The Dirt for October 5: Advanced Composting, New Project

Kettle Pond Native Plant Garden: A NEW URIMGP Project

The Kettle Pond Native Plant Demonstration Garden is a newly approved project located at the Kettle Pond Visitor Center at 50 Bend Road in Charlestown RI.  The project will showcase an important conservation message with the creation of native plant landscape gardens designed for different environmental conditions: full sun, sun/shade and full shade.  We are using RI native pollinator plants to show their diversity and to demonstrate biodiversity in the environment. Our visitors, young and old, urban and suburban, novice and expert will experience the native wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs abuzz with bees, butterflies, songbirds and more. 

The garden’s goal is to be an educational resource for RI public schools to learn the importance of native plants, biodiversity, and the role of pollinators in everyday life.  Visitors will learn to identify native plants that they may want use in their own landscapes.  They will learn how to maintain RI native plants using Integrated Pest Management strategies.  They will also learn how Native People used the plants and the folklore surrounding them. This project is a collaboration between United States Fish and Wildlife Service, URI Master Gardener Program, Tomaquag Museum and the Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership.

Volunteer with us!

URI Master Gardeners work on the project on Monday’s 10:00 to 12:00pm and Thursday’s from 1:00 to 4:00pm  If you are interested, please join this group filled with excitement, wonderment and eager to share the beauty of RI Native Plants and how they fit into your garden space.  Contact Dave Vissoe – Project Leader at dvissoe@gmail.com 

Learn with us! Indigenous Uses and Folk Lore of Native Plant

We invite you to visit us on Saturday, October 14 at 1pm and learn about Indigenous Uses and Folk Lore of Native Plants.  Loren Spears of Tomaquag Museum will teach using the plants in the Kettle Pond Visitor Center Native Plant Garden, a new URI Master Gardener Program demonstration garden. This workshop is free and eligible for MG Continuing Education hours. More info.

November Continuing Education Classes

Advanced Composting & Soil Test Interpretation
Saturday November 11th, 9am-12 pm
URI Kingston Campus, Pharmacy 240

The advanced composting lecture will focus on the proper selection of organic raw materials as well as best practices to transform so-called waste into a highly desirable soil amendment.  Special emphasis will be placed upon the chemical transformations within piles that can substantially reduce (but can also enhance) levels of chemical contamination.  In addition, attendees will learn how to read a full soil analysis (UConn) and interpret the results to make better decisions in urban and suburban gardens. Dr. Rafka, URI Master Gardener, will lead this class.   Please register in Volgistics.

Hands-on Composting at East Farm
Saturday November 11th,  12:30-1:30 pm
URI East Farm Demo Garden, Kingston, RI

In the Demonstration Garden at URI East Farm attendees will learn techniques to put a compost pile together using material from their garden and yard and how to maintain the pile through the winter so it is composted and ready to use in the spring.  Please register in Volgistics.

One final continuing education class for the year will be announced next week!

Updated "Quick Tips" Resource for MG's

Rosanne Sherry is officially retired and has left us with the parting gift of Master Gardener quick tips.  This seasonal guide is intended as an internal resource of frequently asked questions.  Peruse the new fall tips before your upcoming kiosks or project events! 

Click here for the MG Quick Tips which includes information on fall lawn care, woodchucks, fall houseplant care and more!   Click here for a full index listing of quick tips.

Would you like to send a message to Rosie?  We will be forwarding her your messages of farewell sent via this survey link. 

Class of 2017 Profiles in Service

The 2017 class has already volunteered over 2,000 hours! Congratulations to all of you who have already completed the 50 hour internship requirement and will be receiving your pins in September. Learn more about the interns who have already become URI Master Gardeners over the next few weeks through our “profiles in service” articles!

davidvissoe

Name: Emmy Kmet
Hometown:  East Greenwich
Favorite Project/Service:  Smith Castle
Quote:
I’ve been blessed with many opportunities to volunteer since the end of the class this spring.  I live in an apartment with four houseplants, so I welcomed whatever projects seemed interesting.  I’ve primarily worked with the Providence School Gardens, Cumberland Monastery, Smith Castle and helped Sandra Cook-Hall prepare her yard for the Garden Tour.  Each has it’s strengths from educating the children and public, soil testing and hands on gardening with other volunteers who have a wealth of gardening knowledge.

URI Master Gardener Program celebrates 40th anniversary with awards recognizing local gardeners, gardening projects

The University of Rhode Island Master Gardener Program recognized its Master Gardener of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Gardening Project of the Year as part of the program’s celebration of its 40th anniversary. Read more.

FAQ: How do I enter Continuing Education Hours?

Any time spent in a continuing education class learning should be entered in Volgistics as shown below in the general “Continuing Education” assignment, with hours entered in the “How many continuing education hours” section.  Please check that you are doing this correctly!

New Project! Taylor Point Restoration

We are pleased to announce a new URI Master Gardener Program project: Taylor Point Restoration, our first in Jamestown. The project’s goal is to create and maintain a Taylor Point Nature Preserve by restoring 20+ acres of habitat with native species.  The URI Master Gardeners bring lessons learned from the Canonchet Farm Restoration project and serve as public educators.  It’s a great opportunity to learn plant identification, invasive plant removal techniques, coastal ecology and more!

Taylor Point is located at Freebody Drive in Jamestown across from the RI Turnpike Authority Plaza.  Taylor Point Restoration Association (TPRA) is managing this project under a 5-year Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) permit and with the Town of Jamestown. Volunteers are trained to identify plants and to follow best practices to remove invasive plants, nurture existing native species, and plant native species. Leadership positions are available for knowledgeable volunteers and each session will feature plant education.  Tools are provided.  Volunteers are asked to wear closed toe shoes, long pants and long sleeve shirts for their protection.

This year-round project takes place on alternating Saturday mornings.  TPRA contacts volunteers with a seasonal calendar and weekly reminders.  The first session for Master Gardeners is Saturday, October 21 from 9 am to noon.

facebook.com/RestoreTaylorPoint

For more information, please contact Master Gardener Project Leaders:
Nadine Mendelsohn zemple5@yahoo.com
Rosemary Smith rcsaims@aol.com
Kitty Wineberg wishingrocks@gmail.com

Calling all Gardeners for the 2019 Garden Tour

Summer is winding down and I am sure most of us are looking at our gardens and thinking about the changes and or additions we want to make.  This is also the perfect time to consider offering your garden for the June 2019 tour.

Thinking about being on the tour now is great because all the garden centers are having their sales so it is the perfect time to plant. Time to add that bed you have been considering or to spruce up your existing beds with some pollinators and or natives. The Garden Tour committee will be looking for gardens next spring and touring them in June to make the selections.  So fall 2017 is the time to decide.

If you are saying sign me up please contact Mary Ann Buckley [mabuckley08@gmail.com] . If you have some questions or need a little more persuasion feel free to talk to any of the committee members Gail Woodward, Sue Stephenson, Mary Ann Buckley, Tom Hoagland, Vanessa Venturini, or Gail Skidmore.

The committee is also looking for new members. If interested please contact Mary Ann Buckley [mabuckley08@gmail.com] if interested.

2017 URI School Garden Conference : Growing Connections in Schools and Communities

Saturday, October 21, 8:30 – 3:30    —    URI Kingston Campus

This full-day conference will bring educators, school administrators, volunteers, gardeners, parents and others together to learn about ways of utilizing school gardens as learning platforms that build student and community engagement, and foster academic achievement and environmental stewardship. Topics include:  The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic Americans – Patricia Klindienst, Award-Winning Author; Connecting Cultural Diversity to Biodiversity in School Gardens – Dr. John Taylor, URI Dept of Plant Sciences and Entomology;  The School Garden as a Vibrant Habitat –  Cynthia Corsair, US Fish and Wildlife Service;  Lessons Alive! A School Garden Curriculum Round Robin –  URI Cooperative Extension, Audubon Society of RI, GEMS-Net & more; and A Farm Visit @ The Compass School

Read more and register. Full scholarships are available to all.

Upcoming RIWPS Education Programs for Master Gardeners

Seed Workshop: Cleaning and Processing
October 25 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm

Join Rhode Island Natural History Survey botanist Hope Leeson for the last of three sessions in our Native Plant Seed Workshop Series. This indoor session, at the Rhode Island Native History Survey in Kingston, will focus on cleaning and processing the seeds that were collected in a previous session at the Arcadia Management Area in West Greenwich.   These seeds include those from Lobelia cardinalis -cardinal flower, several species of Solidago – goldenrod, and asters as well as others.

Although this workshop is a part of a series, participants do not need to attend each program in the series.

Fee:  $15.00
Advance registration required.
More detail and registration at
http://riwps.org/event/seed-workshop-cleaning-processing/

Master Gardener Quick Tip: Fall Lawn Care

Click here for the full listing of MG Quick Tips which includes information on fall lawn care, woodchucks, fall houseplant care and more!

 Starting a New Lawn

  1. Late August through September is the best time.
  2. There is less weed competition and more rain.
  3. Select seed for site conditions.
  4. Add amendments before seeding like lime,fertilizer and compost
  5. Get the soil fully tested at UMASS or UCONN before amending.

When to Fertilize the Lawn?

  1. Low maintenance 2x, early spring, and September, but no later than mid October
  2. High maintenance 3-4x early spring, June, late August, late September. More than this is extremely excessive, wastes inputs and money.
  3. Fall fertilizers should be higher in Phosphorus to build root strength for the winter. Spring should have Nitrogen for green up.
  4. Get a full soil analysis from UMASS or UCONN before fertilizing.

When to Renovate the Lawn?

  1. Renovation is a complete overhaul of the lawn. It includes striping off old sod, rototilling, adding amendments and grading. Seeding is last.
  2. Repair is in small areas or simply overseeding an area.
  3. Renovate when there are more weeds than grass in the lawn.
  4. Renovate when you are depending on pesticides constantly to make it look respectable.
  5. Right seed, mow high 3”, water one inch a week from May through September at least (reduce in July and August for natural summer dormancy), fertilize at least in spring and fall and LIME.

End of Season Lawn Care

  1. Continue to MOW and IRRIGATE until the end of October. The last mowing should be shorter than usual. Lower your blade.
  2. Do not allow leaves to mat on the lawn.This avoids diseases like snow mold in very early spring. Add them to the compost or use them for winter mulch as the ground freezes.
  3. Add ground limestone anytime before the soil freezes.
  4. Core aerate or thatch the lawn each fall.