Events & Activities

University of Arizona Yavapai County Cooperative Extension

November 2008Master Gardener Newsletter

Yavapai Gardens

Table of Contents

MG Association Meeting, Wednesday, Nov 19 6:30pm, See address page for map.

Alta Vista Gardening Club, Prescott, fourth Tuesday of the month, 12:30pm. Call 928-443-0464 for location and information.

Prescott Area Gourd Society, third Tuesday of the month, 6:30 pm, at the Smoki Museum.

Prescott Orchid Society, meets 3rd Sunday of the month, 2pm at the Prescott Library, call Cyn-thia for information. (928) 717-0623

Prescott Area Iris Society call 928-445-8132 for date and place information.

Verde Valley Iris Society call Linda Smith at 928-

567-7470

Lemon Balm . . . 1MG Conference . . . 2Recognition Picnic . . . 3Recognition Hours . . . 4Cottonwood Office . . . 5Mulch . . . 6MG News . . . 7

The tang of lemon given off when the leaves are crushed give this herb its name. It has a long history of medicinal and culinary uses. Its latin name “Melissa” comes from the Greek and refers to “a hon-eybee” because the flowers are very attractive to bees. Honey made from its flowers was quite popular. The plant has become naturalized throughout the world but its original range was southern Europe. Romans introduced it to Britain where it became an essential element of monasteries apothecaries. It was used as an antispasmodic and has soothing and sedative properties. Other uses are for treating colic, vomiting, poor digestion, palpitations, vertigo and fever. The oil seems to have antibacterial effects. It is also used in perfumes, toilet waters and liqueurs. The Greek physician Dioscorides put the plant on bites from dogs to scorpions and then put the leaves in wine for the patient to drink. In the United States the plant was brought over by early settlers. Thomas Jefferson was known to grow it in his garden. The plant was used as medicine into the 19th century but lost its popularity to stronger members of the mint family. In cooking, the leaves can be added to fish and poultry dish-es, herb sauces and marinades, along with being used as a tea, in jams and jellies, custards, salads and vegetable dishes, imparting a fresh lemony flavor. As a tea it is particularly good combined with peppermint. Leaves are best used fresh for cooking but they can be dried and used in teas. Lemon balm prefers moister areas and can be grown from seeds, divisions or cuttings. It isn’t the most attractive plant, being loosely branched and a bit floppy, but its fresh lemony fragrance would go nicely in a garden where you would brush up against it to release its scent. It can be invasive in some areas. In colder climates it will freeze back but if it hasn’t been too cold, it should resprout come spring. If you are interested in making a wine with lemon balm here is a recipe from 1892: Take 40 pounds of sugar dissolved in 9 gallons of water and poured, when cool, over 2 1/2 pounds of balm and “a little new yeast.” Let stand open for 24 hours and then ferment un-der cover for six weeks. Pour into bottles with a sugar cube in each bottle. The wine improves with age, being better the second year.

Lemon BalmMelissa officinalis

by Nora Graf

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2008 Master Gardener ConferenceIt was a great conference. Special thanks to all the planning committee members and those that volunteered during the conference.

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MG Recognition Picnic and All-Round Good Time

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New Master Gardeners

By completing 50 volunteer hours, the following Associ-ate Master Gardeners received certificates and nametags (signifying certification) at the September Master Gar-dener Meeting:

Rebecca Banks—mentor Vera Stewart

David Black—mentor Lynn Becker

Jeanne d’Heilly—mentor Angie Mazella

Melina Reylek—mentor Pam Bowman

The following Associates received certification at the an-nual Recognition Picnic in October:

Trudy Black—mentor Lynn Becker

Diane Dearmore

Karen Morris—mentor Jeannette Teets

Robin Weesner—mentor Bob Burke

Congratulations!

Spial thanks to Herdis McClel-lan and the members of the social committee for lanning all the dails of

the picnic!

Recognition Hours – Fiscal Year July 1, 2007 – June 30, 2008

150 hoursLesley AlwardPJ AmesSally BerkshireJan BilliamJoanne BlumaJack BurtonSharon CasmierJay FleishmanKay GaffneyChris GraffLynn HazlewoodJanet MansoldoMarv MazurDoug McMillanCathy MichenerSherry MortonDiane NaultMarilyn PerkinsFaith RoelofsCheri RomleySuzette RussiMarijke SchupackSue SmithWendy SpringJoan TylerTom Watkins250 hoursKathy MacCauleyAngie MazellaDiane McKelveySherry MortonPaula PotterSuzette RussiJanet SchieberSue SmithVera StewartTom Watkins

500 hoursPam BowmanBob BurkeSherry HowardHerdis MacLellanJudy MannenMissy Sandeen

1000 hoursBill CartJohn PaustianJeannette TeetsRichard Wise

1500 hoursRosh PreussJeannette Teets

3000 hoursMary BarnesNora Graf

Wow!!, Good J

ob Everyo

ne

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The Cottonwood Extension Office officially re-opened to provide Master Gardener assistance on Oct 1st. The office was closed for most of the summer due to the absence of a U of A employee to provide access for Master Gardener Phone Vol-unteers. The position was recently filled by Lisa Gerber, a Master Gardener who is now a U of A employee working for Doug Tolleson on range-land monitoring activities. We are very happy to have Lisa in this position, and to be able to once again provide direct Master Gardener access to the Verde area. For the past 5 years MG activities in the Cot-tonwood office have been managed by Rosh Pre-uss, who resigned from that volunteer position on August 30th. Rosh humbly says that the Phone Volunteers are self-managing and she doesn’t have to do much. However, as Office Coordina-tor, Rosh has done a lot to keep the MG helpline running smoothly. Rosh trained and scheduled Phone Volunteers, compiled results, resolved is-sues, established and maintained office proce-dures and coordinated with the Prescott Office to

ensure consistency in the use of forms, procedures, and reference materials. Rosh will still be involved in other Master Gardener activities. Jeannette Teets will replace Rosh as Office Coordinator next January, as she is plenty busy with the garden conference and her MGA President role this year. In the interim the Prescott Office Coordinator will sup-port the Cottonwood Phone Volunteers. A BIG THANKS to Rosh for the past 5 years, and to those who maintained Cottonwood Extension support to the public this summer (Steve Moody and Sandee Kinnen for managing the Helpline e-mail messages, MGs for handling problems at the Camp Verde Farmers’ Market, and the Prescott Phone Volunteers for handling the Cotton-wood phone calls and Farmers’ Market referrals). Oh, and to answer the age-old question “when will the new Camp Verde Extension Office be open?” – the answer is “someday”. Maybe we should start a pool to guess the opening month...year.

Cottonwood MG Helpline – Re-opened Under New Management

Still time to register for the International Master Gardener Conference

Go to the following website for information and registration:

information: http://www.unce.unr.edu/imgc/registration/Conference Host:University of Nevada Cooperative Extension — Master Gardeners of Southern Nevada.Location: Alexis Park Resort Hotel, 375 E. Harmon, Las Vegas, NV 89169; (702) 796-3300

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With autumn approaching and temperatures cooling, it’s a good time to take stock of the mulch in the garden. Any good gardening book will cover the subject and it is one of the basic principals of xeriscaping and perma-culture.

Mulch is any organic or inorganic material that covers the soil around plants. Organic mulches consist of bark or wood chips, leaf mold, grass clippings, compost, hay and straw. Inorganic mulches consist of rocks such as boulders, decomposed granite, gravel, decorative rock and sand. Organic mulches will break down over time and will need to be replenished. Keep them a couple of inches away from trunks and stems as moisture can cause rotting. They can also blow or float away with our strong winds and heavy rains. Rocks have a long lifetime and may need to be top dressed or raked every once in awhile. The benefit of using mulch is that it prevents mois-ture loss, therefore extending periods of watering by days, sometimes even weeks. It shades the soil, inhibiting weed growth. The weeds that do get through are easy to pull and weeding will decrease as time goes by. Mulches also modify extreme soil temperatures by insulating plant roots. Best of all, mulches reduce work and add a finishing touch to the landscape.

Mulch by Cheri MeltonCochise County Master Gardener Newsletter Oct 1997

A good rule of thumb is to apply mulch at least two inches deep around trees, shrubs and flower beds. And don’t forget the vegetable garden. It will greatly ben-efit from organic mulches and at the end of the season till the mulch in to improve the soil structure. Mulches also prevent rainwater run-off. I was amazed how much water was stopped and retained by my rock mulches. If you prefer to lay a weed barrier under your mulch, use the new weed barrier fabrics rather than black plastic. They let the air and water penetrate the ground instead of running off as plastic does. If plastic is already installed, you can take a garden fork and punch holes in it, especially around the perimeter of trees to allow wa-ter to penetrate the feeder roots which will improve the health of the tree. In garden and veggie paths I like to lay down cardboard, newspaper or old carpets and cover with mulch. Be creative with mulches. Use different textures and colors to define areas. Also use the appropriate mulch for different situations. Most native wildflowers, cacti and succulents love rock mulches. They thrive on the reflected heat. Roses, on the other hand, seem to pre-fer bark mulches. Experiment and see what works best in your garden. Take note in neighborhood yards, city plants and in botanical gardens not only of the plants but the mulch used and duplicate it in your setting. Mulches—they’re a good thing!

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Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914 in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture, James A. Christenson, Direc-tor, Cooperative Extension, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The University of Arizona and Arizona Counties cooperating. The University of Arizona is an equal opportu-nity, affirmative action institution. The University does not discriminate on the basis or race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or sexual orientation in its progrmas and activities. The information given herein is supplied with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by Cooperative Extension is implied. Any products, services, or organizations that are mentioned, shown, or indirectly implied in this publication do not imply endorsement by the University of Arizona.

Prescott 840 Rodeo Dr.Building CPrescott, AZ 86305(928) 445-6590FAX: (928) 445-6593

Cottonwood2657 Village Dr.Cottonwood, AZ 86326(928) 646-9113

Jeff SchalauCounty Director, Yavapai County Extension Agent, Agriculture & Natural Resources email: jschalau@ag.arizona.edu

FROM THE EDITOR: Please send or email articles and announce-ments to the address below. All articles must be in my hands by the 10th of the month. Short announcements (no more than 2 or 3 lines) will be accepted until the 25th.Nora GrafPO Box 3652Camp Verde, AZ 86322mesquite2@hotmail.com(928) 567-6703

November 19, Prescott—Elections; Panel--“The State of Organics in the Food Distribution Industry”

December—No Meeting

Just a reminder that I do not do a January newsletter. The deadline for the December newsletter is Nov. 10 for articles, for announcements it is Nov 26. For the February Newsletter the deadline is January 10.

MG Calendar

November is election month, below are the officer names for the November Elections:

President: Cynthia Cartier-Roberts. Vice President: Bob Burke. Treasurer: Suzette Russi. Secretary: Judy Cowan. Still need volunteers for:

The Program/Education Committee is in need of more members. Jeanne d’Heilly is the chair but she would like additional members for ideas and input for monthly program speakers and educational work-shops - as of this date - only one signed member (Diane Nault). Social/Picnic Committee: Co-chair Mary Jacobson, would like addi-tional help to make calls and setup on program nights in the Verde

side.

MG Association MeetingNov. 19, 6:30pm Prescott

MG NEWSLETTER

Arizona Cooperative ExtensionYavapai County840 Rodeo Dr. Building CPrescott, AZ 86305

November 19, Prescott. Elections; Panel—”The State of Organics in the Food Distribution Industry”