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Colet Allen

Feb 28

It Takes a Village…Or Is That a Hive? The First Day of the 2025 Master Gardener Class

By Beet 2025 03 March

Photos by Sandy O’Neill

The 2025 New Master Gardener Class Luncheon and Orientation was such a success due to the contributions of many people who performed a myriad of activities in a short period of time. There was so much activity, it felt like a bee hive.

Two days prior to the event, Food4Less once again discounted the cost of food and supported us, as good neighbors do. Their staff sorted, bagged and loaded enough food for 70 people into my car, and I ferried it to the Extension.

The SOREC kitchen was undergoing a deep cleaning and unavailable for our use. So, we “farmed out” food to other venues for preparation — the kitchens of our resourceful volunteers. One person made salads; four baked regular and sweet potatoes; others made chili; etc.

Our volunteers also contributed roasters and crockpots to keep food warm — some items reminded us of the heaters used by our mothers and grandmothers. The small classroom was set up with so many varied foods that it looked like a Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving painting. Three cobblers — peach, apple and berry — were crowd pleasers and had a place of honor at the tables

By noon, all were seated in the auditorium. There is nothing better than enjoying yummy, healthy food, making new friends, and engaging in great conversations in anticipation of a new adventure in lifelong learning.

After our feast, Grace practiced her magic, as new students were welcomed to the 2025 Master Gardener class. Then we jumped right into the botany lecture. Plant samples were placed on each table and students invited to identify the samples. As a Bud (mentor), it is gratifying to watch budding botanists. They think they understand, until they must scrutinize a plant’s structures in detail. You can hear the awe and excitement as new students decipher botanical intricacies

In addition, groups of 5 new students were tasked with creating a 10- to 15-minute presentation about one plant family. As in prior years, this day’s were amazing presentations. I expected nothing less from this very skilled new class.

The day was a joyful and energizing event. If the first day is indicative of the future, we are all in for a wonderful journey.

There are many people to thank for the success of this kick-off event, starting with all the Master Gardeners who prepared the space and cooked delicious and healthy food at home.

We owe a huge thank you to all the Master Gardeners who take on several roles during the 14-week class, such as the Buds who help with the in-person classes, the practicum mentors and even some SOREC staff.

Jane Moyer, who has poured her soul into creating and leading the Practicum over many years, is stepping into a consulting role this year. She will continue to help JCMGA grow, thrive and be a positive presence in Jackson County. Thank you!

Thank you to Barbara Low and Nicole Smith, who stepped in to fill big shoes as co-Chairs of Practicum – the first year of their leadership. Thank you to all the Master Gardeners who are Practicum Mentors and Garden Buds, and leaders that run Committees that keep our organization moving forward.

Last but certainly not least is Grace Florjancic, our MG Program Coordinator. She has worked closely with the Practicum and many others in our gardening community to bring knowledge, great ideas, interesting presenters and instructors, and new programs to this year’s Master Gardener Program. We are so grateful that she’s part of the team at JCMGA. Thank you, Grace.

It takes a village – and when it’s super busy with preparations – it sounds like a buzzing bee hive.  Thanks to all in our hive who make it possible.

 

 

Jan 31

2025 Capital Campaign Beginnings

By Beet 2025 02 February

Andrew Norwood, Development Director for the OSU Foundation, was the guest speaker at our JCMGA January Board Meeting.  After a 30-minute presentation on fundraising, he then followed by inviting us to lunch. Those of us who accepted his invitation were very pleased to get an hour and a half of his time to discuss fundraising for JCMGA- perfect timing, given the incoming of our next large project.

JCMGA has a huge capital project ahead of us. We opted to demolish the affectionately dubbed, “Creepy Old House” and replace it with a classroom, a tool shed and a Lathe house in that space. The capital campaign will also include funds for replacing the original greenhouse (Greenhouse 1).

After lunch, we went back to SOREC to begin reviewing the preliminary plans that will help us identify our scope of work, along with the project cost.

What Andrew provided us were several ideas (dos and don’ts) on how to secure funding, donations, and sponsors, along with ways to cut our building costs; thus lowering the total cost of the project. He also provided answers to questions of where to find these various resources. Some of his ideas were:

  1. Possibly utilizing an OSU engineering student to create drawings as a class project, thus reducing the cost of getting the drawings done. Grace indicated that she would help find someone at OSU we might talk to about this possibility.

  2. Finding a sponsor who would provide 25% of the cost with matching funds.

  3. Going to the sources of material suppliers for things like lumber, hardware, cement etc. We would start by sending a letter but then follow up with a phone call or, better yet, a personal visit.

  4. He also offered to review letters of request to make sure we were sending the correct message.

There is a lot of work to be done but the result of that work is something that we can pass on to future generations; something that Andrew is very interested in.  Andrew Norwood is a man who does not just talk about projects; he likes to dig in and get his hands dirty. He proposed an activity dear to his heart: he would donate a tree to us (we mentioned that it must be a native) and help us plant it. We welcome him back anytime. After he left, the energy and excitement of the people in the room was palpable. There is a lot of work ahead for us, but we now have some guidelines and an ally in Andrew.

Dec 01

Winter Dreams / Summer Gardens 2024

By Beet 2024 12 December

 

This year’s Winter Dreams/ Summer Gardens was very successful!  The good thing is that we finally figured out how to reach the Landscaping Population (Thanks to Blake Elliot and his know-how) that we have been trying to reach for three years. We more than tripled the numbers of those seeking Continuing Education Hours (CEH) for the Oregon State Landscaper Contractors Board (LCB).  We had a total of 21 who marked Yes for CEH and 15 who attended the Zoom classes, six them attending all 16 classes!

These people expressed appreciation of the information that was offered, and thanked the presenters often and sincerely.  They engaged with questions and comments and offered some information themselves.  As a group, they were a very positive addition to Winter Dreams/Summer Gardens.  A couple landscapers indicated that they would seek more hours viewing the recordings and using the process that Winter Dreams / Summer Gardens has in place to give CEH when the recordings are the method of viewing the presentation.

We at JCMGA appreciate the landscaper’s attendance and their desire to learn more about sustainable practices, the use of Native Plants, Beneficials, and best practices that will produce healthier plants, better living soils and a more sustainable earth for the future with less herbicides and insecticides. We view them as partners in educating the public. They are key players in our Mission to Educate.

During my tracking of the Landscapers present on Zoom for each session, I also kept track of total attendance for each presenter. The range was 25 to 38 attendees, with 80% of the classes having 30 and above.

Yes, this was a great Winter Dreams/ Summer Gardens and I am already thinking about 2025!

.

 

 

Jul 27

A Visit Which Led to a Journey

By Beet 2024 08 August

In June of this year, a Master Gardener friend came to visit, blessing me with her presence for a few days and gifting me with a strange little plant that has a habit of eating flies. You guessed it, the common name, Venus Fly Trap, Genus Name Dionaea.

Upon receiving this little life I thought, “Oh dear, how do I take care of it?” Well, a quick Google search revealed an excellent article by Deb Wiley and Lynn Alpine https://www.bhg.com/gardening/houseplants/care/grow-venus-flytrap/  which lists all of her needs.  (I have decided she is a her.) I call her Venus.

This gift brought to mind some of the questions from an activity for the Cultivating Companions class that Grace Florjancic (our OSU JCMGA Coordinator) is currently teaching. This exercise asks several questions to help determine what kind of a plant parent you are. Reflecting on those questions, I have to say it depends on the plant.  Some of my plants given to me by loved people hold a special place in my heart and get the best care. I think Venus will require more of my attention initially, but that will change as she gets settled into her new surroundings.

The article by Wiley and Alpine gave me the information and confidence that I needed to go on this little journey with a plant that I had never considered. I am really looking forward to making her like my home and make it her home as well. Now I have several new things to consider: What will her container be? I know that she wants at least 4 inches of soil, and more is better for her roots. Where will the container sit to get the best light?  I now must allow some insects indoors for her to catch and eat.  The insects must be small enough that she can close her traps on them. She also likes a humid environment, being a native of the Carolina swamps in southern US. There Dionea is considered endangered as it has been collected to near extinction due to humans’ fascination with their habit of eating insects, so I need to help her live!

Now, how will I achieve the ideal humidity while still having an open container so her prey will come into her sphere of influence?  I was told not to tease her without giving her food, since motion is the trigger that causes her to trap by closing her several mouth-like structures once an insect is attracted. She emits a sweet smell which attracts the insects. False teasing can cause a decline in this scent and use energy that she should be using to grow and eat.

If Venus decides that she likes my offerings and hangs out with me, I will update you about her progress. I also would like to try my hand at propagation but will wait until she is bigger and stronger before asking her to reproduce.  I hope each of you have a guest that leaves you with such an intriguing project and lovely memory.  Thanks, Ronnie, for the lovely gift and for launching me on yet another thoughtful and interesting plant journey.

May 31

The Wet, Cold and Tough Performance of Master Gardeners at the 2024 Spring Garden Fair Event

By Beet 2024 06 June

They say what does not kill you makes you stronger.

Our volunteers certainly got stronger on May 4th!

 

The Spring Garden Fair got off to a soggy start. May 4th temperatures never got into the fifties, and it rained a record 0.91 inches. There were only a handful of those 100+ volunteers who were not out in it and wet. Even lucky volunteers who were inside felt the cold, as the doors were open next to their table and the greenhouses were also chilly. The rest slugged through mud, puddles, and small rivers. Some had the pretense of being protected by the pop-up tents. But the slight breeze quickly removed that idea as they become almost as wet as people who had jobs directly in the weather.  

It takes a village, and our JCMGA village is a place where people work together. This was absolutely true on May 4th. Because of the incumbent weather, we expected that it would probably not be too busy.  Quite the contrary! Those JCMGA volunteers doing traffic and parking duties were real heroes and had the worst of it. We ow those folks a great big “Thank You.” They made it possible for the plant-loving public who braved the weather to get to the plants and buy, buy, buy!

The village had many helping hands that day. There were the plant people who answered questions and found what customers wanted inside and outside of the greenhouses. The cashiers were essential, for there can be no sale without them. The people who staffed the “park your plants” pop-up tables provided a storage place while people shopped for more.  The wagon pullers hauled all the plants toward the customer’s conveyance to a new home. The golf cart driver took passengers from the parking area to the shopping area, and then back to their cars. The rovers jumped in wherever needed when called upon for help. The adults made the children’s rock painting possible. And the charming, young, 4-H fellows took food orders and then bought us warm food to sustain us.

When Sunday came, the volunteers all returned and were ready to do it again. Fortunately, the weather improved. The 2024 Spring Garden Fair will remain an event that JCMGA volunteers will remember. Everyone should be very proud of their performance, true grit and ability to hang tough. They really showed what this group is made of.

Thank you all for your amazing tenacity, forbearance, and generosity of spirit that truly made a miserable day into magic for those brave souls who came. SFG 2024 was a great success. Many, many thanks!

May 31

Rosenelle is Retiring From JCMGA

By Beet 2024 06 June

Rosenelle Florencechild has decided to retire from JCMGA engagements after being a long-time active member. As many of you know, Rosenelle always stepped up when the Speakers Bureau received a request for a speaker in her area of expertise. She has been a welcome presenter at most of the Rogue Valley’s Garden Clubs, JCMGA Speakers Bureau, OLLI Gardening classes and a presenter for Winter Dreams Summer Gardens. and has been an asset to the Rose Society.

Currently, Rosenelle will be reducing her speaking engagements to begin spending more time enjoying what life brings her.

She has a large archive of classes and presentations that she has developed over the many years she has been a Master Gardener. She does not want that information and knowledge lost. She has kindly offered to give these presentations to anyone who would like to work with her to make these presentations their own. This is an extremely generous offer. It would be a wonderful jump start for some of our recent additions to JCMGA who have expressed the desire to continue with JCMGA’s mission of spreading gardening information to the community via the Speakers Bureau.

I have sent an invitation to those who might be interested in becoming speakers to give them a head start working on presentations. If you have not received that invitation, contact me (Colet), and I will add your name to the list (coletallen1@gmail.com).

We wish Rosenelle an incredibly happy and well-earned retirement and hope she will stop by occasionally and let us know what she is up to. Thank you Rosenelle for your many hours of service and your outstanding contribution to JCMGA’s mission over the years.

Happy Retirement!

 

 

 

 

Mar 31

Gold Hill’s Journey to an Excellent Community Garden

By Beet 2024 04 April

 

I recently stopped in Gold Hill to see the progress that’s been made in the past 18 months in creating a community garden. Tammy Wilkinson of eXp Realty, and Joel with Gold Hill CanDo have been working with Jackson County, community volunteers and the City of Gold Hill to produce a total of 18 raised garden beds with wide tops to sit upon. They have 4 smaller pollinator metal beds as well as 2 pallet garden beds for kids with plantings around the fruit trees. “WOW!” is all I can say. Here is a brief timeline of what they did to make this garden a reality in 18 months.

Joel and CanDo coordinated with the City of Gold Hill to receive donated land free of charge. The parcel was completely covered in blackberries, along a multiple use pathway not far from the sports field and next to the Gold Hill Water Treatment facility. This property can be expanded as the gardens grow. A fire break was also created by removing the blackberries and brush by the water treatment plant.

The City of Gold Hill allowed the Water Treatment Facility to provide free piped-in water to the garden area. CanDo provided the donated funds for the piping and the community gardeners trenched and installed the lines, with permission from the City.

Joel and Tammy wrote grants for the garden. CanDo volunteers raised funds through donations. Jaxon Company (a hemp flower producer) contributed funds and their employees and families helped build the garden as a community project.  A Xerces Society grant provided plants for the pollinator garden project. In lieu of funds, other organizations provided knowledge, referrals, volunteers, communication to a broader audience and other in-kind resources. Last year, gardeners who had more produce than they could use donated it to their local food bank, Independent Order of Odd Fellows and people walking by the gardens.

Future plans are to continue the growth and integration of the Community Garden by providing a great place for people to grow their food, receive information, acquire gardening knowledge, inspire an appreciation of gardening and share surplus produce, seeds and plants with everyone.

Making a successful Community Garden is all about people coming together to create something for the common good. Collaboration is key. Gold Hills’ experience can be a model for others who plan to start their own successful Community Garden. If you are interested in creating a Community Garden, you can attend the Jackson County Community Gardens Network Meeting that meets quarterly in Talent. More info is available at the JCMGA website.

Photos of Gold Hill Community Gardens

Jan 31

Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest

By Beet 2024 02 February

Written by Suzanne Simard

Recommended by Colet Allen

 

This book is a memoir of Suzanne Simard’s 30+ year journey through scientific research to find the Mother Tree.  The book reads like fiction with great story telling, humor and a childlike love and curiosity about her surroundings.  Suzanne’s upbringing in an extended, loving family of loggers, farmers, and ranchers in the northern forests of British Columbia, Canada put her on a lifelong journey through scientific research. She not only loves the trees – they are her passion.

She says that at 7 years old she watched her grandfather dig out the side of their outhouse to rescue their dog, Jiggs, who had fallen in and could not get out. This was the first time she remembered questions forming as the shovels of soil lifted up various layers from the forest floor. As she ran her fingers through handfuls of roots and other organic materials, she wondered what was all this different stuff. There were different colors, textures and masses of stringy material. What was its purpose?

What I loved about this book:

  1. How her family’s way of life in the forest informed so much of who she was and what she loved, and also helped prepare her for her life’s work – even if she didn’t know it at the time.
  2. How she framed and explained her questions and then set up experiments to determine if what she thought was happening was indeed happening. Her descriptions were magical, lyrical, and lovely. I could smell the forest as I listened to the audio version of her book read by her. (You can download the audio book from the Jackson County Library.)
  3. That she gave credit to those who came before her, such as grandparents and indigenous people. Their intentioned observation and spiritual beliefs about the natural world led and guided some of Suzanne’s ideas as she developed her scientific inquiries.
  4. Her bravery and stick-with-it-ness in the face of criticism from governmental agency personnel, corporate-motivated greedy foresters and less enlightened colleagues who could not, or did not, want to understand or even consider her ideas.
  5. That she made discovery after discovery until there was no way that her research could be refuted.
  6. How her research and discoveries, along with those of others, are slowly changing destructive logging practices, such as clear cutting. Seeing these ignorant and destructive practices slowly change gives me and others hope that nature is more about collaboration rather than competition. Hopefully we can help our forests to help us – and we can save ourselves.

 

Suzzane Simard: How Trees Talk to Each Other/TED Talks: I recommend this talk. You will see who she is, enjoy her delightful sense of humor and get a sense of the book in about 18 minutes.

https://www.ted.com/talks/suzanne_simard_how_trees_talk_to_each_other?language=en

Finding the Mother Tree was published May 4, 2021 by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Nov 29

“Unsheltered” by Barbara Kingsolver — A Book Recommendation

By Beet 2023 12 December

Now that I have learned how to access library audiobooks and download them to my phone, I am listening to a couple more books a month while driving in my car. Learning this process and getting it into my aging brain was on my 2023 goals list.  With the help of our Jackson County Library System, I have mastered this new skill that our young people take for granted, as we older folks did with a landline at their age.

In the past, I bought audio books (very expensive) and played them on my device in my car and at home. In 2021, I purchased a new Outback and, only after getting home realized it did not have a CD player. I was devastated, as I had close to 200 audiobooks in my home library.  At about the same time my home CD player died. Was the Universe trying to tell me something? So, I donated all of my audio books to the library, took the tax write off and moved on.

Now that I’m downloading library audiobooks to my phone, I am once again getting more books under my belt. Interestingly, one of the first books that I listened to was “Unsheltered” by Barbara Kingsolver.

Every book of Kingsolver’s that I have read (which is most of them) always brings surprise and delight. Her insights into family dynamics, social justice, science verses religion and so much more always give me a new perspective that I had not expected when I chose the book to read. “Unsheltered” is no different. One fascinating character in the story was Mary Treat, who is a real person and known for her work in botany and entomology. In the 1830’s. Mary corresponded with Charles Darwin, which adds some interesting discussions about Darwin’s work and ideas. As a lover of plants and the science around plants, this was one of the aspects of this book that I found most delicious.

This is a fascinating and complex read on many levels. I have spent many enjoyable reflective moments on various elements of the book since finishing it. The website below gives a fuller synopsis of the novel. Maybe one of these days as we are working in the gardens at SOREC we can have a lively discussion about “Unsheltered” by Barbara Kingsolver.

https://www.tomakemuchoftime.com/blog/book-review-of-unsheltered-by-barbara-kingsolver

Sep 29

What Is Going On in the Herb Demo Garden?

By Beet 2023 10 October

By Colet Allen and Herb Garden Team

At the end of 2023 Practicum, Jory Kaplan and I became Co-GEMs of the Herb Demo Garden to rescue it from its sad state of overgrowth with oregano. We had others who wanted to join us, so a team was built. Shirley Wentworth, the previous Herb Garden GEM, generously helped us with identification of what was left after the oregano invasion, even though she was struggling with a major shoulder issue. She gave us her notebooks and lots of historical information on the garden. She still comes occasionally to check on our progress and we are grateful for each visit.

There is a big rose bush in the middle of the garden and the team discussed its future. Due to limited space, our plan was to remove it eventually. Joanne Mitani researched with her Rosarian friends and let us know this should be a keeper. It is a Black Cherry rose from Jackson & Perkins, patented in 2006. There is a 20-year patent on it, so we have until 2026 before that patent expires and we can propagate the rose. It is not a climber and should only be about 3’ tall. We are pruning it back to its expected size and will determine what to do with it next year. Thanks, Joanne, for the research and education on this beautiful and happy thriving rose.

Our concepts and guiding ideas are:

  • To consider labor and aging backs by making the garden as maintenance free as possible.
  • To make it truly a demonstration garden, show several different gardening techniques that will support growing herbs. The various ideas were barrels, a rock garden, a terraced container area, raised beds, and inground planting for larger and taller plants. It was not our goal to make a traditional Herb Garden but something providing more educational opportunities.
  • To incorporate art into the garden. We hope our efforts will be a positive visual addition to the Entry Garden for the front of SOREC.
  • To base the refurbishing effort on team decisions and collaborative work.
  • To bring in friends and relatives who want to work in the garden to join us.

We have been able to address our main ideas and goals. So far, we have received a donation of four wine barrels that we are preparing for Cultural Kitchen Gardens – Mexican, Indian/Middle Eastern/African, indigenous (potentially) and teas. Over time we may rotate the plants in the barrels as we discover different cultural herbs that will grow in our region.

We may use metal stock watering tanks rather than building raised beds. We received an offer of a donation of two tanks that we felt would accommodate our needs. We will paint and decorate these tanks and make them more appealing to the eye.

The container terraced area will be addressed later in the year, and we have a donation for materials and the potential for an individual to help construct that phase of the project.

Finally, Grace connected us with a Community Collaborative Citizen Science group called Oregon Season Tracker.  She has installed a sanctioned rain gauge in the Herb Garden and will be monitoring and reporting the information gathered. This puts us on the map with a nation-wide effort. There are other Citizen Science projects and, for some of them, Master Gardeners can earn hours with these organizations. If you are interested talk to Grace.

Rain gauge on the right.

We are developing a list of seeds to grow next spring. We will be looking for donations if you have some available. The babies that we captured from the original herb garden and the Practicum donations were placed in the nursery and have mostly done very well. Now that the weather is cooler and rains are in our future, we transferred those to the garden and they will be transplanted in their permanent locations in the next few weeks.

In addition to our two-legged friends, we are delighted to see pollinators, frogs and small black lizards enjoying the garden.

We are grateful (Thank YOU) for those who have volunteered and hope that their experiences inspire others to give us a try.

Specifically, thanks to everyone who worked to get the donation of the wine barrels, especially Nicole, Brian, Marie, Monette, Mark Hoffmeister and Padigan’s Winery. Mark and Monette also prepared the barrels so that they could be used for planting. It takes a village. Also, the stock tanks to be used as raised beds were donated my Jory Kaplan and Marie Carbone. These donations are greatly appreciated and have put us ahead of our expected refurbishing time schedule. The major items remaining will be plants and seeds.

I have also been told that there is a large pile of rocks on site under the cherry tree. Now I must locate that cherry tree. It will be a lot easier to pick them up in wheelbarrows on site and wheel them to our garden. The Rock Garden will be our fall and winter project and will hopefully be ready for planting next spring.

 

 

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