Ascension Parish Master Gardener Association

Transcription

1 Ascension Parish Master Gardener Association SEPTEMBER 2014 NEWSLETTER MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS The Ascension Parish Master Gardener Association meetings for the remainder of 2014 are at 9 am on the following dates: September 17th WEDNESDAY November 18th TUESDAY at the LSU AgCenter office located at Lamar-Dixon. If you have an item for the agenda, please contact Jamie Trisler. Please wear your name tag. Ascension Master Gardener Program 9039 St. Landry Road Bldg. C Gonzales, LA (225) AscensionMasterGardeners EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETINGS The Executive Board Meetings for the Ascension Parish Master Gardener Association for the remainder of 2014 are at 9 am on the following dates: September 10th WEDNESDAY November 11th TUESDAY at the LSU AgCenter office at Lamar-Dixon. The board looks forward to serving the association and welcomes suggestions and comments. PLEASE NOTE THE SEPTEMBER MEETINGS HAVE CHANGED FROM TUESDAY TO WEDNESDAY DUE TO THE 2014 AMG TRAINING CLASSES.

2 Ascension Master Gardeners Tour Hammond Research Station The Ascension Master Gardeners, along with Craig Roussell, met at the LSU AG Center s Hammond research Station on August 5 for a guided tour of the research gardens led by Dr. Allan Owings. The group gathered early on a steamy summer morning as Dr. Owings explained the research trials conducted on everything from azaleas to watermelons. Set on 150 acres not far from the city of Hammond, the Hammond Research Station is an outdoor laboratory where LSU AG Center faculty and staff evaluate plants for viability in the Louisiana climate. Many common plants and shrubs, as well as some uncommon ones, are observed for their durability under conditions found in most Louisiana home gardens. How a plant responds to bugs and pests, heat and rain are some of the factors involved in plant research at the Hammond facility. Each year, these tests are factors in determining which plants are named to the LSU AG Center s Louisiana Super Plants list. Dr. Owings accompanied the Ascension Master Gardeners as they walked among all of the beds, including hibiscus, crepe myrtles and some stunning Echinacea. The group also observed some new varieties of plants that are not yet available to the home gardener. Afterward, the Ascension Master Gardeners met for lunch in nearby Hammond. The research station is located at Old Covington Highway in Hammond LA.

3 MEMBER SPOTLIGHT JAMIE TRISLER AMG CLASS OF 2007 In 1999 my family moved to Gonzales. One of the things I most wanted to do was give my home a pleasing landscape. My husband Jerry takes care of maintaining the yard and I take care of the flower beds. What enhanced our abilities to have success in our landscape was the purchase of two books by Dan Gill, Month to Month Gardening in Louisiana and Louisiana Gardener s Guide. These books are still some of the best of our go to resources. Some of my favorite horticultural specimens are succulents, herbs, perennial salvias, Disney gingers, caladiums and Drift roses. I have a ponytail plant that was given to me as a teenager and it was in a 4 inch pot. Now it stands over 8 feet tall and I have even named him Salvador the Great! Together, Jerry and I have two raised bed vegetable gardens. This year we have had a bountiful harvest of Celebrity tomatoes, bell peppers, banana peppers, and cucumbers (the last three vegetables are still producing). Our eggplant crop, however, was almost nonproducing. Jerry s favorite part of our vegetable gardening is picking the produce when he comes home from work! I found out about the Master Gardening Program when former Horticulture Agent Desiree Dorest made a house call to help me with a gardening issue. One thing I was not aware of until the first day of taking the class was that the purpose of the program is to educate the public about gardening which was overwhelming to me. Many of my classmates were far more experienced in gardening than I was and this left me wondering how I might volunteer. Every organization needs administrative support and that is where I found my place as a volunteer. I served as secretary for four years, and have just started my second term as president. Also, since those earlier years in the association, I have grown in my gardening knowledge and am now comfortable volunteering in other ways as well. Being a Master Gardener has also given me the opportunity to meet other gardeners who are always willing to share their experiences and expertise with me. My husband Jerry and I have one daughter, JoHelen who is a middle school language arts teacher in the Hattiesburg, MS area; and we also have a Siamese cat named Della, and a South African Conure bird named Pete. When I am not gardening, I can be found writing, quilting, crocheting, antiquing, cooking and taking care of my home. One of my greatest enjoyments is interacting with other people. They remind me of the uniqueness of the numerous species in gardens and the satisfaction of investing time and energy in something other than yourself. When we asked, Jamie said Della and Pete get along great since Pete is in a cage. She s not sure what would happen if they had a face to face encounter!

4 Can you identify this garden pest? your answer to by September 15th and if correct you ll be entered to win a prize. The drawing will be held at our September membership meeting. You must be present to win! What might cause this leaf pattern and how could you avoid the problem?

5 2014 ASCENSION MASTER GARDENER TRAINING CLASSES The 2014 Ascension Parish Master Gardener Training Classes have progressed through almost half of the scheduled classroom training sessions! Thirteen AMG apprentices, along with several previous year's AMG graduates have enhanced their knowledge in many areas of gardening and plant comprehension. We appreciate each speaker who has shared their time and expertise to keep us 'growing'.

6 YOU VE DONE ALL THE WORK, NOW DON T FORGET TO LOG ALL THOSE HOURS! Logging hours is the easy part you don t have to get your hands dirty or even break a sweat! In 2013, the 50 active, trained Ascension Parish Master Gardeners logged over a total of 2,355 volunteer hours (1.22 FTEs). Our volunteer hours provided a value to the parish of close to $50,000, ($21.00 per volunteer hour) resulting in approximately 133,900 volunteer public contacts with residents in Ascension Parish. In addition, YOU, our members, traveled around 11,500 miles and spent $7,900 in unreimbursed expenses bringing the total value of the program to over $68,500!!! IT S IMPORTANT TO LOG ON BECAUSE YOUR HOURS COUNT! TIPS FOR THE SEASON Trees, shrubs and perennials that were planted within the last 2 years need to be closely monitored during the next couple of months. Adequate moisture is ESSENTIAL for the health and survival of your plants during the extreme heat of our summers. It only takes a few hot, dry days to damage plants that haven't been in the ground long enough for their roots to have become well established. Visit the LSU AgCenter website to learn more about protecting your property from tree damage during our hurricane season. These links have helpful information: Keep trees, branches off roofs and AgCenter offers hurricane preparation resources.

7 UPCOMING EVENTS THE REFLECTIONS IN THE GARDEN GARDEN SERIES Burden Conference Center, 4560 Essen Lane, Noon 1pm (bring a lunch, drinks provided) $10 for non members, free for Burden Horticulture Society (education hours) Sep 8 History of the Rural Life Museum, David Floyd Oct 6 Shade Gardening, Orchids and Ferns, Terry Rehn Nov 3 Decorating for the Holiday, Erin Debosier, Red Door Interiors Dec 1 Birds Unlimited, Gina Periou Aug 18 through Sept 15 Ascension Parish Master Gardener Classes 2014 Continue!! See the class syllabus on page 8. (volunteer and education hours) Oct Awesome Art on the Bayou Festival Presented by the River Region Art Association at Jambalaya Park in Gonzales. Master Gardeners will have an information booth. Visit (volunteers hours) Oct Master Gardener Regional Symposium The Master Gardener Regional Symposium will be held in Baton Rouge. Visit for more information. (education hours and possible volunteer hours) Nov 4 AMG Harvest Social Gonzales Public Safety Training Center, 724 W. Orice Roth Rd, Gonzales at 6:30 pm. Details to follow from co chairs Kat Hightower, Mary Jo Pohlig and Barbara McCormick. FALL LIBRARY SERIES Sep 23 Galvez Library PLANT SURVIVAL IN A WINTER WONDERLAND ***see below Panel of Master Gardeners discussing ways to care for tender plants during a cold winter. This will also include a slide presentation of pictures from our gardens showing this winter care. Oct 7 Dutchtown Library SHADY CHARACTERS FOR OUR GARDEN Dr. Allen Owings speaking on successful shade gardening. Oct 28 Gonzales Library PATHWAYS to CREATIVE LANDSCAPES Patricia Brussack, Master Gardener from Georgia, speaking on creating garden pathways in our own gardens. Patricia is Janis Poche's sister who has transformed her own garden into many "garden rooms" by using a series of different pathways. Her garden was on the Piedmont Garden Tour of Athens Gardens this past month. ***The September 23rd program on protecting our plants from freezing temperatures and precipitation needs your help! The Library Team would appreciate your feedback on methods and/or pictures of what has and has not worked for you. Please send your methods/pictures of protecting your tender plants to Becky Floyd at rhfloyd@eatel.net. Becky is putting together a power point presentation that will go along with the program.

8 2014 Ascension Parish Master Gardener Training Class Syllabus The City of Gonzales Public Safety Training Center 724 W. Orice Roth Road, Gonzales, Louisiana (Next to Fire Station Drive on side of Fire Station; Park in back of Training Center) Dates Sessions Instructor 9:00 9:30 Registration & Introduction Mr. Craig Roussel Monday August 18, 2014 Introduction to the Master Gardener 9:30 11:30 Program 12:00 2:30 Soils & Plant Nutrition Mr. Rene Schmit August 19, :00 11:30 Botany 12:00 2:30 Annuals & Perennials Mr. Dan Gill Monday 9:00 11:30 Herbs Ms. Janis Poche August 25, :00 2:30 Home Vegetable Gardening Mr. Craig Roussel August 26, :00 11:30 Home Fruit & Nut Production Dr. Charles Johnson 12:00 2:30 Roses Ms. Peggy Martin September 2, :00 11:30 Gardening Tips & Tools/Composting Ascension Master Gardeners 12:00 2:30 Weed Science Dr. Ron Strahan Monday 9:00 11:30 Basic Entomology Dr. Alan Morgan September 8, :00 2:30 Lawn Care Dr. Ron Strahan September 9, :00 2:30 Burden Tour Monday 9:00 11:30 Urban Trees Mr. Barton Joffrion September 15, :00 2:30 Pesticides & The Environment Ms. Kim Pope September 16, :00 2:30 Ornamentals/Landscape Design Hammond Research Station Tour Dr. Allen Owings Monday September 22, :00 2:30 Basic Plant Pathology Plant Diagnostics Dr. Raj Singh **Classes are subject to change without prior notification**