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TEMG Newsletter

This is an online e-newsletter that covers statewide updates across the state!!  In this issue, don't miss the introduction of our Master Gardener Month of May event called 'Hit the Trails.'

MCMG Newsletter

May 2021

President’s Message

It’s a wonderful time to be a gardener.  Springtime is beautiful as the plants awaken, and we are blessed with warmer weather and longer days to enjoy the outdoors. 

Plant sale time is upon us.  Thank you to the members who have been readying their plants for our biggest fundraiser of the year.  As always, our Plant Sale Team and their volunteer members are behind the scenes making sure the sale comes off without a hitch.

Our project leaders are busy organizing and scheduling work days, so be sure to check our website www.madisoncountymg.org for volunteer opportunities that are available.

Come Unity Café garden in downtown Jackson is the class project for the 2020 Master Gardener interns.  The café recently received a donated greenhouse from Lowe’s and some of the interns were on hand to help with the construction.

Jack Baudo and Tammy Buchanan held a cleanup day at Liberty Park Garden on April 10.  The event was well attended, and we appreciate everyone’s participation.

     If you haven’t paid your $20 dues payment for this year, please send that to our treasurer, Mary Nenarella, 245 Henderson Road, Pinson, TN 38366.  Make your check payable to MCMG.  You will receive an email receipt unless you request a receipt by mail.  REMEMBER: Interns and those who are working toward certification DO NOT pay dues.

Charlotte Jaquet, President

Program Notes
from Nancy Blair

Melody Rose is the Horticulture Extension Agent in Greene County and coordinator of the Big Spring Master Gardener Association.  She has experience with Burly Tobacco Production, Fruits & Veggies Production, and Adult Leadership and Volunteer Development.  A few of her many interests include Appalachian Natives, Woodland habitats, Viticulture and Oenology.

Melody will be sharing a presentation with us titled ‘The Power of Plants’  This discussion takes a deeper look at the chemical pathways that plants possess and how they have been put to use throughout history.   

May Task Reminder

 Home Vegetable Garden

* Harvest cool season crops

* Prepare beds for transplants

* Transplant warm season crops and plan for succession seeding of direct sown seed

* Peppers and eggplant like warmer soil they will be happier if planted a week or 2 ```behind tomatoes and other transplants

* Young transplants need water and a starter boost of fertilizer

* Set up stakes, trellises, cages or other supports now to be ready for future growth.

* Weed, weed, weed

Yard and Flowering Gardens

* Plant dill, parsley, fennel, butterfly weed and others to encourage   butterflies and pollinators to your garden

* Plant vinca and caladiums after night temps are above 60. They like warm soil.

* Prune early flowering shrubs such as azalea, forsythia, flowering quince, and loropetalum. Only prune if needed and select branches down in the shrub rather than prune to look like meatballs

* Early May is a good time to cut back on rosemary, lavender, rue, artemisia, and Santolina. 

Madison County Master Gardener yearly membership dues are $20.00 and should be paid now.  Please make your check payable to MCMG and mail it to:

Mary Nenarella

245 Henderson Rd.

Pinson, TN 38366

You will receive an email receipt unless you request a receipt by mail.

Please note:  Interns and those who are working towards certification do NOT pay dues.

Proven Winners Twist ‘n Plant auger.  Let this solid steel auger do the work for you.  It drills the perfect size hole to plant in your landscape or containers.  Fits in a ½-inch or larger drill (18V minimum).  As with any tool, use caution.  Keep drill on the lowest setting to avoid risk of damage to your wrist in rough ground or heavy clay.  Available in three sizes.  Check out this information video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNTGJxsjOm4&t=3s

April: Virginia Bluebells

Submitted by Jason Reeves, horticulturist, UT Gardens, Jackson

From the moment the blue green mouse-ear shaped leaves break the soil in the spring until they disappear in the summer, these plants provide immense pleasure," says Allan Armitage in his second edition of Herbaceous Perennial Plants. I could not agree more! I fell in love with Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) the first time I saw them more than 30 years ago. The gardener shared some plants with me, and I haven't been without since. My home garden would not be complete without Virginia bluebells or our native columbine, Aquilegia canadensis. These two wildflowers have become my favorites because they thrive and naturalize with little or no care while putting on a great spring show.

Garden Puzzle

Five friends have their gardens next to one another, where they grow three kinds of crops: fruits (apple, pear, nut, cherry), vegetables (carrot, parsley, gourd, onion) and flowers (aster, rose, tulip, lily).
1. They grow 12 different varieties.
2. Everybody grows exactly 4 different varieties
3. Each variety is at least in one garden.
4. Only one variety is in 4 gardens.
5. Only in one garden are all 3 kinds of crops.
6. Only in one garden are all 4 varieties of one kind of crops.
7. Pear is only in the two border gardens.
8. Paul's garden is in the middle with no lily.
9. Aster grower doesn't grow vegetables.
10. Rose growers don't grow parsley.
11. Nuts grower has also gourd and parsley.
12. In the first garden are apples and cherries.
13. Only in two gardens are cherries.
14. Sam has onions and cherries.
15. Luke grows exactly two kinds of fruit.
16. Tulip is only in two gardens.
17. Apple is in a single garden.
18. Only in one garden next to Zick's is parsley.
19. Sam's garden is not on the border.
20. Hank grows neither vegetables nor asters.
21. Paul has exactly three kinds of vegetable. 

 Who has which garden and what is grown where?

*Answer at the end of the May newsletter.

Garden Safety

To get into the aspects of being safe while gardening does not focus solely on the home garden.

     As Master Gardeners, we should take into consideration gardening at public places. Our methods are tried and true. We can make things grow. We can make a garden space beautifuland neat. But are we thinking about the public’s use of the garden space and what that truly entails?

     In reality, we probably should be wearing dish washing gloves in public gardens, especiallywhile working the soil. I am not going to use words that might offend or disgust anyone.

     We’ll start with the animals that might traffic a public garden. Most of us will not touch a wild animal in a zoo. One that has been cared for and confirmed free of any problems that mightcross over to humans. We will however, readily stick our bare hands into soil that is not sterileand has been crossed and used many times by any number of wild animals. Probably within the last 12 hours.

     Then we consider the possibilities of the human use factor. One scenario is the person who needs a cool place to sit down at 1am after a few too many at the local pub. There’s nothing wrong with a public location for resting. There might arise a need for one to rid oneself of some of things ingested from the pub that the body wants to eliminate. A possible place could be into the soil of the darkest area of the location. The soil is strong and quickly absorbs most of the things and the plants quickly use some of it. The rest resides in the soil. There is also the possibility that an animal might take it in and move it to another place in the same location.

     When it comes to digging in the dirt, I’m going to be one of the first in line. But I’ll be there with my gardening protective gear and practices. As I’ve learned to garden in locations other than my own yard, there are certain things a gardener needs think about to protect the largest organ - the skin. My assessment today contains 3 elements - location, animal usage and human usage.

     My protective gear is a good pair of gloves and plenty of hand sanitizer. My practices include keeping my hands away from my eyes, nose, mouth and ears. I hope this wasn’t to graphic and no one will be turned off from gardening. It’s like driving.

     Ninety-nine percent of the time, we’re going to be ok. As long as we take a few precautions and be aware of some problems that could be introduced into the soil. Most of which, we can avoid with knowledge and preparation.

M. McKnight

Garden Puzzle Answer

Hank: Pear, Apple, Cherry, Rose
Sam: Cherry, Onion, Rose, Tulip
Paul: Carrot, Gourd, Onion, Rose
Zick: Aster, Rose, Tulip, Lily
Luke: Pear, Nut, Gourd, Parsley

APRIL 2021

President’s Message

Spring is here!!  It won’t be long now until we will be putting annuals in the landscape and planting our vegetable gardens.  Be on the lookout for plants from your garden to add to our plant sale.  Thanks to David and Carol Sams for generously allowing a “dig day” at their house to provide plants for the sale.

Due to COVID restrictions, our sale will look different this year and will be held over the course of three days at the West Tennessee Research and Education Center.  On Thursday and Friday, April 29th and 30th, the sale will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  On Saturday, May 1st, the sale will begin at 7:00 a.m. and go until 11:00 a.m.  Please help spread the word by sharing the sale information with friends and neighbors.  Be sure to keep an eye on our Facebook page for more information along the way.

Sign-ups are available through the Madison County Master Gardener website for upcoming projects, so check back often to see where you would like to help.                                                                                                             

Charlotte Jaquet,
President

PROGRAM NOTES from Nancy Blair

Garden Heroes
Let’s face it, some plants are just better than others! With his extensive experience in gardens and landscapes, Jason has identified proven performers. In the plant world, new is not always better. This talk will have you racing to our plant sale to try out these champions of the garden that include old standbys and newer established players. These annuals, perennials, shrubs, and trees are sure to please.

Jason Reeves grew up on a farm near Huntingdon, where he fell in love with the plant world. He received his Master’s Degree in Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. In 2002, he became a research horticulturist and curator of the University of Tennessee Gardens located at the West Tennessee Research and Education Center in Jackson, Tennessee. Jason’s colorful plant combinations and unique garden art, made by recycling everyday objects, draws several thousand people each year to the Center's annual lawn and garden show, Summer Celebration. His past experiences include work at the Opryland Conservatories in Nashville, Missouri Botanical Garden, Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, and in private gardens in New Zealand. When he’s not bringing the grounds to life with his imaginative garden displays, he’s evaluating hundreds of new and unique plants for the state’s green industry; speaking at gardening symposiums or traveling the world leading gardening tours, and serving as a contributing editor to Fine Gardening magazine. He is also a landscape designer and consultant whose influence may be seen in landscapes across Tennessee in the form of distinct plant combinations and his signature garden art. You can follow him on Facebook at Jason Reeves – in the garden.

Talk of the Town 

Celeste Scott                                                     April   2021

2020 Spring Plant Sale Plant Insights

Over the past several years, we have been taking note of plants that fly off the shelves, which ones sell after an intercom plant introduction, and which tend to be slow movers even though they are valuable landscape plants.  We have compiled this information in the table below, and hope that you can use this as a guide when planning your Plant Sale contributions.

Overall, let’s make sure that the plants we contribute are of good quality, free of pests and disease, and are clearly labeled.

Hey MCMGs,

After our hiatus from much volunteer work in 2020, I have discovered that many of you have misplaced your MCMG name badge.  Replacement name badges are for certified members and cost $10.  If you find that you, too, need a name badge, please let me know.  (If it has been more than a few weeks since you requested a replacement name badge, please refresh my memory J hahaha!!) 

Thanks so much! 

Celeste

Gardener's Tool Shed Series

You can find the full schedule at http://madisoncountymg.org/

Monthly Task List

A good time to prune woody perennials, just before they put on new growth.

Prune early blooming shrubs such as azaleas, forsythias, flowering quince and loropetalum AFTER they bloom. Selectively cut old or unruly branches by reaching as deep as you can into the shrub.

Prevent azalea lace bug and spider mite infestations by applying a one-time dose of imidacloprid. This early application in liquid form should remain effective throughout the growing season.

 Direct sow annuals and vegetables after danger of frost this month. Jackson's average frost date is around April 15. Look at the 10-day forecast. There could be cold weather predicted. We had an early May frost last year.

Time to freshen up mulch. Don't pile around tree trunks or shrubs. Better to form a bowl than a volcano. If using a pre-emergent herbicide, be sure to apply under the mulch to decrease breakdown by sun exposure.

April is a good time to fertilize with a balanced, granular fertilizer scattered on the soil surface.

Begin purchase of warm season vegetable garden transplants. Watch soil temps and for possible frost.

Beans and corn may be direct sowed before a frost-free date, but the soil temp needs to be warm.

Garden Safety

Safety is one of the things in life that some of us take for granted. We don’t really take it seriously until something happens. For me, since I’ve been a certified gray-haired person, safety is a real thing, a thing that comes first and foremost in 90% of everything I do. I am striving for 100% and accidents still happen to me.

On a daily basis, I am reading warnings on bags of fertilizer, various chemicals that I use to control scale, mites and other infestations that could happen. Even though most things seem to be harmless at first site, when reading the cautions and warnings on the packages, it is clear

that most packaged gardening products should be handled with caution. I urge you to read the packaging. This should be done with any new product that you try and any old product that you might be familiar with that has a new redesigned package.

Gloves and masks are a dime-a-dozen and should be used. I am guilty of not wearing gloves and enjoying the feel of dirt and some gardening chemicals only to experience itching or minor swelling several hours later. I have also had nasal irritation after a day of gardening with no mask on windy days. I’ve got to do a better job of protecting myself. Sometimes, I wonder if the medicine I take could react with gardening chemicals or even insect repellent through the moisture and oil on my skin. Unfortunately, medicine interaction is not tested on any garden chemical that I am aware of. And if it was, we could not afford to buy it. It’s up to us to think ahead and take precautions.

We are at the beginning of the annual push to clear our yards of weeds and repair our gardens from the winter weather and early spring rains. Some of us will use chemicals. Some of us will use muscle along with hand tools and machines. Chemicals could influence our blood chemistry in ways that may take time to reveal the damage done. Machines, in my opinion, are the most hazardous and any injury is almost always immediately painful and could require a visit to a doctor. Hand tools can hurt also, but in most cases, they are not as painful or as long term as a machine injury. Machines and hand tools can cause overexertion of muscles and joints and can be very painful and also require a trip to the doctor. Pay close attention to the manufacturer’s warnings labels on hand tools and machinery. Check your tools for broken or cracked wood handles. Also check how secure the working end is to the handle.

Hopefully, this will serve as a reminder to my gardening friends and myself that we should be aware that a new year brings new successes. But also brings new challenges to be safe so that we garden in comfort and suffer no ill effects from it.

Our Board invites all of our members to share their gardening successes and product hit-or-miss experiences through the newsletter.  I will explore more safety objectives in the future as I learn more to share with you. In the meantime - don’t rush, enjoy gardening and be safe. 

M. McKnight

Organ and Tissue Donation Facts

. In 2020, 39,035 transplants brought renewed life to patients and their families and communities (from 12,588 decrease and 5,728 living donors).

. More than 107,000 men, women and children are waiting for a lifesaving transplant.    Over 3,000 are Tennesseans!

. Another person is added to the national organ transplant waiting list every 10 minutes.

. On average, 20 people will die each day because the organ they need are not donated in time.

. More than 80% of patients on the waiting list are waiting for a kidney. The average  waiting time for a kidney from a decreased donor is 3 to 5 years.

. One organ donor may save up to 8 lives with their gift of organs: Heart, Lungs, Kidneys, Pancreas, Liver, and Intestines.

. One tissue donor could improve the lives of up to 75 people with their gift of tissue: Eye tissue, Skin Tissue, Heart Valves, Nerves, Pericardium, Veins and Blood Vessels, Bone and Connective Tissues.

. Each year, there are approximately 30,000 tissue donors and more than 1.75 million tissue transplants; the surgical need for donated tissue is steadily rising.

. More than 85,000 corneas are provided for sight-restoring corneal transplants each year. 

. To register your decision to save and improve lives, visit:

DonateLifeTN.org
BeTheGift.com
Apple Health App/RegisterMe.org
Department of Safety/DMV
Advance Directives/Living Wills

THANK YOU NOTES TO THE MADISON COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS

In Memoriam

William (Bill) Lee Bobbitt

Mr. William (Bill) Lee Bobbitt of Lexington, TN passed away on February 20, 2021, at the age of 85. He was born December 19, 1935 in Jackson, TN, to the late William Luther and Ione Thompson Bobbitt. He was married to Frances (Buck) Bobbitt on September 9, 1961 in Lexington, TN.

Bill graduated from Lexington High School in 1953 and graduated from the University of Memphis with a B.S. degree. He briefly taught school in Henderson County, and later moved to Memphis where he was employed by the National Bank of Commerce. He left banking to become an insurance adjustor for State Farm and then Ohio Casualty. As an employee of Ohio Casualty in 1969 he moved with his family back to his beloved hometown of Lexington. Later in his career he returned to teaching and was employed by Henderson County and the Lexington City Systems. He was an avid sports fan and a loyal supporter of the Memphis Tigers basketball and football teams. High school football was a passion. He officiated high school games throughout West Tennessee for 50 years. He loved baseball, particularly the St. Louis Cardinals.

Bill was a member of Lexington First United Methodist Church. He served in many leadership positions, volunteered at the food pantry, and traveled with the mission team for many years.

One of Bill’s hobbies was growing orchids. He enjoyed sharing the blooms from his plants with friends for numerous occasions. Upon retirement he, along with his wife Frances, became Master Gardeners with the Madison County group. Together they were selected as Master Gardeners of the Year in 2015. One of Bill’s greatest joys was traveling. He and Frances traveled extensively in the United States and all over the world.

Bill is survived by his wife Frances of Lexington; two sons William (Alla) Bobbitt, Jr. of Silver Spring, MD; Robert Bobbitt of Jackson, TN; two grandchildren, Arthur Bobbitt and Olivia Lemieux; and a brother John (Linda) Bobbitt of Lexington.

Our friend Bill was loved by all who knew him, and he will be missed by our entire Master Gardener community.  Notes to Frances can be mailed to 125 Poplar Lane, Lexington, TN 38351.

New Graduate Spotlight

Jenifer Trimble is a Retired Air Force Veteran with 20 years of logistics experience and working alongside other branches of the military. Jenifer was born at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana in March of 1972. So, you can say the military has always been in her blood from birth. Jenifer has a Bachelor of Science from Southern Illinois University and an Associate in Applied Science Logistics from the Community College of the Air Force. Jenifer and her husband, Richard, who is also retired military moved to Bells, Tennessee back in 2016. In her free time, Jenifer likes to garden with her three cats by her side. After years of only being able to grow weeds, she decided to continue her education and take the Master Gardener class to cut down on the weeds and increase the garden's crop yield. Besides gardening, Jenifer also volunteers at the Crockett County Senior Center. She also enjoys crocheting and quilting.

Marion Cone
I was born and raised in Middle Tennessee where I taught school for 30 years.  We moved to Jackson 20 years ago for my husband's job.  In the early 2000s, I went through MG training.  Because life got in the way, I didn't complete the required service and education hours.  Thank goodness I returned!  I can't express my gratitude enough for everything I gained from Celeste's leadership!

NEWSLETTER ARTICLES WANTED

You can earn volunteer hours by writing about some garden you visited, some technique you tried which worked (or did not), or share your enthusiasm for some special plant, recipe, or condensing a gardening article you read.

Keep contributing.
Keep reading.
Keep sharing.

Please send your contributions to:  lizv@tds.net

Past Newsletters