Come Back to the Gardens!

Members and friends, we desperately need helpers in our Demonstration Gardens. We are back on campus and are inviting each and every one of you to come work with us on Wednesdays, from 9 am to noon, from now through October. Our goal: to get our gardens back to their former glory. If you are interested in helping, please choose a garden, contact the GARDEN EDUCATION MENTOR (GEM) for that garden and get signed up.

 

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. mgmarsha@mindspring.com

 

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 irvjohnson943@yahoo.com   and Margaret Clark meregrota@hotmail.com .

 

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. joanne.mitani@gmail.com

 

 

Water-wise gardening offers an attractive, sustainable landscape that conserves water.  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 mahonia997@gmail.com to work in this garden.

 

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. marciek10@gmail.com

 

 

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. seanski0@gmail.com

 

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. seanski0@gmail.com

 

Peggy Corum, a 30-year veteran Master Gardener, started the Propagation Garden, and garden mentors Becky Belau lbelau@charter.net and Sharon Maurin maurins@charter.net  teach how to propagate many perennials, shrubs and trees that are then available at plant sales to benefit JCMGA.

 

 

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  shemor484@gmail.com

 

The Native Plants Nursery was established to provide native plant material to the gardens on 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 kunlynn52@gmail.com.

 

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. oneredquilt@gmail.com

 

The Culinary Herb Garden demonstrates the numerous herbs you can grow in Southern Oregon 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. SKoury1112@gmail.com

 

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.