Monroe County Master Gardener Association

Gail sent in a few sightings in response to our post.

She Writes:
“Ok I took the challenge— cold and windy today but found faint signs
of awakening in some of my plants.”

:

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Look what popped up in Chris E.’s yard:

Chris snapped this photo Christmas Morning and send it to me. We both are wondering how many other plants are starting to appear with this unusual weather. Do you have one? Send a photo and I’ll add it.

I took a tour of my yard…nothing here.

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Post & photos by Gail K

I HOPE EVERYONE HAD A BERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS-
I’M ALSO WISHING YOU ALL A HOLLY JOLLY NEW YEAR!!!!

Before our first meeting of 2020–I thought it would be fun to test our
knowledge of the various berries we can find on the trees & shrubs in the
demo gardens. Look over the pics below-can you name each one–
how well did you do? Answers posted at the end.
A)

B)

C)

D)

E)

F)

G)

H)

I)

J)

K)

OK I confess, I sneaked in a couple non-berry pics and
some others but most of them are found @ the
extension demo gardens;if you are lucky enough to beat the birds.

Answers are in this PDF
ANSWERS

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By Naida A.
Each year Milan Garden Club members make up approximately 80 Christmas
centerpieces using fresh greens in a very nice ceramic, waterproof
container. These centerpieces are then sold at Marble Memorial United
Methodist Church in Milan at their annual “Craft and Goodie Sale”, the
first Saturday of each December and at very reasonable prices of between
$10 and $20 (local folks know our prices are low and they line up at the
door at 8:30 am to buy them. We sold 60 the first two hours of the
sale!). We are able to offer these at those low prices because several
of our members shop for the ceramic containers and accessories during
and immediately after Christmas week and at almost give-away prices!

This year we outdid ourselves and when all were assembled we counted
96! I am most pleased to report that only 8 centerpieces were left over
after the sale and the remainder will be used at our annual Christmas
Dinner on December 12 and (hopefully) sold at that time.

If you would like to know more about Milan Garden Club we have a
Facebook page or please contact Naida Albin. Guests are always welcome
at our meetings and programs and we would love to have you visit us to
see if our joining our club would be of interest to you. We meet the
2nd Wednesday of each month, in Milan, at 6:45 from February through
November.

Thanks,
Naida

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By Gail K.
Yearly in November, we celebrate closing the gardens with a banquet. Skipping the speaker we enjoyed mingling and shopping prior to our meal. We held a “members market” where those who chose- were given opportunity to display and sell their wares.


There were homemade Christmas crafts-
another table held distinctive handcrafted pottery


There were exquisite quilled ornaments,& intricate floral displays made of “paper”. There were scarfs of varied styles and colors.

There was golden honey- homegrown and harvested:

There was even a table of freebies (I got a garden flag & some of Jennie’s Kieffer pears)

WINNERS of the donated orchids were Jennie and Sharon E.
Look who’s in the kitchen:

It was really nice to share time with each other:

Along with the pleasant company the food was plenty & delicious-Speaking of food— I would like the recipe for that spaghetti casserole??

some of us even got seconds!!!


Following our meal, we were entertained by fellow member-Bob, with his wit and songs.

When given the opportunity- we are always open to learning–

at the conclusion of our banquet we closed by having each member give their personal highlight during the last year.

MEMBERS– BE SURE TO CHECK OUT THE MEMBERS MARKET ON THE BLOG!!!

2019: is quickly coming to an end. As the Monroe CountyMaster Gardeners Assoc. & Horticulture Club, give thanks for the blessings of family, gardening & the fruits of harvest; we wish to extend to all fellow gardeners and those who visit our blog- MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

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For our last meeting of 2019, we were fortunate to have Tom Woelmer speak to us on his newest garden crop-HOPS.


He shared, he had no idea what the vines with pods were when he first came across the “wild” hops growing on his wooded farm lot. He shared the history of his farm, and how discovering the hops has sent him on an ntrepreneurial path to produce hops to sell for commercial-craft beer production.

Below: a field of hop vines growing up Coyers; Jute fibers tied to tall poles…

He shared a ton of information; from planting “the girls,” to growing & harvesting and finally prepping the hops to sell. We learned not all are equal; variation of vine, leaf, hop color along with the type of soil grown in change characteristics of the flavor & are the principle factors considered by those who buy Hops for craft beer production.

Mr. Woelmer’s hops are unique; Wild-Naturalized with specifics somewhat unknown. Given these factors he named
his native Hops-“Mystique” So the next time you are in the mood to try a craft beer-read the label; you may be enjoying some of Mr. Woelmer’s award winning- “Mystique” Hops.
Following the meeting; for one last time & checking it twice-made a to-do list for work needed in the gardens. Please enjoy some candid shots taken as the Monday morning garden warriors literally tucked the beds in for winter—-

Majority vote-love that rake!! Need to find one-hey Santa.
SHRUB ROW

??? Left for the birds, the bees,or pleasing to the eyes & winter interest.





Well folks it’s clear fall has arrived-

Love the grandeur of the season but I’m not a cool weather gardener. With that being said-it is time for this Turkey to pack it up

& head inside to grab a blanket while sitting in front of a warm fire.

This brings the 2019 extension garden season to an END!!!!! *** your Monday morning garden warriors????

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By Gail K
At the close of our last meeting-we toured each of the defined gardens we care for @ the extension.
With the issues identified & a project list was created- directing our efforts so to complete the list before winter. Follow along as I try to show you our progress.

On the western edge of the Children’s Garden-it was determined we should remove the oval herb garden–the brick path and replace it with grass………(# secondary goal- decrease & make easier, the work load on our dwindling & aging membership).

Finished project–look closely, some grass seed did germinate. Concern- this area gets a lot of dumped snow from the parking lot.

Heading to the Memory Garden:
The Anemones must go!!! So out they came– will wait to do anything more in this area until spring; any roots missed will begin to re-sprout and we will be able to tackle them again.

Since they are so beautiful when in bloom; it was decided to not totally rid the gardens of them but instead move them so they could be better appreciated and not so intrusive. They now have a new home in the far northwest roadside garden.


There were plenty left over to share-

Going south along the front lawn-the next area to tackle is to remove the raggedy Cottoneaster bushes and trim up the Pine tree.

Now they can mow right up and under, and the pine needles will provide a natural mulch………what a difference!! Note in the back along the bldg. no bushes……..they were removed by the county.
Next up–removing undergrowth from around the Beautyberry Bush.


Perennial Bed just some light plant pruning–the geraniums are so pretty. My photo did not do justice.

BELOW:
The entry garden-what a difference 1 week can make!! Everything trimmed, ready to rest for winter so we can enjoy another show come spring.

The next large tackle was the junipers which line the entire front entry of the building. Instead of removing as they did in the front yard….we will trim up as they anchor the front gardens and soften the walls of the building.

It sure smelled good when we did this. Check them out when you come to the next meeting-let us know what
you think.

That brings us back to the infamous northeast fenced area–again, the ivy has encroached in just about every direction but up. Below is a pic of just a small amount of the ivy overgrowth that was removed and at this time;

More work is needed in the area outside Children’s Garden (Rose of Sharon need major thinning). The paths not even visible & totally entangled in vines.Trying to clean the area found Naida & I tripping over 2 stumps.I returned with a chain saw and removed but discussion needs to follow. What could provide the same purpose (??), but safer for foot travel by both the young and old & easier to maintain–
Note to self: never in my garden.

Along the north fence we tackled the Jerusalem Artichoke.

It had to be cut down and Jenny harvested some of the tubers which can be used in your fall cooking dishes.

Another fall project, removal of the wild clematis “Old Man’s Beard” from the fence it hides but it takes a lot of time to remove it.

Last fall, Joan and I spent an entire work session snipping & pulling it from the fence. (another note to self, think twice before planting this) This year, we sprayed it & now we wait; can’t touch anything in that area.

As we finish around the fence, we end in the Butterfly Garden. Timing is everything in this garden due to the multi purpose of the plants for our insect world. ( see bee, butterfly??)

That’s all folks!!! It took a couple of visits over a couple of weeks but for the most part, the garden has been tucked in and will soon fall into a deep winter’s sleep– -I will be impatiently waiting for spring.!!!!

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