The Dirt for March 20

Join us this May for the first-ever School Garden Mentor Academy!

Are you interested in serving on one of our school garden teams to help inspire future generations of land stewards? We invite you to learn more at an orientation session, or attend the full school garden academy for hours!

The SGM Academy may be counted as (10+) volunteer hours for MG interns or (10+) continuing education hours for certified MGs. Volunteers who complete attend all sessions will receive a SCHOOL GARDEN MENTOR pin.

What is the School Garden Mentor Academy? The Academy is a 10-hour training series for new and existing URI Master Gardener volunteers who already serve or wish to serve as school garden mentors (SGMs). It includes five trainings, including an orientation, hands-on learning opportunities and four associated 2-hour workshops. The Academy is designed to build SGM confidence, provide opportunities for interns to learn from experienced URI Master Gardeners, and to create a sense of community for SGMs. In turn, thousands of school age youth and their teachers stand to benefit from our passion for gardening and education! Please join us this spring for the first SGM Academy!

Sign Up in Volgistics!

HELP WANTED: Finance Coordinator

Are you passionate about the Master Gardener Program? Would you like to contribute on a leadership level? We are looking for a Finance Coordinator to serve on the URIMGP Council, and help to organize and improve our processes for budgeting, purchasing, and tracking program income and expenses. The individual parts of the Finance Coordinator position are not complicated, and we have a starting set of procedures in place for each. Our goal for the coming year is to continue to improve our systems so that we simplify the work of Master Gardener project leaders and the Mallon Center support staff.

We’re seeking a creative, organized person who enjoys bookkeeping but also has an interest in thinking creatively and strategically about how the Master Gardener Program continues its good work through fundraising and financial management. The URIMGP Finance Coordinator will have the support of and collaboration with a bookkeeping committee, a purchasing committee, and the URIMGP staff to pursue these goals.

Please consider applying today with a letter of interest addressed to Vanessa Venturini (vanessa@uri.edu). Our first round of applications are due April 5th. All candidates will be interviewed in early spring.

Have questions about the Finance Coordinator position? Please click here to read the full job description and/or contact Bill Baddeley (wrbaddeley@gmail.com) for more information. Thank you!

HELP WANTED: Operations Planning Coordinator

Are you passionate about the Master Gardener Program? We are seeking candidates for a new Operations Planning Coordinator position on the MGP Council. This position will support coordination and planning of fundraising events (Spring Plant Sale, Gardening with the Master’s Tour), and serve as liaison to the East Farm greenhouses, East Farm maintenance team (Rudi’s Rangers), and MG-supported URI faculty and staff research projects. Click here to see a position description. This is a great opportunity to work with well-established and talented teams of MGs while contributing to discussions about the future of the MGP!

All Master Gardener volunteers are eligible and encouraged to apply for open positions. If you’d like more information, please contact Bill Baddeley (wrbaddeley@gmail.com).

Please consider applying today with a letter of interest addressed to Vanessa Venturini (vanessa@uri.edu). Our first round of applications are due March 26. All candidates will be interviewed in early spring.

URI Spring Plant Sale

On Saturday, May 5th from 9:00 – 1:00 p.m., the URI Master Gardener Program will host our annual Spring Plant Sale. Formerly held as part of the East Farm Spring Festival, this year’s plant sale will take place in the beautiful URI Botanical Gardens on the main campus in Kingston. Proceeds from the sale directly benefit our demonstration gardens, school gardens and educational services.

This year, with our tightly-focused event, volunteers will be recruited directly by kiosk, soil pH testing and greenhouse leaders. There will be no general call for volunteers. All URI Master Gardeners and interns are invited to join us and show their support for the plant sale, and see our Kiosk and soil pH testing volunteers in action! Come enjoy the URI Botanical Gardens, which will become an approved demonstration project location in 2018!

Mark your calendars for the Master Gardener volunteer-only pre-sale on Monday, April 30th from 3-6PM at URI East Farm greenhouses! All Master Gardeners are welcome!

MG Meetings

As you know, our March MG meeting was cancelled due to poor weather conditions. We plan to reschedule our speaker for early next year. We will post a recording of Dr. Sunshine Menezes for you to view in the meantime shortly. In an interest of spreading our calendar around a bit, our revised MG Meeting schedule is:

Monday, May 21 at 6pm for May MG meeting
September 2018 (date TBD) for Recognition Event
Saturday, November 3, 2018 at 9 am for November MG Meeting
January 2019 (date TBD) for January MG Meeting

Last Call for Volunteer Renewals

Thank you to the 522 people who completed your volunteer renewal, you should have received a confirmation email this week. If you plan to volunteer with us in 2018, we must have a form on file for you. Please complete the form and mail it in at your earliest convenience. Renewal questions? Contact Judy Arruda at auggiejude@hotmail.com

Volunteers in Action

Pictured here is the Sunday Veggie Greenhouse Crew’s first day of getting our hands dirty for good this season at URI’s East Farm. Left to right: Sherri Matheu, Sara Michaud, Claire Petrin, Stan Klotz, Nancy Olson, Kathy Esposito, Nancy Musso, Jeff Esposito, Alayne Senor. Carol Coleman, Marlene Cutitar & Donald Acevedo. Missing from this photo are Elaine Peterson & Jill Keating.

Continuing Education Opportunities - March/April

Composting: Reducing Waste and Bringing Goodness to our Gardens (BEECHWOOD: A Center for Life Enrichment, 44 Beach Street; North Kingstown)
Wednesday, March 21 | 2:00PM

URI Master Gardener, Nan Quinlan, will explain the benefits and basics of Composting. Composting is a component of our lifestyle. The amount of time and energy we put into composting our kitchen, garden and yard waste will vary and so will the results. The fact that we choose to make composting one of our lifestyle habits is wonderful given the goodness it brings to our gardens and that it reduces material that will end up in a mounting landfill. In this talk you will learn everything you need to do to start composting, a bit of history, how composting happens, types of composting from the casual to the obsessive, how to use compost, the tools, the rules and the glorious results.

If interested in attending, please contact Rayna Wilcox, Volunteer/Program Coordinator, at The Beechwood Center for Life Enrichment at 401-268-1594; or email her at: RWilcox@northkingstown.org. These programs are offered to members and the public at no charge. Master Gardeners receive education credits for attending.

RI Wild Plant Society invites MG’s to learn: Plants are better than mulch! (URI Pharmacy Building, Kingston RI)
Sunday, March 25 | 2:00-3:30pm

No charge, this is part of the RIWPS annual meeting

We have a strange relationship with mulch in America. Landscaping often means a sea of red mulch dotted with a few over-pruned arborvitae shrubs. But how many gardeners got into the hobby for a love of mulch? There are good reasons to use mulch, it helps to control weeds, prevents soil erosion and maintains soil nutrients. Yet for every advantage that mulch offers well-chosen plants work even better. From groundcovers to larger mat-forming species there is a plant for every area in the garden. Join Dan Jaffe, author of Native Plants for New England Gardens to learn about the myriad of plants that can take the place of mulch on your landscape.

THIS EVENT IS FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. For more details, including directions and parking see www.RIWPS.org

Learn about Fruit and Vegetable Growing in April

Advanced Vegetable Gardening Techniques: Season Extension and Square Foot Gardening (URI Pharmacy Building room 170 | Kingston, RI)
April 5 | 5:30 to 7:30 pm

Are you looking to improve production in your vegetable garden this year? This is a great class for MGs who volunteer on vegetable donation gardens, school gardens and those who answer questions from the public.

Dr. Rebecca Brown will teach about techniques to protect your plants and enhance their environment including plastic mulches, floating rowcovers, insect netting, low tunnels, and small high tunnels. Sandra Cook will discuss the method of square foot gardening to increase productivity in a small space. Please register in Volgistics.

Fruit Culture, Pruning, Pest Management (East Farm Building 75)
April 13, 2018 | 9am-12pm

Home fruit production is on the rise! Dr Steve Alm and Heather Faubert of URI will discuss cultivating fruit in a residential setting. Responding to FAQ’s from the Hotline, they’ll review cultural methods, pruning and pest management of commonly grown fruits. Bring your pruning shears for a pruning exercise using the orchards at East Farm. Please register in Volgistics.

The Perennial Planters Present: “Washington Chops Down a Cherry Tree—Fake News” Trees at George Washington’s Mount Vernon, 238 Years of Cultivation and Preservation and Into the 21^st Century (Roger Williams Park Casino)
Thursday, April 26 | 4:00-5:00 p.m.

Dean Norton’s “job as the horticulturist is to apply the latest horticultural technology to an 18th century setting. Our mission is to preserve, protect, and represent the landscape and gardens at Mount Vernon as accurately as possible to the life and times of George and Martha Washington. This requires a great deal of research and collaboration with our team of archaeologists. I am blessed and honored to be the current caretaker of Washington’s Mount Vernon, and I do believe it is one of the most accurately restored historic properties in the country.”

Since Washington’s time trees have been an integral and important part of the landscape. The Mount Vernon Ladies Association cared so much for the estate’s trees that they secured the services of renowned tree expert Charles Sprague Sargent who wrote in his 1926 tree report, “no trees planted by man have the human interest of the Mount Vernon trees. They belong to the nation and are one of its precious possessions. No care should be spared to preserve them.”

H. A. Miller Endowed Lecture Series | Free and Open to the Public | Further Information and to rsvp www.perennialplanters.org

Core Training: Classes Open to MGs for Continuing Ed

The URI Master Gardener Program Core Training is in session. Classes are held on Wednesday evenings from 6 – 8:30 at the URI Kingston Campus in Avedesian Hall (Pharmacy Building) room 170. All Master Gardeners are invited to attend these sessions to brush up on their knowledge, learn the latest research, and to earn continuing education hours. The 2018 Course Schedule (topics subject to change) follows.

3/21	Site Assessment & Regenerative Landscape Design
3/28	Establishment & Maintenance of Home Lawns / Turf Pests & Pollinators
4/4	Diagnosing Plant Problems / Group Challenge
4/11	Invasive Plants / Native Plants
4/18	Ornamentals: Woody Plants and Perennials

Volunteer Opportunities

Citizen Science Opportunity to Monitor Woodcocks

Do you love birds and the great outdoors? Have you ever wished you could participate in scientific research, but aren’t sure how to get involved? Well, now’s your chance to participate in a citizen science study on a unique forest bird—the American Woodcock!

Come meet and chat with URI scientists at our orientations on Tuesday, April 3rd or Friday, April 6th from 6pm to 8pm in Weaver Auditorium at the Coastal Institute, Kingston campus. At this orientation, you will learn about:

The decline of the American woodcock population
Woodcock breeding behavior (aka “sky dances”)
How to look and listen for woodcock
How to become a citizen scientist for the project

Learn more and register.

HELP WANTED: OUR LONGEST RUNNING SERVICE NEEDS VOLUNTEERS!

The URI Gardening and Environmental Hotline at the Mallon Center on the Kingston campus is growing, and we need volunteers to support this important and valued statewide service! The hotline is a great way to accumulate volunteer hours and gain new skills!

WHO ARE WE LOOKING FOR?

Anyone and everyone! Interns, blue pin and veteran MGs looking for a fun way to earn volunteer hours are encouraged to join the ranks. Hotline volunteers need not be experts in a particular subject, computer whiz’s or experienced on the phone. All that is required is an open mind and curiosity!

WHAT IS THE HOTLINE LIKE?

Hotline team members collaborate to field questions from emails, phone calls and walk-in visitors. The resources needed to answer questions are at your fingertips, and include internet-based Cooperative Extension websites, an extensive library of reference books and direct access to Cooperative Extension faculty and staff. The URI Mallon Center is open to the public, so walk-in visitors present with any number of interesting garden issues and questions. If you enjoy a good gardening detective work, than the hotline is a great place to practice your sleuthing! The hotline is a friendly, congenial space in which Master Gardeners share their knowledge with the public, and learn from each others special skills and knowledge. Several volunteers have extensive expertise and years of experience with the public, so there are ample opportunities to gain new knowledge in a fun, non-threatening atmosphere.

WHEN WOULD I VOLUNTEER?

The hotline is open from early March through October. Hours are Monday-Thursday from 9-2PM. A typical day will see 3 or more volunteers staffing the phones and email. Each day has one or more experienced day leaders on site for support. Volunteers are asked to be available a minimum of 2 days per month and can select a dedicated day or float to different days as the need or their individual schedule requires.

Want to come in and see what it’s like? Hotline Orientation is scheduled for either Tuesday, March 27 at 9 am -or- Thursday, April 5 at 9 am. Sign up in Volgistics.

Questions? Contact Sejal Lanterman at sejal@uri.edu or 401-874-4453, our new staff liaison.

We look forward to meeting you!
Cheryl Smith, URI Master Gardener Class of 2015, Tuesday Hotline Day Leader

Save the Date

2019 International Master Gardener Conference
Greater Philadelphia Region/Valley Forge
June 17 – 21, 2019.

Pennsylvania is eager to share day trips to many of our public gardens on Sunday and Monday preceding the conference and Friday afternoon and Saturday following the conference. As well, tours to nearby Philadelphia are being planned to provide easy access to the city and its historic landmarks. We encourage attendees to ‘come early and stay late’ to experience our region with 30+ gardens within 30 miles of Philadelphia. Our conference will begin on Monday evening, June 17th, with a celebration of Pennsylvania foods as we welcome our guests.

Penns Woods: Digging into our Roots is our theme for the 2019 conference. Recognizing the region’s rich history of horticulture for more than three centuries enables our conference to include a full array of lectures, demonstrations, tours, and field study classes on-site at public gardens. Highlights will include the latest research-based sustainable horticultural and environmental stewardship best practices. Networking, learning, and having fun are on the menu! We will, of course, recognize the many exemplary achievements by Master Gardeners at our Search for Excellence awards ceremony.

To provide platforms for sharing information on the conference, a website has been established: www.internationalmastergardener.com as well as a Facebook Page: facebook.com/IMGC for social networking. We encourage you to visit these sites often and sign up for updates.

An October 2018 target for early registration and opening up our block of hotel rooms is planned.

Upcoming Events

April 25 6-8:30pm	Core Training ends URI Pharmacy Bldg, Room 170
May 5 9am-1pm	URIMGP Spring Plant Sale URI Botanical Gardens
May 21 6pm-9pm	Master Gardener Meeting URI Swan Hall Auditorium
June 23 9am-1pm	Project Open House Project locations, statewide