Helping Others Grow

March 2014
Finally, Spring is coming! Although it is still too muddy to accomplish much
around our house, I can tell that some of our plants and trees have suffered damage
from the harsh weather. Hopefully, all the plants have survived and only pruning
is needed to restore them to good health. I am eager to begin my Spring cleaning
activities inside and out as everything seems so dull and grey after the snow melted. Lisa Brown , Newsletter Editor.
Helping Others Grow
The Purdue Master Gardener Program (MG) is an educational arm of the
Purdue Cooperative Extension Service. MG emphasizes good garden practices and provides education to the general public relating to gardening. In
order to accomplish our mission, we provide hands-on teaching of how to
garden through working with others in actual gardens as well as to provide
indoor and outdoor classroom instruction.
In our programming, we assist children (elementary through high school
with our mini day camp and teen day camp) to learn more about plants and
how they grow, as well as to help children in planting and caring for plants.
Some Master Gardeners prefer to show and teach while others prefer to dig
in with hands-on labor.
In addition to working with children, other Master Gardeners are more inclined to work with adults to provide educational and hands-on experiences.
Adult programming may include more administrative activities such as organizing and scheduling workshops and field trips.
A third and important role of the program is to provide examples of good
gardening practices. Master Gardeners assist with the maintenance of flower and vegetable gardens in and around the county. Most importantly, these
gardens provide a setting or means for educating others, in addition to enhancing many prominent locations in our community.
And these are just a few of the activities that our members find to be important and fulfilling. In summary, there are many ways to become involved in the Master Gardener Program and each member can take interest
and pride in what they most enjoy.
— Submitted by Sylvia Finney
Next Meeting
March 26th
6:30 PM
Minnestrista
Cultural
Center
Demonstration
Gardens
Tippecanoe County
Master Gardeners
Questions?
Please call
Nancy Reynolds,
759-7971
The Great Sunflower Project, by Jean Gadziola
As you sit at the table today, do you know where
did the ingredients for your lunch and dinner come
from? Bees are likely responsible for every third
bite of food you take. We know that pollinators
are declining in certain wild and agricultural land-
pollinators has had on pollinator service. The data
collected from this project will provide an insight
into how our green spaces in the urban, suburban
and rural landscapes are connected and will also
shed light on how to help pollinators. I urge you
to visit The Great Sunflower Project at
www.greatsunflower.org to learn more about this
study.
I have participated in this study during the last
four years and it is a very simple and enjoyable
project that you can do in your back yard. It is
suggested that you grow “Lemon queen sunflowers” and you will be doing a count of the bee visitation for at least 5 minutes. A count should be submitted to the web site at least 3 different times.
You will create an account on the web for recording your counts and you will have become a part
of scientific research to better understand this pollinator.
I am offering free “Lemon queen sunflower seeds”
to the first 12 Master Gardeners that contact me. I
just received my seeds and decided to try and rescapes but we do not know how healthy bee popu- cruit a few follow Master Gardeners to this worthlations are maintained in the urban environment.
while project. Please contact me at
The Great Sunflower Project is an important step [email protected] or by telephone at 765-282in tracking the natural habits of these pollinators in 0925 to reserve your seeds. Happy sowing and
urban landscapes and what effect the loss of these counting!
Garden to Attract Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds are fun to watch. To attract them to birds, which can fly about 27 mph.
your garden, you'll want to plant flowers with open It’s not the flight speed, though, that generates
tubular blossoms in bright pink, red or orange.
their hum. That’s the result of their rapid wing
Hummingbirds are among the most popular garden beats—53 times per second! Since so much of
guests you can have—and why not? They assist in their energy is spent flying, they consume up to
pollination (more than 150 kinds of plants rely on twice their body weight in
them rather than bees), and they’re fascinating to
nectar every day, feeding throughout the day—
watch, both for their beauty and their personality. every 5 minutes to an hour. That means hummingThe ruby-throated hummingbird is the most common of the 16 species spotted throughout North
America. But depending on where you live, you
may see others nesting. Mississippi, for instance, is
inhabited or visited by 10 species of these tiny
Master Gardener Newsletter
birds are constantly looking f or nectar in one of
two places: a flower or a feeder. They’ll be most
apt to become regular visitors to a place that provides a mixture of flowering trees, shrubs and
vines, as well as a nectar feeder and a source of
2
March 2014
2014 Purdue Master Gardener State Conference
PHOTO CONTEST
The Photo Contest for the 2014 Purdue Master
Gardener State Conference will be open for entries March 1 to May 1, 2014.
each email entry must include the following:
Master Gardener’s name and email
address
County of Master Gardener affiliation
Name and email address of the county
Master Gardener Coordinator
Title of the photo entered
Any Purdue Master Gardener may enter the photo contest: one need not be attending the conference to enter or win. Each Master Gardener may
submit up to three entries.
All entries will be displayed and winners will be
announced at the state conference. Prizes will be
awarded to the Best of Show and the First, Second, Third place winners in the following categories:
Plant portraits (close ups of plants)
Garden scenes/Landscapes
Vegetables and Fruits
Critters in the Garden
The Marion County
Master Gardener Association will reserve
the right to publish
copies of the photos
entered.
For more information
about the contest,
contact Meredith
Each photo entry must be submitted as a .jpg
attachment and emailed to the Photo Contest Co- Hull
[email protected],
chairman Meredith Hull at [email protected] by
317 996-4380.
the deadline May 1, 2014. The text message of
Hummers, continued from page 2
water for bathing—birdbath, sprinkler or pond.
They’ll want the trees for protection as they nest,
perch or rest.
the foliage. Planting tubular-f lowered plants with
overlapping bloom seasons will provide continuous nectar, encouraging the hummingbirds to remain once they visit.
Color is key
Native wild flowers will be readily recognized and
When it comes to flowers, think bright red—
hummingbirds are drawn to it—as well as to bright provide the highest-quality nectar. Along with
flowering trees and shrubs, they’ll attract another
pink and orange.
important food source for the hummingbirds: inPlant
sects. Astonishingly, an adult female hummingbird
them in
can consume up to 2,000 insects a day—
clusters
mosquitoes, fruit flies, small bees and aphids.
for even
Many seed catalogs and nurseries note in their degreater
scriptions which plants attract hummingbirds; look
visibilalso for those described as prolific bloomers to
ity.
ensure blossoms all summer long.
Also
There are tried-and-true hummingbird favorites;
consider
check with your local extension office to see
shape. Hummingbirds seek out tubular blooms,
and a typical hummingbird plant has many flowers which thrive in your area.
with open tubular blossoms on the outer edges.
Flowers: bee balm, begonia, car dinal flower ,
This lets the bird feed without getting trapped in
cleome, columbine, dianthus, nicotiana, petunia,
Master Gardener Newsletter
3
March 2014
Hummers, continued from page 3
30 seconds to prevent fermentation and mold
growth. Let cool before filling the feeder.
zinnia.
Trees and vines: crabapple, trumpet creeper vine,
trumpet honeysuckle.
Change the nectar ever y thr ee to four days, unless you have a large number of hummingbirds
draining it more often. Clean the feeder with a bottle brush, hot water and a little vinegar every time
you change the nectar.
Hummingbird Feeder basics
A feeder will help provide a steady source of nectar and should ensure more hummingbirds in your
yard. Here are basic tips to get you started:
About our expert:
Ann Wied is consumer horticulture
educator for the
UW-Extension in
Waukesha County,
Wisconsin.
Select a feeder—red, if possible, which is more
attractive to hummingbirds and less attractive to
insects. Make sure it’s easy to take apart to clean.
Hang your feeder in a shady site that’s open
enough to let the birds fly freely around it.
Fill with nectar. You can buy an instant nectar
mix for hummingbirds. Or make your own sugarwater solution:
Submitted by Barb
Rudicel.
Combine 1 part sugar to 4 parts water and boil for
Master Gardener Hours
If you have not logged your hours on
the website, please do so. We want you
to maintain your MG certification and
continue to be an “active” member. By
failing to track and submit hours for
approval, you lose your MG certification.
Visit https://www.four-h.purdue.edu/
mg/ and update your hours today.
The Master Gardener Board is sorry to inform you that Lisa Brown is stepping
down as the editor of our "Weed 'Em and
Reap" newsletter. Her final issue will be
the April issue. Lisa has done an outstanding job of producing informative newsletters and we are grateful for her work.
Thank you, Lisa, for your many hours of
service!
Master Gardener Newsletter
4
March 2014
Secretary’s Report, by Mel Sharpe
Minutes of the February 26, 2013 meeting
MINUTES: Delaware County Master Gardener Association Meeting, Feb. 26, 2014, Minnetrista Cultural Center.
The meeting was opened promptly at 6:30 p.m. by President Wilma Robinson. Nancy Reynolds, First Vice President and program chair, recognized Extension Educator
Michael O’Donnell for the introduction of speaker John
Orick, State Master Gardener Coordinator.
Orick opened with a review of the history of Master Gardeners. The first association was formed in Seattle, Washington in 1972. The motto “Helping Others Grow” was
adopted in 1984. The first Indiana Master Gardeners Association was formed in 1978. By 1986, Indiana had 15
county associations. The Delaware County Master Gardeners was formed in 1989. Today, 85 counties in Indiana
have Purdue sponsored Master Gardener programs.
Twenty new extension educators were trained for their
responsibilities in serving as advisers to Master Gardener
county associations in 2013 by the Purdue State Office.
All applicants for membership are now screened against
sex and violent offender lists by the state office for the
safety of the public. Information and assistance is also
provided in becoming a 501c non-profit organization. In
addition, a State Master Gardener Conference is now being held as well as training and educational programs provided via the Internet.
Orick stated that in 2013, 80,000 hours of volunteer service was reported by Indiana counties. It is estimated the
service would have a value of $1.5 million. Orick emphasized that the reporting of volunteer hours and of the education achieved to carry out the responsibilities of educating the public in a county is crucial in maintaining the
support of the Purdue University State Extension Service
for Master Gardeners. The reporting justifies Purdue’s
support of our program as it allows Purdue to justify support for Master Gardeners in budget requests.
In conclusion, Orick invited questions. He emphasized
that in identifying projects, Master Gardeners should pursue the goals of Master Gardeners which is to advance the
knowledge of sound horticultural practices in our own
county through education and demonstration. (The goals
support the goals of Land Grant Universities and their
State Extension Services in educating the public. Sociologists cite the extension service role as one of the most significant steps taken in our society in contributing to the
advancement of American food production and quality of
life across America. Master Gardeners contributes to this
important mission.) Orick also said MG may count travel
time as part of their hours in reporting service, however,
educational hours are to be reported based on the actual
time spent in educational activity.
Master Gardener Newsletter
Mel Sharpe sought and achieved approval of the minutes
for October 23, 2013. He also reported on the Budget for
Becky Byrum. The beginning budget on 1/31/14 was
$7,320.91 with the Budget on 2/28/2014, $6,951.62.
Sharpe said the $58 reported in come was from banquet
sales and dues received and that the $427 in expenses
largely related to support of upcoming Master Gardener
activities.
Cheryl Haas recognized and thanked those who contributed to evening refreshments.
Nancy Reynolds announced that the date of the banquet
postponed because of weather is now scheduled for April
23 at the Riverside Methodist Church. Banquet activities
will be combined with the April educational program
which will allow members to receive educational credit.
Cost: $14.
Sylvia Finney reported that the annual Madison County
bus trip will be held July 19. Members pointed out that
this was the same date as the July Picnic. Apparently neither date can be changed so members will have choices.
Members were encouraged to help encourage attendance
of the Future Gardeners Day Camp (Pizza and Strawberries) on April 5 (ages 10 to 15), contact Sylvia Finney,
(282-0100) and the Mini-Master Gardeners Day Camp
(Hummingbird Gardening) on April 19 (ages 5 to 9), Contact Barbara Rudicel (749-3574).
June Dykes (284-7668) reminded members of the opportunity to contribute to the Farm Festival on March 28-19.
Some 2,000 children will visit the MG booth where they
will plant a plant.
Laura Shadoin (289-6074) stated she would need at least
six volunteers to assist with Arbor Day activities at West
Side Park on April 26.
Pete Granger (425-2874) reported that the Committee
working on the Cork Tree for orchid display at the new
Christy Wood Orchid House would meet March 17. A
volunteer assistance opportunity will exist when the cork
is to be applied to the frame under construction.
Cheryl Hass (282-2601) asked members to sign up to contribute refreshment for a monthly
meeting.
The meeting adjourned before 9 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Mel Sharpe, Secretary
The Secretary requests that those
making announcement at meeting to
please give him a note on the announcement. Our desire
is to encourage participation by providing accurate and
complete information.
5
March 2014
Help Wanted!
Treasurer’s Report
Submitted by Becky Byrum
Date of Report
Balance brought forward
Income
Expenses
Balance on hand
Income
MG dues ($10) 150
members
Banquet
Garden Fair
Garden Walk
Plant Sale
Interest
Total
Expenses
Education & Projects
Mini Master Gardeners
Teen Master Gardeners
Farm Fest
Projects
Trees Committee
Fund Raising
Garden Fair
Garden Walk
Plant Sale
Association Expenses
Banquet
Board Expenses
Booklets
Insurance
Meetings
Misc.
Picnics
Postmaster/
Newsletters
Total
Budget
"Weed 'Em and Reap" needs a
new editor!
If you have computer experience, an eye for detail, and can
dedicate about eight hours each
month to work on the newsletter,
then please contact
Wilma Robinson
[email protected]
or 282-4898.
Hours put toward working on
the newsletter can be entered as
volunteer hours.
2/28/2014
$7,320.91
$58.06
$427.35
$6,951.62
$1,500.00
$30.00
$1,000.00
$400.00
$600.00
$3,000.00
$28.00
$6,500.00
$0.06
$58.06
$450.00
$46.34
$450.00
$300.00
$2,075.00
$250.00
$300.00
$100.00
$300.00
$200.00
$1,000.00
$150.00
$275.00 $100.00
$200.00
$300.00
$250.00
$100.00
“Everything that slows us
down and forces patience,
everything that sets us back
into the slow cycles of nature, is a help. Gardening is
an instrument of grace.”
$29.01
$52.00
-May Sarton, poet, novelist and memoirist
Submitted by Pete Granger
$6,500.00
Master Gardener Newsletter
$427.35
6
March 2014
Important MG Dates
member is asked to bring a minimum of 10
April 5, Teen MG Camp “Str awber r ies and plants. You may claim 1 volunteer hour for
Pizza” at Mt Olive Community Church from 9 each set of 5 potted plants that you donate, so
AM to 3 PM. Registration Fee $10.00. Lunch long as the plants have been trimmed and containers cleaned for an attractive presentation.
provided. Email Sylvia Finney at SFinVolunteers are also needed to help set up
[email protected]. Forms online at
the day before the sale, and during the sale.
www.extension.purdue.edu/delaware
Delaware County Events
April 12, Mini MG Camp “Hummingbir ds
and Hummingbird Gardenening” at Mt Olive
Community Church from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm
For ages 5 to 9. Registration Fee $7.00. Bring
Sack Lunch. Email Barb Rudicel [email protected]. Forms online at
www.extension.purdue.edu/delaware
June 7-8, Booth at Gar den Fair at Minnetrista, Contact Sharon Long at 289-5086.
Volunteers are needed to share information
on the MG Program with interested attendees.
June 22, Delawar e County Master Gar dener Garden Walk. Educational hours can be
earned by taking the tour. Volunteer hours
April 23, MG Annual Banguet
(rescheduled), meal will be cater ed by J oyce can be earned by assisting with advance
clean-up of gardens or day of event. ConBarrett, at the Riverside United Methodist
Church starting at 6 pm. Cost is $14 per per- tact Marilyn Marks 789-4114 or
[email protected]
son, reservations
accepted until
April 19th
(previous reservations made for
January will be
honored). Speaker for the evening
is Kellie McClellan, Muncie’s Urban Forester.
Contact Nancy Reynolds 729-1703.
Other MG Related Events
March 29, Indianapolis Museum of Ar t
(IMA) Garden Guide Training at the DeBoest
Lecture Hall from 8:30 am to Noon. For more
information about the training, please contact
Volunteer Services at 317-923-1331 ext. 263
or [email protected]. Trainings will
be offered once or twice a month through September. If interested in volunteering as a Garden Guide representing MG, then please contact Kathleen Hull at 317-996-4380 or
[email protected]
April 26, Muncie Ar bor Day, Contact
Laura Shadoin at 289-6074. Volunteers are
needed to assist with the various activities.
May 17, Master Gar dener Plant Sale at
Fairgrounds. Contact Nancy Reynolds at 759- May 10, Madison County Plant Sale at
Fairgrounds in Alexandria
7971 or Fran Meyers 288-2991. Each MG
Master Gardener Newsletter
7
March 2014
2013 MG Recognitions
2013 MG Interns:
Advanced Master Gardener
Intern Status is awarded to those Status:
who have successfully completed
the MG educational training, and
are now working to complete 35
volunteer hours.
● Kate Bell
● Shannon Bryan
● Libby Burley
● Linda Cler
● Louis Denney
● Bonnie Ford
● Jacquelyn Giblin
● Julie Hobbs
● Darwin Keyton
● Linda Keyton
● Kyle Koger
● Rachel Kruse
● Hannah Lintner
● David McCarel
● Kimberly Moore
● Jim Moore
● Erika Pugsley
● Jay Pugsley
● Randy Salway
● Nancy Saunders
● Barry Turner
● Judy Turner
● Suzanne Walker
● John Young
Master Gardener Status:
Master Gardener Status is granted to those who have completed
a total of 35 volunteer hours and
35 hours of educational training.
● Cheryl Dawson
● Stephan Howick
● Marilyn Musser
● Sherry Riggin
● Mary Ann Ross
Master Gardener Newsletter
Green level Advanced Master
Gardener Status is given to those
that have accumulated a total of
60 volunteer hours and 45 educational training hours:
● Christy Faber
● Mary Ippel
● Tiffany Jones
● Jim Kouns
● Carl Lambert
● Suzanne Plesha
Bronze level Advanced Master
Gardener Status is awarded to
those that have accumulated 200
volunteer hours and 60 educational training hours:
● Mel Sharpe
● Barb Rudicel
Although no certificates are being awarded this year in these
categories, Master Gardeners can
continue to strive to the Gold and
Silver levels by accumulating
1000/500 hours of volunteer
hours and 100/75 hours of educational training hours, respectively.
DCMGA Award of Achievement
single year are recognized with
the Award of Achievement:
● Lisa Brown
● Patricia Brown
● Becky Byrum
● Jeniffer Cook
● Michael Cook
● Rebecca Costomiris
● Helen Davis
● Cheryl Dawson
● Denis Dinsmore
● Jill Dinsmore
● June Dyke
● Slyvia Finney
● Jean Gadziola
● Robert Holmes
● Stephan Howick
● Mary Ippel
● Tiffany Jones
● Jim Kouns
● Louis McCollum
● Bob Myers
● Fran Myers
● Marilyn Musser
● Suzanne Plesha
● Becky Readle
● Beverly Reese
● Nancy Reynolds
● Sherry Riggin
● Wilma Robinson
● Barbara Rudicel
● Nanette Rushton
● Vicki Seymour
● Melvin Sharpe
● Susan Smith
● Donald Vogelgesang
● Linda Wescott
● Jo Lyn Wilson
Master Gardeners that retain
their active member status
(minimum 12 volunteer hours
and 6 educational training hours)
but give a total of 25 or more
Way to Go Master Gardeners!
hours of volunteer service in a
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March 2014