The Dirt for July 27, 2017: Veggies, Garden Tips, Ed Hours

Read “The Dirt” Every Week

The votes are in the new name for the URI Master Gardener Newsletter is ”The Dirt”.  It will continue to have all the news you need to complete your volunteer and education hours as well as tips for gardening and creating s sustainable environment. Look for it in your inbox each Thursday.

Top Vote Getters

Rank Proposed Name Total
thedirt

  1. The Dirt 148
  2. Garden Talk 136
  3. In the Garden 130
  4. GROW 128
  5. The Garden View 128
  6. Diggin In 126
  7. The Garden Path 123
  8. The Garden and Beyond 121
  9. The Inspired Garden 121
  10. Nature at Work 119

Thank you to everyone who voted and submitted ideas! Photo Baltimore Checkerspot: Sue Dunn

Nominations Needed for MG and Rookie of the Year Awards

ALERT….ALERT…..

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO AUGUST 7TH

We still have minimal nominations especially for Rookie of the Year. Please take the time to complete the forms found here or on the website in the documents section, under the Policy and Operating Guidelines tab.

When completed email them to Charlie Junod at excaliben@cox.net.

The guidelines for these nominations are also found with the forms in the documents page of the website.  Click on the links below to access to forms directly.

Click here for Rookie of the Year form.  Click here for Master Gardener of the Year Form.

Winners (and nominees) will be announced at the September 16th Volunteer Recognition Event.  In addition, this year we will also  be announcing a Project of the Year award winner to be selected by the Recognition Committee.

Thanks in advance for your help! – Charlie Junod, Chair, Recognition Committee

Northern Region Coordinator

NorthLeaderWe are pleased to announce that Betsy Polhemus, who had to temporarily step back from the position of Northern Regional Coordinator due to a family situation, is back with us and ready to resume the position.    We all wish Betsy good luck and are happy to have her on the URIMGP Council.

Mount Hope Farm Produce Production

mounthopeMount Hope Farm’s gardens are producing! Many of our MG’s are really beginning to harvest from our Extension Master Gardener demonstration gardens. These veggies from the Grow4Good garden at Mount Hope Farm are destined for the Bristol Food Pantry.  450 lbs of produce have already been donated this season!  Way to go, team!

Frequently Asked Questions: Continuing Education Hours

When do I need to complete my continuing education hours?  In the year following completion of your internship, in order to maintain certification, we ask that you complete 10 hours of continuing education.  This can be a class advertised in the newsletter or calendar, a class approved by the State Program Leader or by simply watching recordings of our Core Training or Continuing Education classes.

Speaker Nominations for International MG Conference

MGCONFloWhat an amazing conference in Portland!  Gail and her committee did a wonderful job hosting and providing many great learning opportunities for the attendees.  Now it is time for Pennsylvania to gear up for the 2019 IMGC in Valley Forge.   If you are interested in submitting a proposal, or know of someone you would like to nominate as a presenter, please submit your application by September 1 (the deadline has been extended).

The conference will run from Sunday, June 16 through Saturday, June 22 and includes pre- and post-conference tours.  Conference sessions begin on Tuesday, June 18 with the closing day on Friday, June 21.  Below is a link to submit your nomination.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/W2WS59T

We will  post information about the speakers, garden tours and field study opportunities, continuing the excitement that was generated in Portland! in your state.  We will  post information about the speakers, garden tours and field study opportunities, continuing the excitement that was generated in Portland!

https://www.facebook.com/IMGC2019/
http://internationalmastergardener.com

Thanks!

Nancy Knauss
State Master Gardener Coordinator

Penn State Extension
1435 Bedford Avenue, Suite A
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
412-482-3453

July Gardening Tips: Republished from the UConn Home and Garden News

gardent

  1. Systemic grub control should be applied to the lawn by mid-July to be effective when grubs hatch in early August.
  2.  Cucumbers are heavy drinkers and feeders. Keep the soil evenly moist during hot spells to avoid bitter fruit and side-dress plants with 1 tablespoon of 10-10-10 fertilizer.
  3. Inspect garden plants regularly for insect and disease problems. Monitoring, good sanitation practices, insecticidal soaps and insect traps are alternatives to pesticides.
  4. Summer blooming shrubs should be pruned after they have finished flowering. Do not prune azaleas and rhododendrons after the 2nd week of July as they are forming buds for next year’s blooms.
  5. Put netting on fruit trees and bushes a few weeks before the fruit begins to ripen to protect it from birds and squirrels.
  6. Raise the mower height to 3 inches in hot weather and mulch garden beds to help conserve water.
  7. Fertilize roses for the last time in mid-July so that new growth can harden off before frosts.
  8. Pinch back herbs to stop flowering and encourage branching. Pick herbs early in the day when they are well hydrated.
  9. Cutting late-blooming perennials such asters, mums and boltonias back by one-third around July 4 will promote bushier growth.
  10. Leaky garden hoses and fittings can waste water. Check hoses while they are under full pressure and make repairs.

Garden Design Class at Swan Point Cemetery

Thursday, August 17 at 4 PM
585 Blackstone Boulevard

Please join us on Thursday, August 17, 2017 at 4:00 p.m.  at Swan Point Cemetery, 585 Blackstone Boulevard, Providence RI  in the Gray Coale Reception Hall, adjacent to the main office for a discourse on garden design.  Landscape horticulturist Warren Leach shall discuss planting design in gardens that continue to dazzle from late summer, fall and even onward.

His talk will focus on quenching heat, humidity and drought. A garden designed with a plant palette to withstand the dog days of August and drought of summer and will continue to offer colorful exuberance of flowers, maturing seedheads and colorful foliage.

The lecture will last approximately 1 hour with light refreshments.

Please call 401-272-1314 to reserve your seat, or email AnitaV@swanpoint1846.com

American Community Gardening Association - 38th Annual Conference

July 27-30, 2017
Capital Community College
Hartford, CT

WORKSHOPS, TOURS (CT & MA), FILMS, GALA EVENT

www.communitygarden.org/conference
877-ASK-ACGA

Continuing Education Offerings This Summer

August Continuing Education Classes

pollinatorbeePollinator Meadow Walk
Location (To be determined)
August 17th, 5:00-7:00 pm

Join Natural Resources Conservation Services Biologist Gary Casabona exploring a pollinator meadow in Rhode Island.
The lecture will include all of the key topics for establishing quality pollinator habitat:

  • The many different options for site preparation — which is perhaps the most important step toward success of a pollinator seeding !
  • Recommendations on the best woody and herbaceous plants, and the reasons why they are valuable to both pollinators and migratory birds, will be discussed in detail.
  • Ongoing mowing and maintenance practices to maintain a large percentage of native wildflowers with relatively few invasives.

Please register in Volgistics.

PollinatorInvasive Plant Management: Late Season Strategies and Methods for Restoring Habitat
August 31st, 9-12 pm
Canonchet Farm, Narragansett

Join Thomas Fortier, for session 2 of a guided field study at Canonchet Farm Habitat Restoration.  While participants are not required to attend both sessions, the effective strategies for invasive plant removal and habitat restoration in the late season vary significantly from those used in the early season.  We’ll look at the methods for restoring the native plant complexes and delve into plant identification.  Each participant will have the chance to try out a range of tools for invasive removal. Dress for field work.  Space is limited.
Please register in Volgistics.