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Hello Gardeners!
As we enter 2025, it’s a good time to celebrate the successes of the past year and focus on the goals for the upcoming year. We have awesome highlights from the Jackson County MG Program of 2024. Thank you all for making this great work happen!
In 2024 the Master Gardener Volunteers….
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have a total of 9,300.1 volunteer hours!
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have 1,009.75 hours of learning for Continuing Education Credits!
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have donated 1,082 pounds of produce from the Plant a Row Campaign and MGs bringing produce to their local pantries!
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have 39 graduates from the 2024 MG Volunteer Training Class!
Thank you to everyone who helped make this year a success. I am proud and amazed at all the hard work you have done for each other and the community.
Some other successes I want to highlight from the past year include, but by no means are limited to….
Cultivating Companions: Growing Together Through Plants
This program was a 7 week series we ran in some of the rural libraries around the county. Participants and instructors learned a lot and we had fun bringing people together. We reached 6 libraries and 48 program participants. The librarians were very helpful and enjoyed hosting us in their libraries. We are looking forward to running this program again in the libraries next year. I have reached out to their lead programming coordinator to get us set for a few more libraries. I have also reached out to the Jackson County Disability Services to set up a series with their audiences. Stay tuned for more information as we work out dates!
Jackson County Community Garden Network
One of the MG Programing priorities is local foods. In addition to financially supporting community gardens, we have meetups with community garden leaders around the county. Now we even have a Facebook group for keeping our gardens connected and easily sharing information. Check out what’s happening by searching “Jackson County Community Garden Network” on Facebook!
Demonstration Garden Events
Our demonstration gardens may not be in a busy public park, but that doesn’t stop us from spreading education with them! There have been many garden groups from across the valley who have toured our gardens. This has been a great opportunity for us to connect with more gardeners in our area as well as share what we each know. In the summer we invited artists to a plein air to paint, draw, and take photos of the flowers. Many artists were happy to read the informational signs scattered through the gardens to learn more about their muses. More formal educational opportunities like pruning classes continue to be a popular way for education to be shared in our demonstration gardens.
I cannot say it enough. Thank you to all you wonderful volunteers for making these things happen. As an organization we have our fingers dipped into many different pies and do a wide variety of education outreach. From the seemingly small jobs to the more dauntingly large tasks, it all helps and makes a difference. I can’t wait to have a great 2025 with you all!
Hello Gardeners,
As we wrap up the Master Gardener Volunteer year, we have many accomplishments to look back on. We have a great group of students moving on to graduate this month, a plentiful second year of our Plant a Row Campaign produce donations to ACCESS food pantries, and a successful kick off of the Cultivating Companions program.
Our MG class of 2024 were wonderful students to work with. Many students have carved out their niche spaces of where they like to fit into the organization. This year’s students have been seen around the Demonstration Gardens, Plant Clinic, across the county in tabling events, and out teaching in the libraries this past year. Congrats on all your hard work and we can’t wait to see what you all get up to next year.
Our second year of the Plant a Row Campaign to collect produce donations was a ringing success. We collected 812 pounds of produce this summer at our Wednesday collections! We had additional donations to food pantries outside of our campaign, bringing our total number of produce donated to 952 pounds. This produce has been greatly appreciated by ACCESS and our community members that receive fresh produce from them. Much of our Wednesday collections left the ACCESS warehouse on Thursday to be delivered to ACCESS housing locations around Medford. This partnership has been a huge success that we will continue to foster in the upcoming years.
The Cultivating Companions program was piloted this year in rural libraries around the county. We found it fun for both the instructors and the participants. People ended up befriending neighbors they didn’t know, learning skills about growing plants, and laughing with each other. The libraries have been amazing hosts for these group classes, assisting with scheduling and technology. Our extra supplies from our generous grant means that next year’s program activities are already set to go.
Thank you everyone for a great year of volunteering, educating, and community building! I am looking forward to working with you all in 2025!
Hello Gardeners,
The Statewide Master Gardener Program has exciting news about our Garden Future Across Oregon. We received a grant to educate gardeners about upcoming changes and challenges we are facing in our gardens. Each region across the state is experiencing different impacts of the changing weather on their garden beds.
Step one for us Master Gardener Coordinators is collecting stories and data about what is happening in your gardens. At the Joy of Gardening conference, we got some input from gardeners across the state. Many gardeners are having to use shade cloths, wind barriers, water conservation techniques, and change their planting times to keep their gardens successful. You can join the conversation by signing up for the Garden Future mailing list https://beav.es/q9t and filling out the survey on what changes you see in your garden https://extension.oregonstate.edu/garden-future. We hope to get more survey participation across the state from non-MGs at tabling events, educational classes, and the plant clinics.
The next steps for the statewide team include putting together an educational module for you volunteers to learn about how our climate and gardens are changing. This module will include regional information for gardeners across the state. We are also assembling resources and teaching kits for volunteers to share with their local communities. Handouts for tabling events and class teaching kits will be developed based on the needs we see from the above survey. Currently, a drip irrigation kit like the one I borrowed from Klamath County will be our first kit to expand upon.
Happy gardening and stay tuned for more upcoming information!
Do you need to boost your volunteer hours as the end of the year is drawing closer? We are looking for volunteers in the areas described below.
Demonstration Gardens:
We have many beds around the extension office that require regular maintenance. There are usually people working in the gardens on Wednesdays from 9-12. For people who live further away, it may be easier to set up work party days where once or twice a month folks carpool from Grants Pass to the extension office. Check out our webpage for more information on each demonstration garden. https://jacksoncountymga.org/demonstration-gardens/ . Contact Marcie Katz marciek10@gmail.com
Plant Clinic:
Our Plant Clinic is open M/T/Th/F from 9 am-2 pm during the spring through fall and open Tu/Th from 10 am -2 pm in the winter. We have quarterly Mentor meetings and trainings in the winter. The mentors help students take client questions and find solutions. Contact Grace Florjancic grace.florjancic@oregonstate.edu
Speakers Bureau:
Master Gardeners are often asked to give talks to libraries, garden clubs, and other groups around the county. You can volunteer by giving presentations, helping new members make presentations, or assisting others in giving presentations that you have made. Some talks are done in person and some via zoom. https://jacksoncountymga.org/speakers-bureau/ .
Contact Colet Allen coltetallen1@gmail.com
Tabling Events:
There are many events in Jackson County where the JCMGA has a presence. We mostly just share information, publications, and talk with the public. This year we were in Phoenix for Earth Day and Medford for Medford Streets and Pride. We had a static table display at the County Fair in July. Contact Ronnie Budge rleebudge@gmail.com
JCMGA Working Groups:
These groups help with the flow of getting things done. Each group has monthly meetings via zoom or in person at the extension office. Marketing and Technology, Members Services, Community Outreach, Fundraising, Spring Garden Fair, Program Support, Winter Dreams Summer Gardens, and many JCMGA board positions help make decisions. We need your involvement to keep these groups going strong. Contact Barbara Low barbaralow@msn.com
Spring Garden Fair:
The SGF is the first weekend in May. We will need many hands to help with this big undertaking next year. Preparing plants in the greenhouses takes place from about February – May. Contact Marcie Katz marciek10@gmail.com or Lucy Pylkki lalapylk@msn.com
MG Student Mentors:
Returning master gardeners are mentors for the new students in the training course. This is a good dual volunteer and continuing education opportunity. Contact Grace Florjancic grace.florjancic@oregonstate.edu
Volunteer from home options:
Garden Beet: We have a monthly newsletter called The Garden Beet with program updates and gardening information. Those interested in writing are welcome to contribute articles to the newsletter. https://jacksoncountymga.rg/beet/
Winter Dreams Summer Gardens: This fall conference is all virtual via zoom. Each talk has a host who introduces the speaker and helps facilitate audience questions. There are about 16 talks over two weekends. Contact Susan Koenig srkoenig@aol.com
Marketing and Technology: For tech savvy folks there are many ways to assist this working group, including website maintenance, designing flyers, and sending out bulk mail chimp emails. Contact Barbara Low barbaralow@msn.com or Keltie Nelson kknelson2@charter.net
Libraries: One of my goals is to offer more programming in the Josephine County (JC) Libraries. Rouge River, Jacksonville, and Ruch may be closer to some JC residents. Now that we have a staffed 4H team, I will be working with them to develop curriculum for youth activities that volunteers can be involved with in the communities. There will be train-the-trainer days to review the activities and prepare volunteers for teaching others. This is a work in progress and not near completion yet.
I encourage you to reach out to those involved in whatever area interests you. Help our organization flourish while also earning your volunteer hours for the year!
Hello Gardeners,
We have some awesome updates from the Cultivating Companions: Growing Together Through Plants program. Just this past week, we finished up in our Medford and Shady Cove Library locations. We had great feedback from participants saying they learned a lot, had fun, and met more people. Some participants found they were neighbors! We even had a request for a Part Two of the program. The other programs in Butte Falls, Ruch, and Rouge River are currently underway.
The librarians have been happy to have more programs happening at their branches. Some even joined us for classes and got a chance to learn and have fun. The libraries are a great space for these hands-on activities that bring our program closer for the residents of Jackson County outside of the Medford hub. I hope we are able to continue and grow this partnership in the future.
As with any pilot program, it has not always been smooth sailing. For instance, we found out there was an error on the library website saying the class was full in Ruch, so we are hoping to have more late comers join us in that library. Those that did make it to Ruch were really excited to get out of the house and have a fun time learning about plants. The class on pressed flowers did require some troubleshooting and may take a little more brainstorming to perfect, as I found out contact paper is not the easiest to work with.
With feedback from this year’s participants, we will be able to apply for more grant funding opportunities to keep the program going in more libraries. There are many directions this program could take to reach more people in the county. The grant we received this round was specifically for programming with older adults and focused on rural areas. I am excited to see what is next for this program.
A massive thank you to all the Master Gardener volunteers that made Cultivating Companions: Growing Together Through Plants possible. Thank you all for sticking with me through the maybes and unknowns as we got this new program off the ground. Many of the volunteers have said the classes are a blast of fun to teach. If you are interested in volunteering with Cultivating Companions, keep an eye out next year for more opportunities!
Shady Cove Cultivating Companions Crew
Hello Gardeners,
This month we had a wonderful visit to Troon Vineyard out in the Applegate Valley. Troon is a biodynamic and regenerative organic certified vineyard. Part of the biodynamic certification means that they have at least 10% of their land dedicated to wildlife habitat. It was awesome to see a larger scale operation incorporate techniques to promote pollinators and beneficial insects.
Troon has wildflower patches throughout the vineyard in low sections that would be too wet for grapevines to thrive. Some of these patches are intentional plantings and some are more meadow style of letting the flowers grow and mingle. A few years ago they installed a native plant garden. Half of it is more managed plantings and the other half is a meadow. The spring and early summer bloomers were bright and vibrant in the garden. The buckwheat and lupines were very happy and colorful.
The grapevines themselves are established in a three-year system. The first year the ground is plowed to let the grapes establish without competition. The second-year grasses are planted in the space between the rows of vines. In the third year, short perennial flowers are planted in the rows with the grape vines. I am interested to see the long term impacts this style of growing has on their overall water usage and pest occurrences. I hope the perennial flowers offer wonderful habitat for beneficial insects like parasitic wasps to keep grape vine pest numbers down.
I had a great time learning, asking questions, and chatting with all the Master Gardeners who made the trek out to Troon. We got lucky with the beautiful weather. I hope we can work with Troon to have more tours in the future for those who missed this opportunity.
Hello Gardeners,
I am very excited to announce that JCMGA has been awarded funding from the Rural Older Adult Mini Grant that we applied to earlier this year! This grant is through the Oregon Health Authority and its goal is to help support social engagement among isolated rural and remote older adults. I see great opportunity for gardening to fit into this grant’s goals.
Horticulture therapy is an emerging practice to use gardening for improving mental health. Hospitals have shown quicker recovery times when patients have greenery in their rooms or a window with a view of nature. There have been studies showing a boost in mood when plants are just in the room with us! Beyond making us happier, working with plants has been shown to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and improve memory. Horticultural therapy focuses on learning new skills, activating the senses, building social connections, and improve coordination.
Our programing funded by this grant will take place in the rural libraries of Jackson County as meeting locations. Cohorts of about 6-10 participants will meet for six weeks doing various gardening activities based on horticultural therapy ideas. Activities range from learning to grow plants indoors, creating art with plants, and using herbs for a tea party. We hope that people will form lasting connections with their groups as well as foster a love for plants.
As we age, we have to change the way we garden and enjoy our plants. This program is designed with that in mind. My grandma is a lifelong gardener but when she entered her 90’s she had to take a big step back from her outdoor plants. I helped her grow plants in containers on her porch and set her up with some indoor plants. She has been so happy to continue her lifelong love of plants in a way that is easier on her body than outdoor gardening was. I hope that people leave this program with the knowledge and skills to keep gardening and adapt the way they garden to fit their needs. I also hope participants make some new friends along the way.
Do you want to get involved?
If so, please contact me at grace.florjancic@oregonstate.edu. This new program is a short 6-month grant, so we are quickly getting this ball rolling!