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Jackson County Master Gardeners

Jackson County Master Gardeners Announcements – November 2022

By Beet 2022 11 November

 

Jackson County Master Gardener™ Association 

Holiday Plant Sale

 

Date: Saturday, November 12, 2022        

Time: 9:00 am—3:00 pm

Where: SOREC (OSU Extension) Parking Lot, 569 Hanley Rd in Central Point.

Find holiday season plant gifts and landscape plants from a selection of Master Gardener-grown native and ornamental plants. Shop for floral treasures, then explore items for sale during the Holiday Gala in the SOREC Auditorium. Garden for Life!

Pay with: Cash, check, or credit card.

For more information: Email Lynn Kunstman kunlynn52@gmail.com or call (541) 227-1358.

 

 

 

 

Jackson County Master Gardener™ Association 

Holiday Gala 

Date: Saturday, November 12, 2022

Time: 9:00 am—3:00 pm

Where: SOREC (OSU Extension) Auditorium, 569 Hanley Rd in Central Point.

Jackson County Master Gardeners host a merry holiday season celebration for the whole family. Shop for decorations, wreaths, ornaments, and snowmen and women. Find the perfect gift for each friend and family member. Come share the cheer of the season, then step into the Native Nursery area off the parking lot for live Master Gardener-grown native and ornamental plants.

Free Admission.

Pay with: Cash, check, or credit card.

For more information: Email jcmgaevents022@gmail.com or call (541) 227-1358.

 

 

If you know anyone who would be interested in becoming a Master Gardener Volunteer, registration for 2023 OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Training in Jackson County will be open later this Fall!    Please call the OSU Extension office at 541.776.7371 and leave your name, phone number, and email.  We will contact you when registration is open.

                           

Winter Dreams Summer Gardens 2022 Off to a Great Start!

By Beet 2022 11 November

 

Thank you to all who attended our first two days of this exciting event on October 28 and 29.

Our committee has worked diligently to provide quality presentations/presenters on a wide range of gardening topics.

During the first two days, we have had presentations dealing with the Rogue Valley climate and the expected changes which will affect the way we garden; working with fruit trees; growing herbs; taking care of our soil; having biodiversity in our garden; and regenerative agriculture.

There is still time to register for this event and attend the last two days of presentations on November 4 and 5.

  • Register by November 2 to attend the Zoom classes.
  • Register by November 5 to only be able to view the recordings.
  • A Mailchimp will be emailed to you with a Zoom link to the classes for the following day.
  • A list of the 15 presentation recordings’ URL links will be emailed to you the week of November 7th.

All but one of the entire 16 presentations will be recorded and available to view up to the end of December.

Participants will receive an Evaluation Survey through email on November 7th. We are asking you to take a few minutes to complete the survey. Your responses will help us to improve this event and get your input on what you would like to have included for next year’s Winter Dreams Summer Gardens 2023. Your responses to our survey are very important to us.

 

Questions? Email: jcmgawdsg20@gmail.com

 

 

Community Outreach Working Group

By Beet 2022 11 November

The Community Outreach Working Group strives to promote a love of gardening and to educate gardeners about best practices via several initiatives. We give financial support to community gardens and to school gardens; have a weekly call-in show on Jefferson Public Radio; and offer a native plants garden tour on JCMGA’s website, for example.

But it is mainly via the Speakers Bureau that we strive to reach out into the community with gardening education programs and it is the Speakers Bureau where we have the greatest need for volunteers.

Volunteer speakers may make presentations at garden clubs and other in-person locations; on the SOREC campus in the Demonstration Gardens; on Zoom via the public library; or through classes offered by SOU’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI).

Training is provided for new volunteers who have a chance to “shadow” experienced speakers until they feel comfortable making presentations on their own. Volunteers select the topics they wish to talk about and may choose to present in person, on Zoom or both.

If interested in volunteering for the Speakers Bureau, contact Colet Allen at coletallen1@gmail.com or phone 425-941-7637. For other information about the COWG, contact chair Ronnie Budge at rleebudge@gmail.com.

 

Easy Fundraising for JCMGA

By Beet 2022 11 November

In the past, Spring Garden Fair has been the main fundraiser for the Jackson County Master Gardener Association.  Not being able to have a SGF since 2019 has put a major crimp in our ability to raise funds to support our many community efforts.  There have been several smaller ongoing fundraising efforts developed over the years, though, that may have been forgotten.  A series of articles are going to be written, one each month, to highlight these easy-to-do ways to raise funds for JCMGA.

Are you on Facebook?  You can celebrate your big day by creating a fundraiser for

your friends.  Start about 2 weeks ahead by following these directions:

Create a nonprofit fundraiser

  1. On your computer, login to Facebook.
  2. On the left, click Fundraisers.
    • Tip:If you don’t see Fundraisers on the left, then click See more.
  3. On the left, click Raise money.
  4. Click Nonprofit
  5. You can either:
    • Scroll to find the nonprofit you want to raise money for
    • Type into the search bar to find the nonprofit you want to raise money for
  6. Select the nonprofit.
  7. On the left, enter:
    • The goal amount of money you want to raise
    • The currency you want the funds to be in
  8. Click Create.

You’ll see a screen pop up where you can invite your friends to donate to your fundraiser, share your fundraiser in your feed, or donate to the fundraiser yourself.

 

Jackson County Master Gardeners Announcements

By Beet 2022 09 September

Adelinia grandis

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.

Contact Lynn Kunstman kunlynn52@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

  • Winter Dreams Summer Gardens Symposium 2022 will be held October 28th, 29th, November 4th, and 5th
  • Check out the list of presentations.
  • Registration is now open!!
  • Register online at https://jacksoncountymga.org/winter-dreams-summer-gardens-symposium/
  • Most sessions will be recorded.  These recordings will be available to view until the end of December 2022.

Highlighting JCMGA Experts Presenting at Winter Dreams/Summer Gardens

By Beet 2022 09 September

Last month began our Garden Beet series of three articles on the instructors and their presentations for the upcoming Winter Dreams/Summer Gardens Symposium October 28-29 and November 4-5. This month, I am going to shine a spotlight on JCMGA’s own Master Gardener experts who will be presenting at the symposium. I’m including Rachel Werling in this group, because she was the instructor for my class in 2016 and we made her an “honorary” Master Gardener. Although you may have heard presentations by each of them in the past, these Master Gardeners are developing NEW lectures for this symposium. We have a deep and talented bench!

Speakers:

Rachel Werling                                                                                 

  • Title of presentation: Wildflowers to Know
  • Description of presentation: We will have a virtual tour through some of our lovely Southwest Oregon habitats and see native blossoms in their native habitats. We will give pointers on where to see wildflowers, tools for identification, and suggest places to find these species for sale for your own garden.
  • Short bio: Rachel Werling runs the OSU Land Steward program and Klamath Siskiyou Ecoregion Course of the Oregon Master Naturalist Program. She is president of the Siskiyou Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Oregon.

 

 

Lynn Kunstman

 

  • Title: Why Natives? – Seven Steps to Restoring Biodiversity in Your Yard
  • Description: Planting native plants is crucial to ecosystem health and to preserving and protecting life on earth. Plant choice matters and choosing native plants helps to restore and ensure vital ecosystem services in our landscapes. Based on the work of Dr. Doug Tallamy, this presentation outlines seven steps you can take to create healthy, productive gardens and help save our disappearing pollinators and birds.
  • Short Bio: Lynn is a Master Gardener living in Medford Oregon. She has lived in the

Rogue Valley since 1986. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Management and a

Master’s Degree of Science in Education. A retired middle school science and special

education teacher, Lynn’s students at Ashland Middle School established the butterfly

garden there. Her first project upon retiring and moving from Ashland to Medford was

to mulch out all the lawns on her property. Lynn’s entire front yard in Medford is now

given over to wildlife: planted with edible trees and shrubs, and pollinator plants. The

back yard is planted in fruit trees, berries and vegetables for the humans. She is an

enthusiastic advocate of gardens planted with wildlife, pollinators and butterflies in mind.

 

Robin McKenzie                                                                                 

  • Title of Presentation: Planning and Growing a Living Landscape: Gardening for Biodiversity
  • Description: Save time and money by planning before you plant! With the right knowledge about native and ornamental plants, timing, seasonality, and basic design principles, it’s easy to transform any space into a pollinator and bird paradise, regardless of size. You’ll walk away from this information-packed class with step-by-step planning techniques for creating a garden that supports native and migratory pollinators and birds, while offering a beautiful, soothing vista for you and your neighbors.
  • Short Bio:Robin McKenzie is a landscape designer in Talent, Oregon. Rockbird Gardens specializes in transforming typical lawns into living landscapes using native and ornamental trees, shrubs, and perennials. As an avid birder, Robin values insects as critically important parts of the ecosystem and encourages students to embrace gardening that brings all facets of life into the neighborhood. Robin tends her own official Talent Pollinator Garden as well as a Certified Monarch Butterfly Way Station.

 

 

Sherri Morgan                                       

  • Title: Lawn Gone
  • Description: Many of us grew up with lawns and have always considered them a major part of our landscapes. But we live in Southern Oregon, which has a Mediterranean climate, with four-plus months of little to no rain. Currently, we are in the third year of a significant drought, with water restrictions increasingly likely. Lawns are thirsty and do little to provide food or shelter to our native insects and vertebrates. This class will show how to easily remove the lawn. Then, we will discuss replacing the lawn area with plants that preserve a sense of space, but which are more appropriate for our climate and support the ecosystems in which we live.
  • Short Bio: Sherri is a Master Gardener and 15-year resident of Jackson County. She has taught in the Master Gardener Practicum program since 2009 and currently is the mentor of the Native Plants Garden at the Extension (SOREC) in Central Point. Sherri has certificates in landscape design and construction and over the past several years has focused on designs that feature plants native to our area.

 

 

Shirley Wentworth                                                                   

  • Title: Incorporating Herbs into Your Life
  • Description: A discussion of herbs used as flavorings, infusions, scents, nutrients and in cooking that can be grown in the Rogue Valley. Shirley will talk about growing selected herbs and how to use them.
  • Bio: Shirley has been a Master Gardener since 2013. She is the Garden Education Mentor for the Herb Garden at Extension and was the organizer of the Herb Study Group.

 

 

John Kobal       

  • Title: Year-Round Vegetable Gardening
  • Description: Why not take advantage of gardening year-round? With a little planning, you too can reap the benefits and enjoyment of eating your own fresh produce. Change what you grow with the changing seasons. Start your winter garden before cool weather sets in. Know what crops to plant and when to expect harvests. Interplant crops to anticipate changes in weather. Have a greenhouse or a heat mat? Start your seeds early.
  • Short Bio:   John has 30-plus years of gardening experience. He relocated to the Rogue Valley in 2014 and became a Master Gardener in 2015. John has an extensive orchard, an in-ground garden and 18 raised beds used for growing vegetables. He has three worm bins which compost most kitchen scraps. John is a garden lecturer for civic organizations, interfaces with several local school gardening programs, is a Practicum instructor in the Master Gardener Training Program and hosts the garden lecture series at the annual Master Gardener Spring Garden Fair.

JCMGA Unsung Heroes

By Beet 2022 09 September

We have all heard the phrase “Unsung Heroes” which often describes folks who work behind the scenes, doing the necessary work that makes the finished product look easy.

The Master Gardeners have many of those people in the organization, but I am only concentrating on two (two very important people), Maxine Cass and Lisa Brill. Maxine and Lisa are the editors and proofreaders on The Garden Beet newsletter that is published each month. Their job is to correct spelling errors, run-on sentences and to fact check each article.

Maxine Cass has been a Master Gardener since 2015. In addition, she is also a Master Food Preserver, Master Woodland Manager and a member of the Land Stewards. In her spare time, Maxine writes and edits other publications. Plus, she has 20 acres of land here in the Rogue Valley that she and her husband manage. Maxine has been a writer and researcher for other organizations here and abroad. She spends one to three hours per month editing articles that come into The Garden Beet for publication. Her main goal is to make sure that the Beet is not only accurate in its writing but upholds the integrity of the Association.

Lisa Brill is another unsung hero you don’t hear from often. Lisa is from the class of 2020/2021 and has chosen to lend us her time working as an editor for The Garden Beet. It has been said that Lisa is a very fine editor who can write for a variety of different audiences. Like Maxine, Lisa tries to make sure the articles in the Beet are accurate and written with integrity. When not gardening, Lisa is an avid bicyclist. She is the president of the Siskiyou Velo bicycle club and loves to tackle a few hills (and the flats) when riding in the Rogue Valley. In Lisa’s professional life, she managed a flu vaccination campaign and wrote member education materials and operational, clinical and policy guidelines for Kaiser Permanente in northern California. Lisa had long desired to become a Master Gardener, so when she retired, she fulfilled that dream.

Without these two talented and dedicated women, The Garden Beet would not have the esteem that it has now. They take well-written articles and make them into excellent articles. I thank them for their hard work. I am sure now that you know a little bit about them, you will appreciate their critical eye too. The Garden Beet would not be the same without them.

 

The Picnic is Back with Master Gardener Awards!

By Beet 2022 09 September

After two long years, the annual Master Gardener August Picnic is back! Although our numbers were not what they were before COVID-19, we had a wonderful turn out of about 50 people. The auditorium was beautifully decorated with tablecloths, burlap runners and Mason jars of flowers by the Picnic Committee that included Sandy Hammond, Marcie Katz, Sandy Hansen, Lynn Kunstman, Colet Allen, Regula Pepi, Lucy Pylkki, Pam Hillers and Margaret Saydah. The menu was delicious BBQ burgers with all the fixins, and a wonderful variety of side dishes and desserts brought by the attendees. It was a joyful get together with old acquaintances and students from 2020 and the 2022 classes who finally got to meet and mingle with our newly graduated as well as experienced Master Gardeners.

Awards were the key focus of the event, with a BIG congratulations going to Jane Moyer (although she was not in attendance) who received the 2022 State Master Gardener of the Year Award, selected over nominees from all the MG Chapters in Oregon! Jane’s service and dedication to our organization for the last 17 years is impressive and her Practicum Curriculum has been copied and shared throughout the state. Jane is currently on the committee to select the new coordinator for the 2023 MG class and to plan next year’s Practicum.

Jackson County Master Gardeners awarded Lynn Kunstman as the 2022 Master Gardener of the Year for her hard work in keeping the Native Nursery functioning through the hard times and bringing in much needed revenue from plant “pop up” sales. Her passion for spreading the word about native plants emphasizes a key objective for Master Gardeners as we go forward into a time of insect apocalypse and climate change. You can hear her each week on Jefferson Public Radio as she answers listeners’ gardening questions. Lynn also taught a class on native plants at the recent OMGA Mini College and is always willing to answer questions about native plants. You can find her working diligently in the Native Nursery.

Sean Cawley (2020 class) was awarded the JCMGA Behind the Scenes Master Gardener for his enthusiastic and hard-working management of the Vegetable Garden (formerly the Children’s Garden) and the Orchards! He has single-handedly pruned all the apple, pear and peach trees in the big orchard as well as pruning the Fig Grove down to the ground last fall to give it a revitalization! Those interested in cover crops, companion planting and the various other experiments going on, should visit his garden. Sean also taught several outdoor classes to the 2022 students and helps with grounds maintenance in assisting Doug Kirby. Sean and Lynn were both instrumental in getting the new Water Containment System in and preparing us for the future.

The Award Nominations Committee also wanted to acknowledge several others who have contributed to the organization throughout the hard times we have experienced in the last few years and presented awards to the unsuspecting recipients.

Sandy Hammond is “Captain of Fortune” for her tireless delivery of Garden Guides from Ashland to Grants Pass, the sales of which have kept us in the black and for her work as Chair of the Fundraising WG!

Doug Kirby is “Keeper of the Sacred Grounds” for his dedication to maintaining the irrigation system, ordering soils and amendments, working on the weekend fixing the pump piping, and always being there to help on volunteer workdays, sanding benches, moving beds, cutting blackberries, etc., all while he keeps the beautiful Perennial Garden a delight to behold.

Last, but not least, is Ronnie Budge, who was awarded the title of “Herald” for her active role in Chairing the Community Outreach WG while living in Seattle! With the goal of Diversify, Integration and Equality she has led her group on a renewal of the Speakers Bureau, Community Garden projects and School Scholarships. Ronnie was also made a Lifetime Member of the JCMGA for her 11 years of service, which included years as mentor in the Practicum. As President, she led us through the year of COVID-19 in 2020; she kept us together while learning how to navigate and conduct board business meetings on (the dreaded) Zoom!

Congratulations to all the Award recipients!

To those who have been on the fence, please stay involved. We are making our way back to “normal” with many future events planned.

I hope to see you all at the Graduation in October. Come and meet the new Master Gardeners and let’s get ready for a fantastic 2023!

Call for Plant Sale Volunteers

By Beet 2022 09 September

Greetings, Jackson County Master Gardeners!

We have volunteer opportunities for you coming up this fall.  For new students, these hours can help you earn hours toward graduation.  For veteran MGs, these can be used to earn your annual required hours.

 

We have the following Pop-up Sales planned.

  • September 10, 2022 – At SOREC Extension Campus 569 Hanley Road, Central Point 8 am – 4 pm (where our nursery is located)

We will need volunteers for this the day of the sale – to sell plants,  and Wed, Thurs, and Friday before the sale – to put labels on plants and place informational signs.

  • October 9, 2022 – At Pollinator Project Rogue Valley, 312 N. Main Street,   8 am to 4 pm

We will need volunteers the day of the sale, and the day before, to load equipment, and plants, and to transport plants

  • November 12, 2022 – At SOREC Extension Campus 569 Hanley Road, Central Point (where our nursery is located) 8 am to 4 pm

We will need volunteers for this the day of the sale – to sell plants,  and Wed, Thurs, and Friday before the sale – to put labels on plants and place informational signs.  This sale will be in conjunction with our HOLIDAY GALA, which will be in the auditorium.

If you are interested in volunteering for any (or all) of these events, please contact Lynn Kunstman at kunlynn52@gmail.com and give me DATES and TIMES.  I will be constructing spreadsheets for each sale, with volunteers’ times and contact information.

Thanks everyone for helping to make our fundraisers so successful!

 

The Winter Dreams Summer Gardens Symposium Is Coming This Fall

By Beet 2022 05 May

 

 

The leadership team for the 2022 WDSG is in place and busy. Barbara Low, Colet Allen and Susan Koenig are this year’s team leaders and will endeavor to keep you up to date with a monthly short report in The Garden Beet as we move forward.

So far, we have chosen Zoom as the format. The dates are Friday, October 28, and Saturday 29, and in November, Friday the 4th, and Saturday the 5th. There will be 4 sessions each day for a total of 16, each an hour and one-half long with 30 minutes between sessions. The cost will be $30 for all or as many sessions as you chose to watch.

We have created the Save the Day flyer and will need some volunteers to help distribute them in early May once we have finalized the locations where they will be posted and the number of flyers needed. Flyers will also go out to the JCMGA membership via Mailchimp, and we ask that each of you share them broadly with friends and family. Using Zoom makes location irrelevant with no barriers and requires only the Internet and a device on which to watch presentations on in the privacy of your own home.

Other volunteers are needed to help with this event. Its successful outcome is dependent on those volunteers that give so generously of their time and skills. We thank you in advance for helping bring about this achievement.

As we get the presentations and presenters on board, we will send out another flyer with the schedule, speakers, their subjects, and how to register. So, get the dates on your calendar and stay tuned.