McMinnville Garden
Club PO Box 386, McMinnville, OR 503-434-4344 February 2011
February21,
2011 – MEETING
Hillside
Retirement Community “Activity Room” at the Manor
900
N. Hill Road McMinnville, OR 97128
PLEASE DON’T FORGET TO PARK IN THE CHURCH PARKING
LOT
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. - Business Meeting and FUN
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Jan Main - Soil
Science 101
With
the nice weather we have had recently, it's time to start thinking about getting our soil
ready for planting. To help you along,
the February speaker will help us learn how to prepare the perfect
soil and some ssustainable
practices for improving our soil and how to maintain it will be
presented. She will also cover
topics such as basic soil chemistry, life in the soil, improving soil
with compost, mulches, cover crops and fertilizers.
February
8 - Application Deadline for County Master Recycler Class
Learn
how to reduce your waste, conserve natural resources and motivate others to
change with you. This eight week class is sponsored by Yamhill County
Solid Waste. Classes start March 3rd in Newberg.
Contact Sherrie Mathison at 503-434-7445, http://ycsw.org
Cost is $35 plus 35 hours of community service.
Feb. 24 - Sudden Oak Death - 7 p.m.
Carnegie Room, McMinnville Public Library
225 N.W. Adams Street, McMinnville
Dr.
Nancy K. Osterbauer, a plant health program manager for the Oregon Department
of Agriculture, will give a presentation to update us on Sudden Oak Death,
which affects our local Oregon white oak. The disease, Phytophthora ramorum,
has killed hundreds of otherwise healthy oaks in Oregon. Is the disease still
spreading? Is there anything we can do to prevent it?
Sponsored
by Master Gardeners - Native Plant Society of
Oregon, Cheahmill Chapter - Information: 503-835-1042
February 26, - Oregon Garden- Speaker, Paul Freed -
1pm Education Center
Garden University presents
Madagascar: The Real Treasure Island
for more information: http://oregongardenuniversity.blogspot.com/
February 28th
- Fabric Kites - Garden Club
Craft
Supply List
v Foam core board
(available at Walmart)
v Fabric scraps big
enough to cover foam core kite
v Any embellishments or
trims to jazz up your kite (beads, sequins, yarns, etc.)
v Glue stick
v Sewing machine if you
plan to sew your fabric together. You
can also use glue. I
will have my sewing machine available for people to use.
February President’s Message
"ALL ABOARD"
February is upon us and I’m thrilled. That means March is close behind with the promise of spring flowers. I’ve already noticed that some hydrangeas are beginning to send up new growth, bulbs are starting to pop out of the ground and I’ve seen lots of folks pruning. Most noticeably, our club is starting up field trips and arts and crafts activities again. Now, as long as no late season snow storm keeps us housebound, we are off to the growing season.
And in that case, we need to get motivated. What better way than to join us on our field trip to the Yard, Garden and Patio Show, Feb. 18th. In order to get there in time for some of the workshops, we will be leaving the Bethel Baptist Church parking lot at 9 AM. Bring a lunch or plan to buy one there. We’ll hope to be home in the late afternoon with new treasures and great ideas!
Next we need to start preparing the most important element to all gardens’ success, in my experience, SOIL. Our February speaker will help us do just that! Hope to see you at our meeting on Feb. 21st!
All this brings another set of planning thoughts to my mind, what survived this winter and what surprises does Mother Nature have in store for this year!? Oh, by the way, Mother Nature sounds like a great secret phrase. Did you get to the end of this article to read that? Patty
Wildlife Habitat
June Benson
One cold December morning an Anna’s Hummingbird hovered outside our kitchen window. He spotted the Christmas greenery I set on the window sill inside, and I am sure he hoped to check out one of those shiny red plastic berries. Poor bird—below freezing, no flowers in bloom, and no feeder. My husband and I felt guilty and within a week we set up a feeder on our deck.
Several
hummingbirds now visit regularly, and it’s easy to see why they are often
described as “garden jewels”. The male Anna’s Hummingbird has an iridescent
green body and in direct sunlight, the dark head shines a deep rose red. The
throat of the female reflects some red spots. Before the 1950’s the Anna’s
Hummingbird was unknown in
They need to eat about half their body weight daily in nectar and insects. They feed on nectar, our sugary-solution feeders, and tree sap (and the insects attracted to the sap.) Hummingbirds use water for bathing but meet most of their drinking needs from nectar.
Attracting hummingbirds to your garden is easy. First grow flowers that produce nectar. Clumps of red, orange, and pink flowers are more visible to them than other colors. In fact our January speaker, Deborah Topp, talked about the red “hummingbird superhighway” in her own garden. Fragrance is not important. Add a hummingbird feeder. Check the OSU Extension Service for plant and feeder recommendations at http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pdf/ec/ec1541.pdf.
These birds are beautiful and fun to watch, but they also play an important role in our gardens as pollinators and insect predators.
Our cold weather is certainly a
threat to hummingbirds. How do they survive? Nests are used only by the female
and young in the spring. So during the winter are they perched in a tree?
Inside a shrub? Would they use a birdhouse? This is the question I can’t
answer. If you know, drop me a note at junebenson@frontier.com.
Meet Joan Friese
Interviewed by Rosemary Vertregt
Joan
is a native of this area, having been raised in Forest Grove, progressing
through the same schools her children and grand-children later attended. During
her childhood she loved spending time with her grandparents on their
McMinnville farm. Her grandmother, Blanche Thurston, was an active member of
the McMinnville Garden Club, and Joan often accompanied her to club events,
including the Christmas wreath-making work parties, where she remembers working
alongside long-time member Blanche Wold. Joan credits her grandmother’s
influence for her love of plants and flowers. Joan’s mother, who had worked for
a florist, insisted that plants just would not grow for her unless planted and
tended by Joan!
After graduating from Forest Grove High School, and an
early marriage and motherhood, Joan worked as a dental receptionist, and at a
shop, where Bob Friese, the friendly manager of J.C. Penney befriended Joan and
attempted to date her, though he had been told that she was divorced and did
not date, as she had children to raise. However, he was persistent; she relented,
and they became a happy pair -- enjoying dancing, golf, and travel, especially
to smaller, back roads places. For several years, they spent winter months in
Yuma, Arizona, exploring and making new friends, with whom they later exchanged
visits in each other’s homes.
Joan and Bob had moved to Albany when Bob was
transferred there, so when he decided to take an early retirement after 37
years with Penney’s, they settled on McMinnville as the perfect choice -- not
too far from family, and not too close! Joan joined Newcomers and Garden Club,
and they golfed, they danced at the Grange on Friday nights (Joan still goes
there nearly every week!) Sadly, Bob became ill and passed away eight years
ago, and after some lonely, difficult times, Joan says that she is so happy for
all the wonderful memories they created together, and she keeps involved and
interested, in Garden Club, Senior Center activities, and, of course, in
family! She has a daughter in Los
Angeles, two daughters in Beaverton, and one in Cornelius, six grandchildren,
and l6 great-grandchildren. She also has something else--neighbors who
fish--and generously share their catch with her! But it is Joan herself who shows generosity with her time
and efforts on behalf of our club members who are coping with a death or
serious illness or injury in their close family. For four years, Joan has
gladly assumed the duties of “SUNSHINE” Chairman, contacting members needing warmth
and some caring attention from friends. She sends cards, makes calls, and
visits, often bringing plants to a home or hospital, and she alerts members to
the situation. Joan feels that it is especially helpful to give a plant which
will re-bloom at the same time each year, reminding our member not of her loss,
but of our caring feelings. Thank you, Joan.
What you do is important to us, and we all can use every drop of
“SUNSHINE” we can get here in Oregon!
Horticulture - Marilyn Coats
CRYPTOMERIA japonica ‘Elegans’
This is a graceful
conifer tree that grows slowly into a dense pyramid 20-60 feet tall, 20 feet
wide. The ‘Elegans Aurea’ is similar but
turns yellow in winter.
At one of our gardens on the Garden Tour,
I saw a tall, feathery, grayish green tree.
Of course, I had to feel the branches (kind of like being in a material
store and feeling all the materials!).
They looked like stiff needles, but were so soft and elegant. Evelyn was with me and she wasn’t sure what
kind of tree it was. But she pursued it
until she came up with the name. If you
can’t identify a plant, especially trees, Evelyn is great at finding the
answer.
That tree was much too big for my yard, but I
found out there was a dwarf that only got to 4 feet high and wide called
‘Nana’. It had dark green foliage that
turned coppery red or purplish in winter.
I bought one as soon as I found it and
planted it in front of the house in a limited space. It was such a pretty and graceful tree. However, after 4-5 years, it was over 5 feet
high and wide, outgrowing the space. So,
sadly, I had to get rid of it before it got any bigger and harder to dig
up. (You can’t always believe the plant
markers.)
If you have a larger space, you might
consider the Cryptomeria tree as it is such a very attractive, feathery
tree. According to the garden book,
there are some smaller species, but finding them around our area is not so
easy!
Garden Tour/Faire 2011
Internet Links:
Pioneer
District
http://oregongardenclubs.org/pioneer/
State website
http://oregongardenclubs.org/default.htm
Club Calendar of Events
(new
spring dates added)
http://mcminnvillegardenclub.org/yearbooks/2009-10/2010-11calendar.htm
Winter Issue of Pioneer Press Online
http://oregongardenclubs.org/pioneer/images/documents/Winter%20-%20Jan%202011%20online.pdf
How to Improve Clay Soil:
http://www.garden.org/ediblelandscaping/?page=201101-how-to
Dormant sprays
can help reduce pests & disease in home orchards
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=767&storyType=garden