July-Aug 2007
A Busy Time for Llano Master Gardeners
The past two months have been really busy for the LMGers. The 2007 class completed their first part of certification to become a Master Gardener by completing the class work. John Collins has completed his community volunteer hours and there are two students right behind him who will probably complete their requirements by the end of July. Congratulations to all of you for your hard work.
The Pocket Park, a.k.a; Pioneer Park, provides many hours to some of the interns. There is enough work for everyone. The flowerbeds at the library need volunteers to rejuvenate. “Old Red Top,” the old jail, requires attention. LMGers can design an inviting floral setting for the “tombstone” monuments on the east side of the courthouse lawn. This would require a drawing, not labor in the heat. The editorship of The Cultivator is available to anyone who hates the heat and/or has health problems that prevent them from doing the labor in the flowerbeds.
The LMGers were invited to participate with the McCulloch County Master Gardeners in an all day workshop on Oak Wilt. Many of the LMGers took part in this opportunity. The LMGers also took a field trip to Sylvia Williams’ garden in Bertram as part of the June meeting. She is both an outstanding hostess and great gardener so it is always a treat to see her garden.
In May, The Apple Guy, John Caballero, gave a very good presentation to the group about his orchard which is open to the public. His orchard is located at 12340 South Highway 16 in Llano county.
Todd Swift, Llano county agent, left the Llano office June 15 to take the county agent position in his home town of Blanco. He will certainly be missed by the LMGers. He was a wonderful supporter and help to us all. His interest was horticulture and he was always ready to advise each of us on our projects or on our personal yards and gardens. A replacement county agent has not been selected, but we are hoping the replacement has a passion for horticulture.
The LMGers have been busy and they do not seem to be slowing down. Check out “Dates to Remember” to see what will be happening in the next two months.
Happy gardening.
July-August Events
July 12, 19, 26 - Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Nature Nights, 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Admission $1.00. Habitat hikes throughout the gardens, discovery stations, crafts and presentations by experts and learn about Central Texas snakes, lizards, spiders and raptors.
July 14, 15 - Austin Pond Society, 13th Annual Pond Tour 9 a.m. -5 p.m. (Sat.), 12 noon-5 p.m. (Sun) Admission $15.00 (two day admission) Self-driving tour of 30 private ponds over two days.
July 19 - Monthly Meeting of Llano Master Gardeners. Llano Extension Office, 5:30 p.m.
July 24 - First summer business meeting. Junior Master Gardener training, Extension Office 1:00 p.m. Lisa Whittlesea and Patty Kuykendall, Gale Parson. Anyone interested in working with Junior Master Gardeners hould attend. Contact Patty at pkuykendal@veriszon.net or call Vivian at 325-247-5159.
August 16 - Monthly Meeting of Llano Master Gardeners. Llano Extension Office, 5:30 p.m.
Organic Grasshopper Control
After all this rain, one would not expect to see so many grasshoppers. They are destroying all my plants and I suspect yours also. There are lots of commercial sprays and baits available in the stores and on the internet but I want to keep all my beneficial insects and only rid the garden of the grasshoppers who are stripping the leaves from the butterfly bush, the leeks, the tomatoes and even the “dumb cane.” I finally found some suggestion on this website http://www.klru.org. The author of the website’s first recommendation is a commercial product. But she also recommends Koalin clay, which is available at craft stores that sell pottery supplies. Mix 2.5 cups of clay to a gallon of water plus 2 teaspoons of soap as a surfactant. Put in a pump-up sprayer. Constantly agitate the sprayer while you work. Spray leaves lightly. The spray leaves a fine film of powder on the leaves which gums up the grasshopper’s mouthparts. The residue should remain on the leaves for several days or a week. Reapply when it is gone or after a rain.
Another method of getting rid of grasshoppers, is to fill a bottle with a small opening (like an empty dish detergent bottle) with flour. Then apply the flour directly on the grasshopper. This also gums up the grasshopper’s mouthparts. Hope some of these remedies work for you.
While you are checking out the grasshopper website, you may wish to check out what you should be doing in your garden in July and August. I found these two sites very useful; July Tips and August Tips. These sites give lots of information including what to fertilize, watering tips, lawn care, diseases and pests to look for, what to prune and what plants and seeds to get in the ground and what vegetables to put in the garden.
To find John Dromgoole’s “recipes” for Black Spot, Brown Patch or Powdery Mildew, or Baking Soda Bug Spray go to: Baking Soda Recipes. Hope you find this useful.
Since the topic of our July meeting is preserving garden produce, you can read up on food preservation on these two pages; Canning and Freezing and Freezing Garden Produce. The first one is a treasure trove of information. The second one is also a treasure trove but may be a little harder to navigate.
Using What We Grow
Cold refreshing watermelon comes to mind when the temperature soars upward. It is 92% water which makes it a perfect treat to replenish body fluids lost in exercise on hot days. It makes a healthy alternative to processed snacks for children. Watermelons can be found in seedless varieties, ice box sized varieties and the old fashion big, seeded, red melons. A two cup serving of watermelon has 80 calories, two grams of dietary fiber, 25% of the daily value of vitamin C, 20% of the daily value of vitamin A, 25 grams of sugar and 1 gram of protein. Armed with this knowledge, enjoy this herbal drink after a hard morning in the garden.
Watermelon Slush
4 cups cubed, seeded watermelon, frozen
8 ounces pineapple juice
Squeeze of lime juice
Sparkling water
Lime and lemon slices to garnish
Combine melon and juices in blender or food processor and mix until smooth. Pour into glasses and top with sparkling water and garnish with fruit slices.
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