Allamakee County Master Gardener Newsletter Seeds of Wisdom · 2019. 4. 4. · and cover crops for gardens, ponds, daylilies, bees and their preferred plants, birds and birdwatching,

Allamakee County Master Gardener Newsletter—Seeds of Wisdom

Iowa Sta te Univers i ty Extension — February 2019

Allamakee County Master Gardener Meeting

Thursday, February 28, 2019 7:00 p.m.

Senior Citizen Room—Waukon Wellness Center

Speaker: Jack Knight, Organic Gardening

Agenda: Thursday, February 28, 2019 Hosting: Caroll Schreiber and Sharon Hofmann Roll Call: This will also be an informative program. Bring your favorite gardening magazine and high-light one of the articles. Secretary's Minutes: October 26, 2018 Treasurer's Report:

Old Business: January Seed and Plug Order Madison Garden Expo, February 8-10 Farmers Markets Managers

New Business:

Election of Officers Sign-up for Meeting Hosts Ideas for Field Trips and Programs Winter Webinars, March 19 & April 2 Plant Sale Coordinator 2019

Waterville Spring Expo, March 23

Buchanan Co. Gardening Symposium, February 23 MG Annual Dinner, March 21 at Rossville

Jack Knight, a Postville native, will have a presentation at our February 28 Master Gardener meeting on organic gardening. Jack was an organic inspector for 21 years.

He has a hobby orchard and tree farm.

Julie & Lana

Madison Garden Expo Are you planning to attend the Madison Garden Expo? The Madison Garden Expo is February 8-10 this year.

Visit http://www.wigardenexpo.com/about for more infor-mation.

Buchanan County Master Gardeners 13th Annual Gardening Symposium

February 23, First Presbyterian Church, Independence, 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Topics to be covered: soil health

and cover crops for gardens, ponds, daylilies, bees and their preferred plants, birds and birdwatching, and peo-nies. Speakers will be Abby Beltz, Dave Harms, Gay-lord Stauffer and Randall Cass. $35 registration in-

cludes speakers, light breakfast and lunch. More infor-mation on top of page 6.

Waterville Spring Expo March 23, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Master Gardeners will be hosting a table promoting the Allamakee County Master Gardeners. We will be asking for volunteers to man the

table.

Houston County’s Garden Day “Thyme to Garden… Again”

The Annual Spring Workshop for the Houston Master Gardeners. This year's speakers are Barb Perry, MN DNR; Janene Hosch, Sarah Goff & Lane Zaffke, Hou-

ston Co. Master Gardeners; Linda Lind, Alpine Nursery; Sue Haggerty, Hosta grower; and Jean Larson of U of M Extension. Talks will cover healing power of nature, gar-dening in rattlesnake country, hands on seed starting,

tour of Scandinavia, and hosta’s. We will have our silent auction, door prizes, vendors, and country store. The country store is like a garage sale, with secondhand

items for home or garden donated and sold for a small fee. More information on the bottom of page 6.

Saturday, March 30, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Location: Caledonia High School 825 N Warrior Ave, Caledonia, MN 55921 Visit https://houstoncountymastergardeners.com or Facebook: @houstoncountymastergardeners

Master Gardener Opportunities

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You! For the cheese boxes.

Your generosity is greatly appreciated.

Save The DATE, March 21— Annual Dinner

“Just because a plant is native doesn’t make it better. Choose the right plant for the right spot, no matter its

origin.”

This months quotes from the Grumpy Gardener...Southern Living

Don Haler is chairing this year and has scheduled Thursday, March 21, at The Old Rossville Store, for members and their spouse or friend. Happy hour is 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. and supper at 6:00 p.m., order off the menu. Give Don a call for reservations at 568-1714 or email [email protected] by March 19.

Native American Full Moons—Connie Benedict The native Americans were very poetic people, intelligent and creative, and they gave the Moon many names.

To them each Full Moon of the year had a particular name and a story to go with it. The Indians named the various Moons long before the settlers came to the New World.

January, they believed, brought the Wolf Moon, describing the hungry wolf pack that roamed about in the dead of winter.

February’s Full Moon was called Snow Moon because of the blizzards that often occur during this month.

March’s Full Moon was given a strange name-the Worm Moon, because with the spring thaw the earthworms would come to the soil surface.

April’s Full Moon had several names-Pink Moon for the flowers (mostly pink) that covered the land at this time, Fish Moon, Sprouting Grass Moon, Egg Moon, and Shad Moon.

May-Corn Planting Moon or also Flower Moon

June’s Full Moon was called the Strawberry Moon, de-scribing when strawberries were fruiting

July’s Full Moon is called Thunder Moon, when storms of-ten come up suddenly out of nowhere

August’ Full Moon has three descriptive names: the Green Corn Moon, the Sturgeon Moon named for the fish, and Red Moon named for the heat and haze of the month.

September brings the Harvest Moon

October’s Full Moon is the Hunter’s Moon, Elk, deer and bear were hunted.

November brought the Beaver Moon, names for the trap-ping that was done before winter

Decembers’ Full Moon was called the Cold Moon. Article taken from “Sleeping with a Sunflower"

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Webcasts Are Educational Opportunity for Master Gardeners The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Master Gardener program will host two webcasts this winter. Master Gardeners will gain educational hours while learning about managing vegetable pests and gardening in containers. The one-hour webcasts will be shown at the ISU Extension and Outreach Allamakee county office. The webcasts are free of charge and open to anyone who may be interested. Webcast topics

• Tuesday, March 19 at 9:30 a.m. or 3:30 p.m.: Managing Vegetable Pests, presented by Dan Fillius, produce safety specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach. His presentation will provide organic, weed-free vegetable growing tips to reduce pests and attract beneficial insects.

• Tuesday, April 2 at 9:30 a.m. or 3:30 p.m.: Limited Space Gardening, presented by Ed Lyon, director of Reiman Gar-dens. This webcast will explore a dozen ways to create container gardens. The webcasts will provide ideas for Master Gardener volunteer projects and expand the knowledge base of gardeners. All webcasts count toward Master Gardener continuing education hours. Ten hours are required each year to remain active Master Gardeners.

To register, contact the Allamakee County Extension Office at 563-568-6345 or email [email protected] .

Grind eggshells in a blender with water before adding to compost. This gets the calcium into the soil sooner.

If using packaging peanuts in the bottom of containers, add a layer of landscape fabric on top of the peanuts

and up the sides. This keeps the soil from sinking into the peanuts and makes disposing of the plants at the

end of the season easier, if there is enough fabric at the top to pull out. It will result in a much lighter pot and

lighten the work. 1001 Gardening Secrets from FC&Aublishing

General Tips from 1001 Garden Answers—Pat Meeter

“Never take a chainsaw up into a tree unless you’re already dead.”

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Ramblings by Mary Kay. I am writing this message from the Waukon Hospital, and looking out to a frosty scene. I was able to be tucked in during the very cold freeze. My knee is doing fine, with just a couple of set-backs. When I was in therapy yesterday, Mary Trebbian was also there with a broken ankle. She has been down since right after Thanksgiving. Not fun for either of us, but we hope to be able to help with the spring planting. Clara and Judy are busy lining up the activities for the year. Thanks to Pat and Lana for getting the newsletter out. Our Holiday dinner has been scheduled for March, thanks to Don Haler. The Waterville day sounds very interesting. All have a good and safe New Year.

President’s Ramblings—Mary Kay Winke

Cook’s Nook—Slow Cooker Recipes From Spend Smart Eat Smart

Drinking chamomile tea is helpful for better sleep. There are two types of chamomile to grow. German is an annual. It grows to 18” and has a sweeter taste. It also grows well in heavy clay soil. Roman chamomile is a low growing perennial, although is some areas it is a tender perennial. The German chamomile has lovely flowers resembling a tiny daisy. When the center starts to go brown and the petals bend backwards, it’s time to harvest. Gather the flowers and dry as with any herb. Add 1 cup of boiling water to each TBSP of fresh flowers or to 1 tsp of dried flowers to make a tea. Cover and let steep ten minutes. Strain and enjoy. A little honey added will sweeten it, ½ tsp is plenty. Chamomile is said to calm the body and ease an upset stomach. Another use of chamomile is to water plants with cooled tea to help get rid of bug pests. This can be particu-larly helpful for houseplants.

I like to call these ODDS AND ENDS as it is tidbits I’ve picked up, mostly from reading. For instance: a 5%

increase in organic matter (compost) quadruples the soils ability to store water. Seeds of celeriac should be

started indoors in February. Cooled cooking water from veggies and pasta contains minerals and vitamins

that will benefit plants. When the milk carton is empty, refill ½ ways with water. Swish it around and use to

water houseplants. The milky water is also full of nutrients and African Violets love it. Years ago I had an el-

derly friend who claimed her Dr. told her that she should have ½ of a beer once a week and give the other ½

to her indoor fern. Her fern was beautiful, but I could never verify the doctors’ advice.

2 cans (15 oz) diced tomatoes (Mexican style) 1 can (15 oz) black beans (drained and rinsed) 2 C. frozen corn or 1 can (15 ounces) corn (drained and rinsed) 1 can (14.5 oz) low sodium chicken broth OR 2 C. homemade chicken broth 2 cloves garlic, minced, or 1/2 tsp garlic powder Instructions: · Add tomatoes, beans, corn, broth, garlic, chili powder, cumin (if desired), and pepper to large saucepan. · Remove and discard any visible fat from chicken. Cut chicken into large chunks and add to the saucepan. Heat to boil-ing, reduce heat, and simmer (covered) for 20 minutes, or until chicken is tender. · Remove the chicken and place on a plate. Use forks to shred the chicken. Return the shredded chicken to soup. · Serve with choice of optional ingredients. Optional ingredients: baked tortilla chips, chopped cilantro, sliced or chopped avocado, light sour cream, shredded cheese My families twist, we cook on low in the crockpot so it’s ready when we get home for the day. Just cook your meat first and add your ingredients. My family also likes this soup with browned hamburger. The kids aren’t into ’spicy’ so I use one diced tomato and one Mexican style. Home canned goods or store bought work great!

1/2 pound dried black eyed peas 2 C. vegetable broth 1 C. water 6 carrots, chopped Instructions:

· Rinse and sort black eyed peas to remove any dirt or debris.

· Place all ingredients in the slow cooker and mix.

· Cook on low for 8 hours. Pat’s twist on this cozy wintery meal is she adds sliced polish sausage or sliced bratwurst to the soup.

Black Eyed Pea Soup —Pat Meeter

Mexican Chicken Soup—Lana Dahlstrom

THYMELY TIDBITS — Pat Meeter

2 ribs celery, chopped 1 medium onion, chopped 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp seasoning (basil, dried oregano, rosemary, or sage)

“The best way to get even with someone is to give them a flat of mint.”

1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp ground cumin (optional) 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast

1,952 Iowa Master Gardeners were active across Iowa in 2018. 81 counties re-ported hours across the state. Master Gardeners compiled 113,392 volunteer hours. That averages out to nearly 60 hours per volunteer. Those volunteer hours are valued

at $2.7 million spent improving Iowa. 25,041 continuing education hours were logged in.

To see these statistics visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/mastergardener/files/page/

files/2018_master_gardener_report.pdf

18 reporting Allamakee Master Gardeners tallied 866.25 volunteer hours and 201.75 continuing education hours!

Don't wait to report your Master Gardener volunteer and continuing education hours for the year. Log in to

the Volunteer Reporting System here: http://mastergardenerhours.hort.iastate.edu/

There are many ways to repurpose bubble wrap in the garden. Plants grown in containers are more sensitive to cold than those grown in the ground so they need protection. Wrap bubble wrap around the container grown plants and secure with twine or rope.

When growing veggies and a cold snap is coming, place garden stakes around the perimeter of the vegetable bed and then wrap bubble wrap around them. Staple the bubble wrap to the stakes. Secure another piece of bubble wrap over the top of the bubble wrapped bed. Basically, you’ve just made a quick greenhouse. Make sure to keep an eye on it after frost has passed. You don’t want plants to overheat.

You can also use bubble wrap to kill unwanted soil borne pests and weeds. This process is called solariza-tion. To solarize an area, clear it out of anything that might tear the plastic. Water the area throughly and allow it to sit and soak up the water. Place a soil thermometer into the prepared soil. Cover the entire area with bubble wrap and bury the edges so no heat can escape. The temperatures need to exceed 140 degree F. to kill weed seeds or pests. Leave the plastic in place for at least 6 weeks. Amend the soil with compost to add nutrients and beneficial bacteria prior to planting. Taken from “Gardening No How"

Gardening With Bubble Wrap—Jan Kemp-Isen

I should have stayed a Master Gardener

Creating Habitat for all Pollinators– Iowa DNR One thing pollinators have going for them is that most species can take ad-vantage of habitat almost anywhere it is provided. This means that any land-owner, whether they own a lot that can be measured in square feet or one that is many acres, can create habitat for pollinators. The main characteristics a good pollinator garden needs to have are: 1) flow-ering plants in a 2) sunny spot that 3) bloom from Spring through Fall. We would also recommend, if possible, to consider using predominantly plant species that are native to Iowa. There are many species to choose from and they are adapted to Iowa’s environment. Most are perennials or good self-seeders (less maintenance!) and our native pollinators love them. A pollinator garden can be as formal or as “wild” as you would like. If planting a smaller area that you want to look more formal, it is likely best to plant plugs of prairie species rather than trying to spread seed. If planting a larger area and a more natural look is okay, a mix diverse in flowering prairie species will be more economical, though it will take a bit longer (2-3 years) and a little more maintenance (mowing) before it starts looking its best. The following pdf includes a more detailed description of how to create monarch and pollinator habitat, both large and small, and includes a species list and links to more resources. Creating Habitat for Monarchs and Other Pollinators can be found at https://www.iowadnr.gov/Conservation/Iowas-Wildlife/Pollinators For larger areas, if you'd like some assistance, landowners can contact the DNR Wildlife Bureau’s Private Lands biologists for advice and assistance. The DNR also has staff that can work with private landowners and you will find a great guide to shrubs and trees that are good for pollinators on their webpage. https://www.iowadnr.gov/Conservation/Iowas-Wildlife/Pollinators

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Allamakee Master Gardeners' 2019 Activities

Please join us on the second Monday of the month at Jet's Café at 10:30 AM for an informal gathering.

February 8-10 Madison Garden Expo Madison, WI

Monday, February 11 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Saturday, February 23 Buchanan County Gardening Symposium Independence

Thursday, February 28 MG meeting 7 PM Wellness Center

Start seed planting Waukon H.S. greenhouse

Monday, March 11 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Tuesday, March 19 Managing Vegetable Pests, webinar Extension Office

Thursday, March 21 MG annual dinner Rossville

Saturday, March 23 Waterville Spring Expo Waterville School

Thursday, March 28 Gardening program 5:30-6:30 PM Robey Library, Waukon

Saturday, March 30 Thyme to Garden ….Again Caledonia MN High School

Tuesday, April 2 Limited Space Gardening, webinar Extension Office

Monday, April 8 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Thursday, April 25 MG meeting 7 PM Wellness Center

Saturday, May 11 MG/FFA plant sale Fair grounds

Monday, June 3 Farmers Market starts Waukon

Farmers Market starts Lansing

Monday, May 13 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Monday, June 10 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

June 14-16 Big 4 Fair Postville

Thursday, June 27 MG potluck w/spouse @ 6:30 PM Don Haler's home

Monday, July 8 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Saturday, July 13 Clean open class exhibit building Fair grounds

July 17-21 Allamakee County Fair Waukon

Monday, August 12 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Thursday, August 22 MG meeting 7 PM (Plant swap?) Wellness Center

Monday, September 9 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Monday, September 30 Farmers Market ends Waukon

Farmers Market ends Lansing

Monday, October 14 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Thursday, October 24 MG meeting 7 PM Wellness Center

Monday, November 11 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

November 15-18 Festival of Trees Fair grounds

Monday, December 9 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Monday, January 13, 2019 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Monday, February 10, 2019 Monthly informal gathering Jet's Café

Thursday, February 27, 2019 MG meeting 7 PM Wellness Center

These for Festival of Trees will be "Angels in the Garden". Please take pictures of members doing activities in their gardens to use on the tree.

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Thyme To Garden... Again