Author: Lee Borden

Mary McCroan has been kind enough to provide us the slides for her presentation on drip irrigation at the September Lunch & Learn.

drip-irrigation-seminar-sep-2016-pdf

Bob Burgett has followed up on his Lunch & Learn from Tuesday, June 14 with a copious assortment of resources and links. Here’s what he shared:

Through the years, few lectures have been as fundamental to our competence as gardeners, as relevant to all, or as popular as those delivered by Charlie Mitchell. He has been our “soil guru” for so long and in so many ways that we find it difficult to think about soil quality without having a mental image of Charlie popping into our brains.

Dr Charles C Mitchell retired from Auburn University in March. That means that, like it or not, we’ll eventually need to adjust to having someone else teach us about building up our soil. But there’s a silver lining adorning this cloud: at our request, he’s preparing to share some of his expertise with us on May 17, 2016. He’ll be reflecting on his illustrious career, what he has learned, and what changes he has seen. He has titled his talk “Loving Plants, A Little Science, and a Lot of Living – Perspectives from 60 Years of Gardening in the South.”

Charlie grew up on his family’s farm in Marengo County. He has degrees from Birmingham-Southern College, Auburn University and the University of Florida.  Before coming to Auburn in 1984, he was director of the Soil Testing Laboratory at Clemson University in South Carolina and has remained active in soil testing research at Auburn. Charlie is responsible for Auburn’s adding nutrient recommendations for Alabama crops. More recently, it is Charlie’s quiet persistence that has resulted in Auburn’s now having a test for organic matter available as an optional component of its standard soil test. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy and serves on the Board of Directors of the Southeast Certified Crops Advisors.

In addition to his professional activities, Charlie now serves as president of the Lee County Historical Society, is active in the Auburn Civitan Club and the Auburn-Opelika Men’s Camellia Club, and is a volunteer leader of a local 4-H Club.   He and his wife, Peggy, are avid gardeners and take care of several of the gardens at Pioneer Park in Loachapoka. They love to travel.

5/17/16 Update: Charlie has graciously agreed for us to host his slides from the presentation. Thank you, Charlie!

If you came here looking for an upcoming workshop on native pollinators, we must reluctantly report that the workshop is finished. If it makes you feel better, it was fantastic. Thanks to Dani Carroll and Mallory Kelley – who teamed up to present the all-day workshop – for making their slides available so you can view them for reference.

Native Pollinator Workshop Slides Part 1

Native Pollinator Workshop Slides Part 2

Native Pollinator Workshop Slides Part 3

Everybody wants their landscape to be low maintenance. Literally. Everybody. It’s only when we scratch below the surface of that universal desire that we find out there are as many definitions of “low maintenance” as there are ways to grow potatoes.

Amanda Borden will help us understand where our definition lies when she presents her April program on low maintenance landscape design. This is a huge subject. No one could hope to cover it in a one-hour program. So come with appropriate expectations.

You won’t know all the answers when the program is over, but in the best master gardener fashion, you will understand some key fundamental principles, and you will know where to look to find the answers that will work for your landscape.

That’s Tuesday, April 19 at 10:00 am in the Elmore County Extension Auditorium. Stick around after her talk for refreshments and the business meeting, which will be finished by noon.

Here are are the resources Amanda referenced during her talk:

Watch Amanda’s slide presentation again

Low Maintenance Landscaping – Sources

Eierman, Kim. “EcoBeneficial Gardening: Beyond Sustainability,” The National Gardener, Spring 2016.
“Xeriscaping,” The National Gardener, Spring 2015
“Low-Maintenance Landscape Ideas,” HGIC 1703, Clemson Cooperative Extension.
Hemenway, Toby. Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, 2nd ed. Chelsea Green, 2009.
Jackson, Hayes (ACES Regional Extension Agent). “Gardening in Dry Places” (Podcast #205, longleafbreeze.com). October 3, 2013.
Chaplin, Lois. The Southern Gardener’s Book of Lists: The Best Plants for All Your Needs, Wants, and Whims. Taylor Trade Publishing, 1994.
Powell, Jason. “Tough as Nails Plants for the South,” Lunch and Learn presentation, Elmore County Extension Auditorium. June 9, 2015.
“Alabama Smart Yards: Introducing Environmental Consciousness and Practical Management Options to our Yards and Neighborhoods,” ANR-1359, Alabama Cooperative Extension.
ACES Edible Landscape Workshop, Grace Episcopal Church, Pike Road, March 19, 2014.
Bender, Steve, and Felder Rushing. Passalong Plants. University of North Carolina Press, 1993.

Xeriscaping—Plants for Dry Places (Hayes Jackson, Urban Regional Extension Agent, Calhoun & Etowah Counties)

Agave
Red Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora)
Nolina (Nolina texana)
Texas Mountain Laurel (Sophora secundiflora)
Turk’s Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus)
Maple Leaf Viburnum (viburnum acerifolium)
Aucuba (Aucuba japonica)
Mahonia (Mahonia spp.)
Liriope (Liriope genus)
Roof Iris (Iris tectorum)
Alabama Snow Wreath (Neviusia alabamensis)
Spirea (Spiraea spp.)
Sedums
Fringe Tree/Grancy Greybeard (Chionanthus virginicus)
Succulents

“Bullet-Proof”Plants for Southern Gardens (Jason Powell, Petals from the Past)

Reseeding Annuals—Larkspur, Poppies, Johnny Jump Up (Viola)
Bulbs—Leucojum (Snowflake), Narcissus (Ice Follies), Crinum
Antique Roses
Lenten Rose
Bears Breeches
Creeping Heliotrope
Red Hot Poker
Blue Star Amsonia
Blue Princess Verbena
Jerusalem Sage Phlomis
Salvia
Blackberry Lily
Chrysanthemum (Ryan’s Pink)
Herbs—Rosemary (Tuscan Blue), Bulbing Fennel, Catmint, Feverfew, Creeping Thyme (Lemon Mist), Texas Tarragon
Shrubs—French Hydrangea, Virginia Sweetspire, Spirea (Anthony Waterer)
Fruit—Blackberries, Blueberries, Figs
Roses—Early Hybrid Tea (Blossomtime), Texas Squarehead Primrose
Blackfoot Daisy
Spigelia (Indian Pink)
Blue Chaste Tree
Texas Star Hibiscus
Clematis

Suzanne Sikes, who was scheduled to visit with us in March about beneficial predators, has asked to postpone so she can be with her Dad during his surgery. Jimmy May, who was scheduled to present in July, has agreed to take her place in March. Thank you, Jimmy!

Here’s our revised CAMGA program schedule for the next three months:

• March 15: Jimmy May – “All About Greenhouses“
• April 19: Amanda Borden – “Low Maintenance Landscape Design”
• May 17: Charles Mitchell – “Loving Plants, A Little Science, and a Lot of Living – Perspectives from 60 Years of Gardening in the South”
• June 21: Mallory Kelley – “GMOs, “Organic,” and IPM”

As always, you can check out the CAMGA program schedule and the reports on the evaluation of each program on the CAMGA Programs Spreadsheet available online.

It’s been too long since we’ve had a good old down-and-dirty field trip. Thanks to Joyce Vella, Linda Griebel and their buddies, we have a doozy coming up.

We’ll board our bus at Extension at 8:00 am on Wednesday, April 27. We’ll travel together to the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The Botanical Gardens are at their most beautiful this time of year.

We’ll be a bus full, so we’ll divide into two groups and split up what we see into two tours, one from 10:30 – 11:30 am and the other from 1:00 – 2:00 pm. The long lunch break in between should allow some time for exploration on your own as well. We’ll be back at Extension at least by 5:00 pm.

Cost: $15 (now that’s a deal – Thank you, CAMGA!)

What’s provided: Travel to and from Extension, water and snacks on board. Bring your own sack lunch, or you can purchase lunch in the cafeteria ($8-10). There is a gift shop and plants available for purchase.

Deadline to register: CAMGA members must register and pay by the March 15 meeting. After then, we’ll open up any remaining seats to non-member guests for $20.

 

CAMGA member Jimmy May grew up gardening, and he’s a blue ribbon canner, but it took his experience as a contractor in Florida for him to learn and begin applying passive solar design principles. When he started applying those passive solar principles to his gardening, greenhouse design was a natural fit.

We had scheduled Jimmy to speak about greenhouses in July, but when our March speaker asked to postpone for her father’s surgery, Jimmy graciously agreed to step up early. So he will bring our March 15 program.

Jimmy has learned that, here in the South, ventilation is as important as if not more important than conserving heat, so he’ll have lots to share with us about that. And yes, he’ll leave time for us to pepper him with our questions about the greenhouses we own and the ones we dream about.

That’s March 15, 2016 at 10:00 am in the Elmore County Extension auditorium. Stick around for the business meeting, and we’ll be finished by noon.

March 15 Update: Jimmy did a great job this morning. He has graciously and generously allowed us to post his slides online. Enjoy!

Our own Maria Pacheco-West will entice and beguile us at the February Lunch & Learn with a program entitled “Falling in Love with Roses.” Maria, who is pursuing Advanced Master Gardener certification in roses, will share with us some of her favorite varieties. She will also provide some oh-so-practical information about planning, tending, and pruning. That pruning part is timely, because Valentine’s Day is our semi-official Rose Pruning Day here in central Alabama. But you already knew that, didn’t you?

Come fall in love Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at noon in the Elmore County Extension auditorium. Bring a lunch; drinks are provided. You’ll be finished by 1:00.

We are delighted to welcome one of CAMGA’s favorite teachers in February. Dani Carroll will move beyond the workshops she has taught us so well about starting seed and deal with some of the tips, tricks, and troubleshooting tools she’s learned during her years of experience. Dani doesn’t mince words; she’ll tell you exactly what she sees gardeners doing wrong and how to avoid mistakes. And make you laugh at yourself while she’s doing it.

Come with your best questions and challenges. Didn’t really need to say that, did we? You’d do it anyway.

That’s February 16, 2016 in the Elmore County Extension auditorium. The program will be at 10:00 am. Then we’ll break for goodies before the business meeting. You should be walking away by noon.