Wiregrass Walk-About. Happy March to you all!

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1 WMGA Newsletter... in honor of Evelyn Isbell March 2017 Wiregrass Walk-About Happy March to you all! Spring has sprung early this year! I am happy to see flowers and very happy to be in the greenhouse with so many plants. Our Plant Parents and helpers have been very busy getting our plants ready for two special events. We will have a booth with a few of our plants to sell and information on Master Gardener classes at the Home & Garden Show on March at the Dothan Civic Center. It is a great opportunity for Master Gardeners to talk about our association and the wonderful volunteering we do. We will have the opportunity to spread the word about our plant sale as well as how we use the profits from the sale to educate the community. We will need volunteers to help with setup on March 16th and help take down on March 18th. If you can help please let me know by March 13th. March is rolling in with so many volunteer opportunities. Landmark Park needs our help this month with the Living History Program, Rural Heritage Day and Spring Farm Day. Please check the calendar in this newsletter for the dates and times so you can call Tom with the dates you are available. We will have two workdays at Dothan Area Botanical Garden on March 13th and March 25th. We will start at 8:30. Bring gloves, rakes and clippers. Stay as long as you can! Our plant sale will be here before you know it! Our Plant Sale is April 7th and 8th. We need plenty of volunteers for the sale and workdays leading up to it. This is going to be a wonderful sale. Master Gardeners along with an awesome group of interns have seeded, propagated, and up-potted plants. The interns have helped us clean pots and fertilize young plants. I am very grateful for every one of you who have come out to lend a hand. We will also have our Junior Master Gardeners studying the different plants and taking notes. If you see these gardeners, be sure to welcome them! Not only is the Plant Sale growing closer so is this year's Alabama Master Gardener Association Conference. Our state Conference is in Huntsville May 1st, 2nd and 3rd. If you have never been to their Botanical Gardens, you are in for a treat. I toured Huntsville back in the fall and it is a lovely city and gardens. Don't forget to register and book your hotel for an amazing time! Continued on next page... INSIDE... Time for Awards Busy Busy Calendar Spring Plant Sale Upcoming Landmark Activities Spring Garden Checklis 1

2 Wiregrass Walk About (continued) If you missed last month's meeting, you missed the awards program. The awards committee did an excellent job in picking those who deserved awards this year. I love giving the awards out even when I am sick! This year s winners are shown below. Three of the award winners will compete at the state level for a state award Lucy Edwards for The Gary Murray Award for Outstanding Service and Dedication to the Master Gardener Program; Connie Ford for the Mary Lou McNabb Alabama Master Gardener of the Year; and Cheryl Hatcher for Top Hours of the Year Award. Congratulations to these dedicated Master Gardeners I hope all three win! Thank you all for your volunteer hours! I appreciate every one of you! I would like to say a special thank you to Phyllis Poole and Judy Clardy for the lovely table decorations for our awards dinner. This month a year ago we lost an awesome Master Gardener, Wayne VanLandingham! Please keep Patti and his family in your prayers as his anniversary day comes around. Life is a garden, dig it! Devonne 2

3 Gold Star for hours Denise Lassiter Lynda Rutenkrog 2016 Silver Star for hours Cheryl Christain Janice Egolf Charon Hodges Bronze Star for hours Judy Arden Richard Rominger Mary Gillespie Christine Springis Barbara Knight Jacquiline Vestor Deborah Riggs Tami Ziglar The following WMGA members will receive special recognition for their lifetime volunteer hours at the AMGA Conference. Gold Badge: 1,000+ hours Judy Clardy Glenda Heney Phyllis Poole Pat Smith Linda Westphal Platinum Badge: 2,000+ hours Connie Ford Anita Gibson Rita Moore Outstanding Service and Dedication Award Lucy Edwards Master Gardener of the Year Award Connie Ford President's Excellence Award Phyllis Poole Top Hours of the Year Award Cheryl Hatcher Intern of the Year Award Dean Rominger Christy Thomley Award Janice Egolf Special Projects Award Carol Hardin and Dale Shaw Nancy Dean Award Lisa Enfinger and Phyllis Poole 3

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5 Congratulations to this year s award recipients. Thanks to everyone for their dedication and hard work to make this an amazing year. 5

6 March 3... JMG DABG March 3... All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar 1:00 CST March 7... Lunch and Learn March JMG, 8:30 DABG March Daylight Savings begins March Workday at DABG, 8:30 am March WMGA Board of Directors meeting, 9:30 DABG March Setup for Wiregrass Home and Garden Show at Dothan Civic Center March Wiregrass Home and Garden Show at DCC, 9 am-6 pm March Wiregrass Home and Garden Show, 9 am-6 pm March Assist Girl Scout Troop 9195 earn gardener badge, 3:30 DABG March WMGA Monthly Meeting, HPUMC March Assist Girl Scout Troop 9195 earn gardener badge, 3:30 DABG March Workday at DABG, 8:30 am March JMG 8:30 DABG March DABG Plant Lover s Preview Party 5-8 pm March DABG Plant Sale 8am 1pm April 1... DABG Plant Sale 8am 1 pm April 2... Lunch and Learn April 6... WMGA Plant Sale Setup April 7... WMGA Plant Sale, 9 5 pm April 7... JMG assist with the Plant Sale, 8:30 - noon April 8... WMGA Plant Sale, 8 noon Do you have an event you d like added to our monthly calendar? If so, send it to Jane Klosky (jane.klosky@icloud.com) What s Happening at Landmark? Date Time Event Contact Mar 6 8:30 am Kitchen Garden Maintenance Tom Boyle (Prep For Living History Program) Mar 7 9 8:30 11:30 am Living History Program (Kg) Tom Boyle Mar 17 8:30-11:00 am Rural Heritage Day (Interns And MGs) Tom Boyle Mar 18 8:30am-4:00 pm Spring Farm Day (Interns And MGs) Tom Boyle Mar 20 8:30 am Kitchen Garden Maintenance Tom Boyle (Prep For Living History Program) Mar :30-11:30 am Living History Program (Kg) Tom Boyle Mar 29 TBD Spring Family Day Tom Boyle (Kitchen Garden Presentation) *Tom can be reached at ( or BoyleT@graceba.net) 6

7 Wiregrass Master Gardeners Present Our Annual Spring Plant Sale Friday, April 7 th, 9 am 5 pm Saturday, April 8 th, 8 am 12 pm Dothan Area Botanical Gardens 5130 Headland Avenue Dothan, AL Are you ready to start planning your garden? Soon it will be time to start your spring planting. We have a wide variety of plants that have been grown by Wiregrass Master Gardeners from seeds (or cuttings) to healthy plants. Make plans now to check out the many plants we have available for sale. Perennials Ground Covers Houseplants Shrubs Trees Bulbs Grasses Vines Vegetables Annuals Hanging Baskets Herbs Cash, check or credit cards accepted 7

8 Spring Garden Checklist MARCH Fruits and Nuts Continue strawberry and grape plantings. Bud apples and peaches. Start planting blackberries. Remember, if weather conditions prevent prompt planting, heel the plants in by placing the root system in a trench and covering the soil. Shrubs Roses Fertilize shrubs (except azaleas and camellias) according to a soil test. Late plantings may be made, particularly if they are container-grown. Watch shrubs for harmful insects. Watch new growth for aphids. Begin a spray or dust program. Begin fertilizing. Annuals and Perennials Bulbs Tender annuals may be planted in south Alabama. Check garden centers for bedding plants. Plant gladiolus every 2 or 3 weeks if a long blooming season is desired. Plant tuberous begonias in pots. Plant dahlias. Miscellaneous Check and repair sprayers, dusters, and lawn mowers. Control lawn weeds with chemicals. Delay pruning of fruiting shrubs such as cotoneasters, pyracanthas, and hollies until after flowering. Vegetable Seed Plant hardy crops recommended for January and February. After danger of frost is past, plant tender vegetables. Vegetable Plants Plant cabbage, onions, lettuce, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts in north Alabama; plant tomatoes and peppers in lower south Alabama. Lawns Plant bermuda, zoysia, and centipede. Fertilize established lawns. APRIL Fruits and Nuts Season for strawberry planting continues. Start spray program for all fruits. Plant raspberries and blackberries and continue budding apples and peaches Shrubs Prune spring flowering shrubs after flowering. Fertilize azaleas and camellias. When new growth is half completed, spray all shrubs with a fungicide. Roses Watch for insects and diseases. Keep old flower heads removed. Plant container-grown plants from nurseries or garden centers. Annuals and Perennials Bulbs Plant early started annuals or bedding plants from nurseries or garden centers. Divide mums or root cuttings. Dig and divide dahlias. Plant gladiolus, fancy-leaved caladiums, milk and wine lilies, and ginger and gloriosa lilies. Feed bearded iris with superphosphate and spray for borers. Avoid cutting foliage of narcissus or other bulbs until it has turned brown naturally. Miscellaneous Spray camellias, hollies, etc. for scale insects. Carefully water new plantings of shrubs and trees. Pinching out tips of new shoots promotes more compact shrubs. Vegetable Seeds Plant tender vegetables such as beans, corn, squash, melons, and cucumbers. Plant heat-loving vegetables in lower south Alabama. Vegetable Plants Plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, sweet potatoes, and parsley Lawns Planting continues. New lawns may need supplementary watering. Also, fertilize at 3- to 6-week intervals. Keep ryegrass cut low, particularly if overplanted on bermuda lawns. 8

9 WMGA Contacts 2016 WMGA Board of Directors Officers: President:... Devonne Ellis Vice President... POSITION IS VACANT Secretary... Tami Ziglar Treasurer:... Connie Ford Board Members: Board Member at Large:... Anita Gibson Membership Chair:... Tom Boyle Ways & Means Chair:... Helen-Sue Kemp Communications Chair... Cheryl Hatcher Programs Chair... Janice Egolf Projects Co-Chairs... Faye Carnley Lisa Enfinger Immediate Past President... Beth Arnold Newsletter Editor/Webmaster... Jane Klosky Plant Parent Directory Annuals: Devonne Ellis Bulbs: Judy Clardy Pat Smith Perennials: Cheryl Hatcher Faye Carnley GrCovers/Vines/Grasses: Beth Arnold Tami Ziglar Herbs: Linda Westphal House Plants/Tropicals/Succulents: Connie Ford Barbara Knight Shrubs: Phyllis Poole Trees: Ralph Byram Vegetables: Helen-Sue Kemp Our Mailing Address: Wiregrass Master Gardeners Association P.O. Box 9376 Dothan, AL ACES Lucy Edwards Home Grounds Regional Agent Dale County Extension Office: (334) Mobile: (334) Visit our DISCLAIMER: The Wiregrass Master Gardener Association (WMGA) believes this information to be correct and accurate. Neither the Association nor its members accept responsibility for errors or omissions that may be made. The WMGA makes no warranty expressed or implied with respect to the material within. 9