bet Your Garden and Talk of Iowa. When a bunch of different qualified people keep saying the same things, it s probably a good idea! I really recommend listening to Joe s podcast from episode 1 because he starts with a single topic on many episodes such as pruning or mulch, and he covers them thoroughly. If I had only one podcast to give to a beginning gardener and make them sit in a tiny room and listen to 25 episodes in a row, it would be Joe s. He just creates a great synopsis of a given topic in every episode, and with well chosen guests. Podcast - 4

5 Blue Zones Articles needed for the Thymes Newsletter I would like to encourage MGs to submit short feature articles ( words) of interest for the newsletter. These articles can be seasonal, something of special interest to you or a topic of interest to MGs. You might want to write an article related to a MG project you worked on or a topic you would like to learn more about. If possible, include a photo or two (jpg with at least 100 dpi sent as separate files) related to your article. The newsletter is published 10 times a year (there are no issues in January and August) and is distributed via or USPS for those who prefer a hard copy. Each issue is about 7-8 pages in length and includes a variety of regular features such as announcements of upcoming MG events and meetings, special events of interest to MGs, a monthly birthday list, and a list of committee chairmen and volunteer opportunities. If you are interested, please let me know. If you have an idea for an article or need help in putting an article together, contact me and we can discuss the topic and format. You will receive MG core volunteer hours for your work on the Thymes. Deadlines are listed in the Thymes. I look forward to hearing from you and working with you on the Thymes. Jan Denehy, Thymes Editor, Janice-denehy@uiowa.edu A listing of programs offered by organizations in our area that may be of interest to MGs. December 2017/January2018 Backyard Abundance Thursday, December 14, 2017 and January 11, :30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Green Drinks, a place to meet and exchange ideas with other green-minded folks in a cozy environment. Held the second Thursday of every month. Brew Lab, 505 E Washington St, Iowa City. Bur Oak Land Trust (formerly Johnson County Home) info@buroaklandtrust.org Monday, December 4, a.m. to 12 p.m. Invasive removal at Bur Oak Land Trust s Pappy Dickens property. Park at the old Hy-Vee, 1201 N Dodge St, Iowa City which is now closed. Contact Seth for more information at seth@buroaklandtrust.org or Monday, December 4, p.m. to 4 p.m. Invasive removal at Bur Oak Land Trust s Pappy Dickens property. Park at old Hy-Vee, 1201 N Dodge St, Iowa City which is now closed. Contact Seth at seth@buroaklandtrust.org or Wednesday, December 20, p.m. to 10 p.m. Bur Oak Land Trust Community Night at Hudson s Southside Tap. 100% made from scratch menu and 40 tap beers. Hudson s will donate a portion of their profits to Bur Oak Land Trust. Hudson s Southside Tap, 482 Highway 1 West, Iowa City. Saturday, January 6, a.m. to 3 p.m. Family Day at the Iowa Raptor Project. Every month you and your family will learn about our featured raptor and there will be arts and crafts and snacks. Free and open to the public. Nature Preserve, 2095 Mehaffey Bridge Rd NE, Solon , recserv.uiowa.edu. Coralville Lake Nothing scheduled at press time. Eastern Iowa Bird Watchers/IC Birds Sunday, December 17, p.m. Christmas Bird Count. Meet in Room N1 at the North Liberty Community Center. Evening dinner and compilation at 5:30 p.m. at Gus Food & Spirits in Coralville. Contact Diana Pesek at or keesiemom@yahoo.com no later than Wednesday, Dec.13. ECO_Iowa City Check website for events. Iowa State Extension Iowa Water ers?sk=wall Nothing scheduled at press 5

6 Johnson County Conservation Wednesday, January 31, :30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Full Moon Hike at Conservation Education Center at FW Kent Park, 2048 Hwy 6 NW. For reservations salgreen@co.johnson.ia.us or call the Conservation Education Center at Johnson County-ISU Extension Wednesday January 10, p.m. Johnson County Master Gardener Steering Committee Meeting. All MG s welcome. No meeting in December. Linn County-ISU Extension Wednesday, December 6, :30p.m. to 7:30 p.m. New Perennials, Library Talks. Garden Catalogs are full of amazing perennials. Learn how to select the best for your garden. Deb will show some of the newest perennials that could be in nurseries near you. Ladd Library 3750 Williams Blvd SW, Cedar Rapids. Contact Shelly O Neal, , soneal@iastate.edu. Thursday, December 7, :30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Winter Containers. Create an arrangement for indoors or out using fresh greens, dried materials and glittering trims. Registration and fee is $20. Lowe Park Greenhouse, 4500 N 10 th Street, Marion. Info-contact soneal@iastate.edu, or call Wednesday, December 13, :30p.m. to 7:30 p.m. That about Covers it Library Talks. From Ajuga to zinnias, perennials to annuals, find out how ground covers can work for you as a lawn alternative. Join Barb Wing, MG and discover the use of living mulch in your landscape, Ladd Library, 3750 Williams Blvd SW, Cedar Rapids. Contact Shelly O Neal at soneal@iastate.edu, or Wednesday, December 20, :30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Rain Gardens- Library Talks. Learn the basics about designing, constructing and planting this landscaping feature that can capture rain water runoff on your property and help you do your part to help improve water quality downstream. Speaker Karla McGrail, MG. Ladd Library, 3750 Williams Blvd SW, Cedar Rapids. Contact Shelly O Neal at soneal@iastate.edu or New Pioneer Coop Check the website for events and activities. Project Green and Sunday, January 14, 2018 Project GREEN Sunday Winter Garden Forums. Lisa Orgler, ISU Professor Landscape Design, Creating Garden Rooms. See description on page 1 of this newsletter. Seed Savers Check the website for events and activities. Trees Forever Grannies Tuesday, December 5, :30 to 7:30 p.m. Annual Stone Soup Supper at Trinity Episcopal Church, 320 E Collage St, Iowa City. Bring a vegetable to add to the soup, and enjoy a short business meeting and reflection on the past year s events. Contact Pat Bowen at Tuesday, December 12, p.m. to 2 p.m. Welcome and orientation for new grannies. Join a few older grannies for an overview and welcome to the group social (It s not really a meeting). The location changes from month to month but we are trying to hold it on the second Tuesday of the month so check back. Contact Pat Bowen at or Margie Benson at for location. Monday, December 18, p.m. to 5 p.m. Good Neighbor Committee at Iowa City Public Library Room E. This new committee meets the third Monday of the month. Please join our group or just check us out. We re working on this campaign goodneighboriowa.org/ and partnering with Back Yard Abundance, New Pioneer Coop and AmeriCorps. Contact Linda Quinn at Tuesday, December 26, p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Activism Committee Meeting at Trinity Episcopal Church, 320 E College St, Iowa City. Tuesday, January 9, p.m. to 2 p.m. Welcome and orientation for new grannies. Location to be announced. Contact Pat Bowen at or Margie Benson at Wednesday, January 17, p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monthly Steering Committee Meeting CANCELLED. Tuesday, January 23, p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Activism Committee Meeting at Trinity Episcopal Church, 320 E College St, Iowa City. 6

7 Coralville Historical School House: Cindy Parsons, ; Ecumenical Towers: Jane Zukin, ; Demo Garden: Sharon Jeter, , Downtown City Gardens (Newly-approved core) Linda Schreiber, , Oaknoll-MG Volunteer Matching Program MG volunteers are matched with Oaknoll residents to assist with planting and maintaining their small garden spaces at Oaknoll. Please contact Marilou Gay at or or Vicki Siefers or if you have any questions or would like to volunteer. Solon School Gardens Solon School Gardens can use your help! We are in need of MG's that would like to work on this Core project on their own time schedule, Work in these gardens is primarily pruning, weeding and moving plants. There are periodic group work events. Please contact Tracy Hufford at or Speaker s Bureau Master Gardeners, are you interested in earning hours being a speaker? If so, please contact Jackie Wellborn, or leave your name, number, and topics of interest and Jackie will contact you. Also, if you give presentations for the Speaker s Bureau please contact Jackie to inform her of your work. She records the information for her annual report. Jackie Wellborn, , jackiewe@mchsi.com Fair Grounds Beautification: Rain Garden: Lavon Yeggy, , lavon47@lcom.net, Sharon Jeter, , sharonjeter@gmail.com Fair Grounds Flower Beds: Joan Dinnel, , jdinel@aol.com, Barb Krug, , bkmg2004@yahoo.com Firefighters Memorial: Barb Schintler, , barbjschintler@hotmail.com Fundraising/Flea Market: Barb Krug, , bkmg2004@yahoo.com Coordinating new leadership for Hortline: Esther Retish, , eretish@mchsi.com; Joy TenEick, ; jteneick@gmail.com Hospice Garden at Willow Creek Park: Melanie Haupert, , melaniehaupert@gmail.com Intern Class/Training: Nicole Pearson, , nicole-pearson@uiowa.edu Johnson County Fair / 4-H Buckets of Flowers, Scarecrow: Marilou Gay, , rmlgay@aol.com Lavon Yeggy, , lavon47@lcom.net Diane Allen, , dallen16@hotmail.com Mark Twain People s Garden (Non-core): Julie Hegmann, , Julie@hegmann.net If you are interested in learning more about or helping with a project listed below, contact one of the chairperson(s) listed for that project. Thank you! Attended Displays: Sharon Rude, ; momrude@gmail.com Butterfly House at Fairgrounds Carolyn Murphy ; carolyn-murphy@uiowa.edu, Mike Murphy, Oaknoll Garden Project (Newly-approved core): Marilou Gay, , rmlgay@aol.com, Vicki Siefers, , vsiefers@mchsi.com Plum Grove: Betty Kelly, , blkiowa@gmail.com; Joanne Leach, , Jleach@Jlgardens.net; Lavon Yeggy, , lavon47@lcom.net; Carolyn Murphy, , candmmurphy@aol.com 7

8 Raptor Center Gardens: Alice Linhart, , Speakers Bureau: Jackie Wellborn, , Social Events: Steering Committee, Beth Fisher, , Lavon Yeggy, , Solon High School: Tracy Hufford, , Steering Committee Chair: Lavon Yeggy, ; Sharon Jeter, , Thymes: Jan Denehy, , The Johnson County Master Gardener Thymes is published monthly, except January and August. It is distributed under the auspices of Iowa State University. Mail can be sent to: Johnson County Extension Service Attn: Master Gardener Newsletter 4265 Oak Crest Hill Road SE Iowa City, IA Treasurer: Loren Leach, , Volunteer Hours/Secretary: Shannon Bielicke, , Send to: 8