Planning for the 2022 Winter Dreams/Summer Gardens Symposium is well underway. The Symposium will offer 16 different class sessions, four per day on October 28-29 and November 4-5. With so many gardening-related topics to choose from, the WD/SG Working Group decided to have four presentations for each of four subject areas: climate change/ecology; native plants; home gardening; and a “grab bag” theme.
To increase our audience, we are partnering with the Oregon State Landscape Board to offer our classes for Continuing Education Horticultural credits for Landscapers. We are also trying new avenues of advertising, including a color ad in the Medford Park and Recreation Department’s Fall Catalog with a circulation of 44,000 households. Because the classes will again be presented via Zoom, there are plenty of seats!
We have booked 16 spectacular speakers, a few of whom you will know and others who are new to WD/SG. This month, and for the next two months, we will be showcasing the bios of 5-6 speakers in the Garden Beet. The schedule of classes and registration information will be available in mid-August. You will be able to register and pay on-line through the jcmga.org website. Watch for the Mailchimp announcement in August.
Speaker Bios
Jamie Trammell
Title: “Rogue Valley climatology in the future: implications for planning, fire, and food”
- Description: What do the climate models suggest for the Rogue Valley in the future? More heat stress, less water? More rain, less snow? During this session, we will summarize what the latest models show for the Rogue Valley and how we can use this information to begin planning for the future today.
- Short bio: Jamie Trammell is an Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Policy at Southern Oregon University. He is trained as a landscape ecologist and has been working on climate change models for nearly a decade. He specializes in visualizing climate and other drivers of ecosystems using maps and geospatial technology.
Jane Collier
- Title: “Intro to Berries”
- Description: This class will compare and contrast strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries. Topics include: longevity, space requirement, variety choices, expected time of harvest, quantity of harvest, cultural requirements (fertilizing, watering, pruning), and common pests and diseases.
- Short Bio: Jane Collier became an OSU Master Gardener in Clackamas County is 1996. She has taught many classes for the award-winning 10-Minute University™ program. Jane gained extensive experience with growing blueberries, having operated a ‘U-Pick’ blueberry patch on her farm. Today, she and her husband grow and preserve a variety of fruits, berries, and vegetables on their five-acre farm.
Kora Mousseaux 
- Title: “Stormwater Management and Conservation”
- Description: Learn about stormwater management techniques and overall methods to increase water efficiency on your property. Participants will be given an overview on stormwater management, particularly rainwater harvest. Resources will be shared and participants should walk away from the presentation feeling better prepared to implement water conserving measures such as rainwater harvest on their property.
- Short bio: Kora Mousseaux is the Community Water Resource Conservationist at Jackson Soil and Water Conservation District where she has worked since 2016. She provides technical and financial assistance to landowners and land managers in Jackson County. Kora focuses on stormwater runoff mitigation/low impact development, water-wise landscaping, and other water resource conservation projects.
Matt Young 
- Title: “All About Soil & and the Nutrients”
- Description of presentation: The presentation will cover a wide range of important information about garden soils. A few of the topics in this presentation are: types of soil, the macro and micronutrients reported on soil analyses, the role of pH and buffer pH, how to raise nutrients using organic and synthetic fertilizers and how to read the various analyses on a soil test report.
- Short bio: Matt Young is the agronomist for a California company that consults with farmers and ranchers on soil and water issues as well as offering soil tests for home gardeners. He has lived on a farm all his life where he discovered his aptitudes for machinery, crops, and animals. He has studied the science behind what grows and what makes it grow – anything that is between the water, how the water gets there and the soil. He has two BS degrees in Agriculture Sciences – Biology and Sustainability, as well as several certificates in irrigation technology, plant sciences and poultry science.
Andony Melathopoulos
- Title of presentation: “Take a walk on the wild side: The weird and wonderful world of
Oregon’s native bees” - Description of presentation: Explore the buzzing world of bees with OSU professor Andony Melathopoulos from the comfort of your home. Learn about Oregon’s native bees and Andony’s research with the Oregon Bee Atlas. You will leave knowing how to identify some of the more common bee species and what to plant in your garden where you can study them more closely.
- Short bio: Andony is an Assistant Professor in Pollinator Health Extension in the Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University. OSU’s work around pollinator health comes from mandates passed by the Oregon Legislature. He has four primary responsibilities: (1) training pesticide applicators on how to control pests while minimizing impacts to pollinators, (2) organizing a state-wide native bee survey (the Oregon Bee Atlas), (3) guiding residential beekeepers on how to prevent their honeybees from becoming a nuisance, and (4) hosting a weekly podcast on pollinator health (PolliNation). He also sits on the Steering Committee of the Oregon Bee Project, which coordinates pollinator health work across state agencies.
For those who’ve never promoted paw prints upon their perfectly manicured plots, they don’t know what they’re missing. They’ve truly forsaken the animal element in the fundamental foundation of gardening: For me, God’s intentional pairing of plant, animal and human sustained by the seasons of life. Of course, furry garden partners aren’t for all.
enhance and complete your gardener’s partnership with plant and soil.
Members and friends, we are back on campus and desperately need your help in our demonstration gardens. Come on any Wednesday, from 9 am to noon, from now through October. Our goal: get our gardens back to their former glory.
The Daylily Garden features more than 100 cultivars of the Hemerocallis genus. For more than a decade, volunteers in the garden have been crossbreeding different daylilies, including about a dozen new hybrids that will be registered with the American Hemerocallis Society. Marsha Waite is the GEM for this garden. 
The Lavender Garden includes 80 varieties of lavender and more than 250 plants. The garden is the only one in the Pacific Northwest registered with the Herb Society of America. Part of the Southern Oregon Lavender Trail, open from June to mid-August, our largest garden needs lots of TLC. Please come work with Irv Johnson 
Over 150 varieties of roses grace our gardens. These include hybrid tea roses, floribundas, grandifloras, miniature roses, climbing roses, and David Austin roses. Learn to care for and prune roses with Joanne Mitani, the Rose Garden GEM. 
The Water-wise Garden conserves water by using mostly drought-tolerant plants, by grouping plants together with similar needs and by mulching. Contact Monette Hoffmeister 
The Wanda Hauser Garden was the first Demonstration Garden at this site, established in 1994. The garden features a wide variety of common ornamental plants with less commonly known culinary, medicinal, and cosmetic uses. Most of the plants are perennials, while others are self-seeding annuals or shrubs. Marcie Katz is the GEM for this garden. 
The Vegetable Garden demonstrates various methods for small scale home vegetable gardening. Methods include growing vegetables in straw bales, growing potatoes in very small areas, and cool and warm season cover crops used in carbon sequestration, weed control and nitrogen fixing. It features pollinator plants and a bountiful harvest of vegetables. Sean Cawley is our GEM. 
The Demonstration Orchard boasts over 40 different apple trees. Many are of commonly known varieties such as Honeycrisp and Fuji. Less known are Bramley’s Seedling, Belle de Boskoop and Arkansas Black. Also present are varieties of peaches and pears. Sean Cawley is doing double duty as this garden’s GEM. 
mentors Becky Belau 
The Native Plant Garden showcases native plants found in this region that are suitable for the home garden. Native plants are adapted to local environmental conditions and provide food and shelter for native birds, butterflies, and other wildlife. The Native Plant Garden has expanded to incorporate a rain garden – a shallow depression designed to collect rainwater The rain garden captures water for a short period of time, allowing it to soak slowly into the landscape. The deep roots of the surrounding native plants assist in this water infiltration. Sherri Morgan is the GEM 
campus and to the community at large. We propagate our plants from cuttings and seeds, and grow a variety of annuals, perennials, grasses, shrubs and trees. Nursery work usually goes from mid-January to mid-November. If you are interested in learning how to stratify seed, propagate from cuttings, or just learn more about native plants and help with regular pop-up sales, contact Lynn Kunstman at 
Our Perennial/Shade Garden has a mixture of shade, dappled sunlight and even areas with hot afternoon sun. Perennial plants are the backbone of nearly every flower garden. The lifespan, bloom time, culture and form of perennial plants varies greatly. Shade gardens are those with little or no direct sunlight. Since few edible plants grow well under shady conditions, shade gardens are usually ornamental. Doug Kirby is the GEM. 
that can be eaten, used as spice, or for tea. We need a GEM for this garden! Talk to Marcie Katz if you are interested.
The Wildflower Garden features flowers, shrubs and grasses that are native to the Rogue Valley. Our area is part of the California Province of Wildflowers which is considered a hotspot for native plant biodiversity. The garden also includes non-native plants that are frequently found in our area. The Wildflower Garden was registered as a Monarch Way Station in 2015. Sue Koury is our GEM. 
Our Vineyard Garden is being replanted in wine grapes. This garden needs a GEM! Are you that person? You would work closely with our viticulturist, Dr. Alexander Levin, who, by the way, speaks both Spanish and Russian.
Oregon State University Extension
