Of Leaf & Limb

“ Promoting education in horticulture and the environment”

November 2010 Volume 8, Issue 11

November 3, 2010 HCMG monthly meeting is at 1 p.m. at Kerr

County AgriLife Extension Office.

We will Vote for officers and review our

year.

Contents

Reminder Message Calendar of Events September Minutes Groasis Waterbox Bed Bugs Medicinal Plants Build a Patio Nov. Veg. Garden Flower Gardening, Citrus Greening Fall Plant Exchange, Website of Month

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

(Editor’s note: no president’s letter this month since Chris is out of the country) Welcome new members; reminders to all... Our 2010 class of Hill Country Master Gardeners is setting a good pace with seven former interns meeting their volunteer requirements to become certified master gardeners. In October, we welcomed Jim Latham, Anne Graves and Arlene Tilley to the ranks of new members. Previously certified from the class of 2010 are Steve Comer, Jan Grimes, Jackie Connelly and Joyce Studer. A reminder note to all certified master gardeners: Unless you are on leave of absence for 2010, your 25 volunteer and six educational hours for 2010 must be turned in by the end of 2010 if you are to remain certified. To make a big job as easy as possible for the timekeepers, please turn in your hours monthly. If you are turning in hours for more than one month, we ask that you report each month's hours on a separate sheet, and use the official reporting sheets available in our office or online.

To access the online report sheets, log onto the website and scroll down to the "members only" page. Ask any officer if you don't know the pass-word. Dues of $18 for 2011 are due. Please make your checks to HCMG and note that it is a dues check. Mail your check to HCMG, P.O. Box 290464, Kerrville, TX 78029-0464, or bring a check to the November meeting. You may also leave a check in the treas-urer's box in the HCMG office at Kerr County Extension. Members on leave of absence must pay dues to remain on the membership roster, and must notify HCMG in writing if they wish to continue a leave of absence for 2011. Please mail your request to the attention of the executive committee at the above mailing address. Interns who are not certified by the end of 2010 will not owe dues until the following year.

New MGs Anne Graves and Jim Latham received

their certificates at the October meeting.

Calendar of Events by Betty West

(Attendance at events other than Master Gardener meetings is optional; events are listed for those wishing to attend other educational offerings.)

Be sure to call and confirm event.

October 19 - Kerr Cactus and Succulent Society meets at 7:00 p.m. at Butt-Holdsworth Library. Dave Gutman will address “Surprise Succulent Gardens.” Visitors welcome.

October 23 – The Garden Conservancy hosts “Open Day” in San Antonio, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. $25 for all six gardens. For a list of the gardens and locations, http://gardenconservancy.org/opendays/events.pl?ID=394&SortBy=&State=

October 26 – Fredericksburg Chapter of NPSOT meets at 7:00 p.m. at Gillespie County Historical Society Bldg. in Fredericksburg. Travis Gallo of Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, will discuss “The Impact Non-native Exotic Plants Have on Our Texas Eco-systems.” Visitors welcome. 

November 2 – Kerrville NPSOT meets at 2:00 p.m. at Riverside Nature Center. Florence Oxley will address “Attracting Birds to Your Garden with Native Plants.” Visitors welcome

November 6 – Cibolo Nature Center in Boerne is hosting an “Ethnobotany Workshop.” From 9 a.m. – noon. Fees/information http://www.cibolo.org/calendar/event/ethobotany-workshop

November 10 – Fredericksburg Garden Club meets at 2:00 p.m. at the Memorial Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall, 607 N. Milam. Carol Seminara (HCMG) will present program on “Glass Flowers of the Harvard Museum of Natural History.” Visitors welcome.

November 13 – Cibolo Nature Center in Boerne is hosting a “Rainwater Harvest Workshop.” From 9 a.m. – noon. Fees/information http://www.cibolo.org/calendar/event/rainwater-harvest-workshop-8

November 16 - Kerr Cactus and Succulent Society meets at 7:00 p.m. at Butt-Holdsworth Library in Kerrville. David Lipscomb will discuss “H20 Conservation.” Visitors welcome

November 3 - HCMG monthly meeting at 1:00 p.m. We’ll be voting on our 2011 slate of officers

and reviewing our activities for the past year.

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Debbie Russell’s 2010 Canning Class: L-R Seated: Bernadell Larson and Carol Seminara. Standing:

Betty West, Pat McCormick, Doris Tyler. Back row: Lizzie Bispo (Al Bispo's wife), David Buchen, Jackie Connelly and

Dorothy Buchen. They canned green beans and pears.

Pink-edged sulphur butterfly (Colias interior) on a Gregg's mistflower (Conoclinium greggii).

Photo by Carol Brinkman

HCMG Monthly Meeting Minutes October 6, 2010

The general meeting was called to order at 2:10 pm by Secretary Eileen Haden in the absence of the president and vice-president. September meeting minutes as posted in the newsletter were approved with no additions or corrections. Financial Report was presented by Treasurer Roy Eliff, listing $14,227 in MG working account and $57,711 in sav-ings/scholarship account. Income breakdown for the last 10 months showed $2,981 from plant sales and $2,130 from rain barrels. Announcements: Eileen Haden: 1. Dues of $18 are due the end of Novem-ber. Checks may be made out to “HCMG”. Mail to Roy Eliff at home or the office or leave them in his box in the office. 2. Get your time sheets in and make sure your hours are up to date for membership. 3. Two new projects have been approved for volunteer hours – one at Tivy High School through the Harvest Partners grant and Steve Comer has agreed to coordinate this project. Contact him if you are interested in this service to the community. The second approval is for the butterfly garden and rainwater collection area next to the Harper Library in Harper and Terri Debusk is coordinating this effort. Contact her if you live nearby and want to assist in this community effort. Rumor has it that some places in Harper have soil. 4. Bids are being sought for our name badges to be made locally with our new logo. Additional info forthcoming. New Business: Newly certified Master Gardeners – Anne Graves, Arlene Tilley, and Jim Latham (2010 Class) and Jan Spencer (2009 class) were announced. Congratulations!! Inquiry: does anyone knows the status of William Joseph. His certificate is available.

Carol Hagemeier reported that the Medina Garden Patch has been able to serve salads to the school children from their garden. 70 salads were prepared and sold out.

Anne Brown presented the slate of officers for consideration for next year and also opened the meeting for nominations from the floor. President Chris Seifert, Vice President Barb Elmore and Treasurer Roy Eliff have agreed to a second term. Jackie Connelly has agreed to serve as secretary. If you are interested in serving in an office, or if you know someone who is capable and interested, please contact MG Anne Brown before the November meeting voting.

Volunteer Coordinator Kathy Russell now has Kathy Zeliff to assist her as co-chair when she is trying to coordi-nate volunteers with needs. Signup sheets are being passed around for the Kerr County Fair booth on October 22-24, and the Pecan Show in December. Volunteers are needed to assist or co-chair the program coordinator and another to write a monthly article for the newsletter on vegetable gardening. Anne Moss is circulating a signup sheet for MGs to man the phone desk now that the Interns are finished with their phone qualifications. Dorothy Buchen is circulating a signup sheet to volunteer to help in the demo garden on Tuesday, October 12th.

The call went out for volunteers to ramrod this year’s Christmas luncheon, on Wednesday, December 1st. Julie Bartosh agreed to be in charge with Cindy Anderson, Dorothy Buchen and Jane Clint helping out. More Announcements: Anne Brown announced that there were 100 contacts made at the last Market Days with 60 plants and one rain barrel sold. Thanks to Vickie Killeen and Marilyn Pease for their invaluable assistance with the greenhouse plants. Expect a general email about purchasing left over plants so the green-house can be shut down, cleaned and repaired. Anne thanked all who gave citrus clippings for the A&M research project. Anne also announced that she has received an alert from the Forest Service about increased fire risk anticipated this winter and reminded all to practice fire safety.

June Sher, Mentoring Chair, circulated a signup sheet to volunteer to be a supportive mentor to a 2011 student. Only half the number needed volunteered last month. It is such a vital job for the fitness of our organization.

Fall Plant Exchange will be held next month after the meet-ing. Contact Pam Bresler if you are interested in participat-ing. It is time to divide all those spring bloomers and share with friends.

Julie Bartosh and her committee have met with San Saba designers and have some examples of caps and shirts with HCMG’s new logo on them. As soon as the Executive Committee approves the items, information will be made available to everyone for purchasing. All will be under $20.00. Start hinting for Christmas! The meeting was adjourned at 2:24 pm. Next meeting will be held on November 3, 2010 at 1:00 pm and voting will be con-ducted for next year’s officers. Respectfully submitted, Cheri Bolden

Of Leaf & Limb Page 3

Groasis Waterbox

by Bernadell Larson

Are you tired of watering your newly planted trees and shrubs for the first two years? Pieter Hoff of The Netherlands invented a box that

waters plants without irrigation. His invention, the “Groasis Waterbox” was named one of Popular Science Magazine’s top 10 inventions of 2010. He used to grow and export lilies, and his idea came to him while tending the lily fields at night. He noticed that the first droplets of condensation on the leaves occurred well before midnight. The plants lost heat in the night air and the cool surface of the leaves sucked water droplets from the warm, humid air. Again we see how efficient nature is and, if we can mimic nature, we have the best solution of our problems.

Today many of the world’s population live in areas where water is scarce or of poor quality, or on land that has been overgrazed, overproduced, defor-ested and cannot support crops. Pieter designed his Waterbox with this in mind – simple and no energy required (other than to produce the box). The Waterbox is designed to cool faster that the night air to get that water condensation. The box not only captures condensation; it also captures rainfall and feeds it into a tank within the box. A wick in the tank slowly releases water into the soil. This is supplemental water and just enough to help the sapling; thereby encouraging the plant’s root system to grow downward to reach water in the soil. After a year the plant is strong enough with a good root system that the box can be removed and used to plant another tree. They project that the Waterbox can be used for ten years, before it breaks down. Hoff “quit his day job” and has spent millions of dollars and seven years on designing, producing and testing the Waterbox. First he took twenty five waterboxes to the Moroccan Sahara desert, and after a year, eighty-eight percent of the trees had green leaves, while ninety percent of the trees planted and watered the traditional way (once a week) died. A California winery has committed to dry farming three acres with more than six hundred waterboxes. Another test was started in April, 2010 in Matallana near Valladolid in Spain. He

has ongoing testing projects in different parts of the world: Kenya, Ecuador, France, Egypt, Pakistan, and Uganda. A variety of trees will be tested, including fruit trees to help with the hunger problem. This invention seems to be aptly appropriate for the Texas Hill Country where we have only 2 to 6 inches of top soil before the plants reach the lime-stone cliffs and only average 28 inches of rainfall a year. The following link will take you to an infographic on how the Groasis Waterbox works http://www.groasis.com/page/uk/principle.php

Pieter Hoff with one of the waterboxes in a California winery.

The box is circular with a 20 inch diameter and a 10 inch

height. Water condenses on the box's cool top, collects in a tank, and drips into the soil to hydrate the plant.

Of Leaf & Limb Page 4

When tough tree and shrub "volunteer seedlings" (AKA weeds) just won’t give, grab onto the stem with a pair of old pliers and tug. This works well on woody plants.

Revive dirty window screens with automotive plastic and vinyl protector (Armor All, as an example.) A light wiping on both sides of the screen will have your screens looking like new again.

Pour boiling water on sidewalk cracks to get rid of weeds without using chemicals.

Betty West

MUCH ADO ABOUT BED BUGS

by Marilyn Pease

In recent months, the media has been flooded with dire reports of increases in bed bug infestations. While it is true that bed bug oc-currences have increased since

1995, the most important thing to remember about them is that they do NOT vector any known diseases and, therefore, are not a physical threat to our health only to our psyches because of stigma and embar-rassment. It is amazing that mosquitoes, which are vectors for a number of dangerous diseases, are not looked upon with nearly the same loathing as the tiny (4-5 mm) bed bug. A member of the family “Cimicidae”, the common bed bug which infests humans and other warm-blooded animals (like our dogs and cats) is Cimex lectularius. The species has been around a very long time and has even been mentioned in ancient Greek literature. They have been known colloqui-ally by such fanciful names as mahogany flat, crim-son rambler, heavy dragoon, chinche, and redcoat. Researchers feel that the recent resurgence may have been caused mainly by the decrease in DDT use and the increase in international travel as bed bugs are still prevalent in Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. Bed bugs were quite common in the US before WWII and were pretty much eradicated through the

use of DDT after the war. Other factors may be in-creased resistance to pesticides, increased immigra-tion and people moving back to urban areas. The common bed bug is not totally nocturnal but does feed mainly at night coming out of its tiny hid-ing places in your bed. It must have a blood meal between molts or instars. The feeding mechanism is rather ingenious as it is a two-tube system, one tube puts an anticoagulant into its victim and the other tube removes the blood. The bite will produce itch-ing and, rarely, an allergic reaction in sensitive indi-viduals. Over-the-counter cortisone creams will re-lieve the itch. Old folklore would have you sleep with the lights on or put cups of kerosene under the legs of the bed. Unfortunately, conventional insecticides are not ef-fective against bed bugs. If you suspect you have picked up bed bugs in your travels, call a pest con-trol company. On a happy note, cockroaches are their natural predators as well as some ants. And remember the old children’s rhyme, “Night, night. Sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite”. Electron microscope photo of bed bug from Wikipedia.

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Medicinal Plants

by Judy Fleming

St. John's Wort

St. John's Wort (SJW, Hypericum perforatum L) has long been used and enjoyed as an herbal tea. Its flowers and stems have also been used to produce red and yellow dyes. The first recorded use of SJW for medicinal pur-poses dates back to ancient Greece, and it has been used ever since. SJW was also used by Native Americans externally as an antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, and astringent. SJW is one of the most studied herbs with many positive results as an antidepressant. St John's Wort is widely known as a herbal treat-ment for depression. In some countries, such as Germany, it is commonly prescribed for mild de-pression, especially in children, adolescents, and where cost is a concern. A study by the German medical insurance system conducted a clinical trial investigating the antidepressant effects of SJW by comparing it to fluoxetine. The study concluded, "…the two treatments are essentially equipotent in their antidepressant effects." Furthermore, the researchers asserted that there was "…no evidence to suggest an advantage in treating these patients with fluoxetine." However, other studies by pharmaceutical companies disagree. Currently studies are underway for the use of SJW for alcoholism, ADHD and fibromialgia. Recent evidence suggests that daily treatment with SJW may improve the most common physical and be-havioural symptoms associated with premenstrual syndrome. A research team from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) published a study entitled, “Hypericum perforatum. Possible option against Parkinson’s disease”, which suggests that this plant with antidepressant properties has anti-oxidant active ingredients that could help reduce the neuronal degeneration caused by the disease. St. John's Wort, indigenous to Europe, is a yellow-flowering, perennial herb with extensive, creeping rhizomes. It has been introduced to many temper-

ate areas of the world and grows wild in many meadows. The common name comes from its traditional flowering and harvesting on St. John’s day, June 24th. The traditional use of the plant was to ward off evil by hanging plants over a reli-gious icon in the house during St John's day. SJW is generally well tolerated, with an adverse effect profile similar to placebo. Women who use the contraceptive implant Implanon are advised not to take SJW as it reduces the implant's effective-ness. It can cause photosensitivity and can be toxic to grazing animals when eaten. Sources: Wikipedia: Schrader E. Equivalence of a St. John's wort extract (Ze 117) and fluoxetine: a randomized, con-trolled study in mild-moderate depression. International Clinical Psychopharmacology 2000; 15(2): 61-68.] Universidad Complutense de Madrid: Hypericum perforatum. Possible option against Parkinson’s dis-ease.” HCMG has provided this material for your information. It is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your primary health care provider.

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St. John’s Wort

Building a rockin' patio

By Barbara Elmore

November is a good time to make plans for next year's projects -- a DIY patio, for example. Not that we spent great chunks of time planning ours. We did a seat-of-the-pants plan, having a general

idea of how to proceed and stopping at intervals to figure out next steps. But perhaps our experiences can help others. Although I use the word "we" a lot, this patio came about with the help of a sister who enjoys working on this type of project as much as I do. My spouse has enjoyed the ambience of the finished product and offered ideas, but we both knew who the builder would be. First lesson: When you are going to build your own patio, it pays to know People. My sister knew whom to get the rocks from ("I think the owner is a cousin," she reported). And we

have several cousins who are experts in the dirt business. When my birth-day rolled around in April and I noticed spring had already been here several weeks without a

patio to celebrate on, I gave myself a birthday present guaran-teed to jump-start construction: a pile of rocks in an inconven-ient place. First, I took a tour of the rock yard while I asked the possible cousin about how hard the rocks were. I chose her "rattlesnake" pattern, a tan rock in a mid-price range. "Why are they called that?" I asked. The rock yard owner didn't know, but she advised buying three pallets for my roughly 10-foot by 20-foot patio, and she was close.

Also helping were the cousins who know dirt. One told me how much sand I needed for a base 2 inches deep. The sec-ond told me how much crushed granite to hold the rocks in place. Both estimates were on target. Second lesson: Read how-to articles and ask advice from someone who has done it. The best instruction I received came from a fellow gardener who built a patio years ago with her husband. "Weed cloth, edging, sand and crushed granite, in that order," she told me. Third lesson: Enlist the help of a joyful worker. At 9 a.m. May 18, a month after the rocks arrived, my sister and I commenced building. For three days, we hauled wheelbarrow loads of sand from the driveway to the back yard. Then we began the real fun -- placing rocks. Row by row, we placed them and checked each row horizontally and vertically with a level. Some days she could not come and I laid rocks by myself, only to have us take them up the next day because they were too small. On June 8, I laid the last rock, ordered a yard of crushed gran-ite, and put it down with the help of my sister. We swept it into the cracks between the rocks, and watered it down. It settled and we applied another layer the next day. By June 28, the patio was finished. My husband and I repainted the black edging with a color that blends better with the rocks. The patio is sturdy enough for furniture, includ-ing our rocking patio chairs. The rocks do not move. I've enjoyed many morning newspapers there while the dogs and squirrels play chase. See the resources section of the HCMG website for detailed directions on building your own patio.

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Before

Base is down

Laying the stone

After

The November Vegetable Garden

By Christine Millar Plant transplants Transplants of greens and cole crops can still be planted out. Protect the young seedlings and mature broccoli heads from frosts by covering with old sheets or row cover at night. Harvesting Root crops may need thinning now to give the remaining roots room to develop. Harvest broccoli while the heads are still tight after they have reached their full size. Side shoots will continue to develop and can be harvested over a 6-8 week period so keep them growing after the main har-vest. Cauliflower only has one head so remove the plant after harvesting. Cauliflower and broccoli last for a good while in the fridge or you can blanch and freeze them if you have too much.

Harvest peas when the pods reach almost full size. Quality deteriorates if the peas are left too long and they become starchy. A delicious pea soup can be made with the starchy peas. Blanch the peas and freeze on trays till you get enough to make a pot.

Kohlrabi can be harvested when the swollen base of the plant is 2” in diameter. Feeding and watering Continue to feed leafy vegetables and cole crops regularly with a complete fertilizer to keep them growing through the cool winter. Maintain adequate watering to keep the plants growing. Our fall can be dry so dig down and check that the soil is moist about 1 inch under the surface. Continue to rake lightly around the vegetables. This will break up the crust of dry earth that forms on the surface and allow the mois-ture to penetrate. Improve the soil after harvesting Remove the plant when it has finished and dig in partially finished compost and sprinkle of green-sand. I like to cover it with a bit of shade cloth to protect those microorganisms and worms so they

can keep on working over winter to break the soil down ready for spring planting. Cover crop fallow areas Rape, cereal rye and Austrian winter peas make good winter cover crops and should be sown early in the month on resting areas of the vegetable garden. Keep these cover crops trimmed back to 5-6 inches with hedge clippers. Leave the trim-mings on the bed to compost down, feed and pro-tect the soil over winter. You will appreciate the shorter length when it comes time to either dig in the cover crop prior to planting next year’s crop or smother it with thick cardboard. Clean up spent crops Freezing temperatures may come this month and finally kill off beans, squash, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and other warm season crops. Plants that are no longer productive or have been finished off by a frost or freeze should be removed from the beds. Dispose of the dead vegetable plants by either bagging them for garbage collection or putting them through a hot composting method to cut down on overwintering pests. Free mulch for next year You can still pick up bags of leaves left at the curb-sides for garbage collection in the urban areas where there are plenty of mature deciduous trees. Store the full bags in an out of the way place at home for summer mulching next year. The plastic

bags tend to get very fragile and split open over the course of the summer in full sun so store them someplace you won’t mind the mess if that happens. I often place them temporarily around the perimeter of the winter vege-

tables to give some wind protection. Next spring these full bags can be placed around young tomato transplants to protect them from late frosts. Beneficial rat snakes and lizards love the even temperature underneath the bags so be aware of these inhabitants when you move them around. Invest in a good reptile field identification guide to help you sort out which species of snakes you can peaceably timeshare your vegetable garden with. You can also store the leaves by emptying the bags into large wire bins with a wire top over it to prevent the wind from blowing them out.

Of Leaf & Limb Page 8

“Our fall can be dry so dig down and check that the

soil is moist about one inch under the surface.”

November Landscape Gardening Tips

by Kathie Marlow

• November begins with clean up time in the lawn and garden. It is also time to set out some new plantings. All classes of rose bushes can be planted during these next few weeks. Carefully protect the roots from drying before planting and then water well after planting. You should nour-ish the old rose bushes with some bone meal. Be sure to secure your climbing roses and other vining plants to their supports as winter winds can severely damage unprotected plants. Be careful to clean away all infested foliage from around the bush to prevent further spread next year.

• It is also time to move and set out deciduous

trees and shrubs, but it is too late for ever-greens. It is important to hydrate those ever-green plants, as they will lose moisture during the winter months.

• When your fall chrysanthemums have lost their blooms and died back, cut them back to within two or three inches of the ground. After the leaves fall from deciduous plants, it is time for those plants to be treated with a dormant spray. This spraying will help control over-wintering insects and diseases. Be sure to continue to watch for bug or disease damage throughout the garden and take the necessary steps to control the problem now or put it on your to do list when spring rolls around, which-ever time is appropriate.

• Keep the leaves raked from the lawn. They should be composted or you can just mow over them and turn them into mulch, which adds important nutrients back in to the lawn. After you have finished your last mowing of the year be sure to run the mower until you run out of fuel before cleaning it off and storing it. It is also a good time to clean, sharpen and oil your garden tools to keep them from rusting and ready for storage.

Don’t forget to continue to feed the birds and squirrels that you enjoy watching in your yard!

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CITRUS GREENING EDUCATIONAL CLINIC AT

AGRILIFE EXTENSION OFFICE

by Pam Bresler The Texas Hill Country may not have a large citrus industry like South Texas, but many residents are

experimenting with cold-hardy citrus, like the "Changsha" tangerines from China, and overwintering pot-grown Key limes and Meyer lemons in greenhouses. However, the experts at Texas A&M are warning of a new citrus disease which is now being tracked in Texas. This disease, Citrus Greening, is caused by a bacterium, Candidatus Liberi-bacter asiaticus, which is spread by an insect, the Asian Citrus Psyllid. The insect is only 3 mm long and holds its body at a distinctive 45 degree angle. Citrus Greening can adversely affect the production, quality and appear-ance of citrus trees. The disease slashes citrus production by up to 20 percent, destroys the fruit's economic value, and can kill citrus trees. This disease has not been found in Texas, but has been detected in Florida (2005), Louisiana (2008) and Mexico. The insect which vectors the bacterium causing Citrus Greening has been observed in Hondo and Uvalde. Some of the symptoms are blotchy mottling and yellowing of leaves, twig and branch die-back, and bunched, narrow leaves. These small yellowed or mottled leaves growing in a tight arrangement are known as "rabbit ears." Fruit is stunted and may appear lopsided or asymmetrical. Citrus Greening can also cause higher than normal fruit drop. The internal flesh may have an orange-brown discolora-tion. The fruit may have a sour or bitter flavor. On October 27, from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., the Kerr County AgriLife Extension will sponsor an educa-tional clinic on Citrus Greening at the Extension Office. Residents are encouraged to bring in leaf speci-mens (5 leaves), deformed fruit or insects in a plastic bag. Specialists will examine specimens for Citrus Greening, as well as identify insect, disease and nutritional problems of citrus plants. Participants will receive educational material on Citrus Greening. For more information on the clinic, call the Agrilife Extension Office at 830-257-6568. To read more about the Citrus Greening Project at Texas A&M, check these websites: http://www.texascitrusgreening.org/ http://saveourcitrus.org/what-are-the-diseases/citrus-greening/

H I L L C O U N T R Y M A S T E R G A R D E N E R S

FALL PERENNIAL PLANT EXCHANGE Several members have asked to have a Fall Perennial Plant Exchange, since they enjoyed the spring exchange. We've scheduled one for Nov. 3, after the HCMG meeting. As you divide your overgrown perennials, start potting up your excess plants. Water them and give them appropriate light until our November meeting. Also, be sure to label your plants. You can use short lengths of old mini-blinds, or even plastic cutlery with a file folder label attached. If you want to be really fancy, you can print the info on the labels with your computer. We are primar-ily interested in perennials, but if you have extra fall vegetable seedlings, they would be appreci-ated as well. Spring-blooming perennials such as bearded iris, phlox, daylilies and dianthus should be divided in the fall. Iris and daylilies can be brought bare-rooted if the leaves are trimmed to about 4". A friendly reminder: make sure your plants are free of insects and diseases. Isolating new plants is always prudent, whether from a friend or a nursery, until you are sure you aren't adding prob-lems to your garden. Please do not bring invasive plants like ligustrum or chinaberry trees. To make it more fun, we will draw numbers and you will choose your plants based on the number you draw. We will keep going through the numbers until all the plants are "adopted." For more infor-mation, contact Pam Bresler at bregal@ktc.com.

Website of the Month

by

Carol Brinkman

A while back Barbara Elmore asked members for their favorite

plants. She received so many answers that her

one newsletter article became three. If

you are avid about your

favorite, you might be interested to

know if there is a "society" dedicated to that plant. Iowa State University

has compiled a list of all plant-related societies with links to each website. You'll probably

want to skip right past the American

Golf Course Designers Society,

but there are societies ranging from begonias to water lilies and everything in

between. You will find the list at

http://www.extension.ias

tate.edu/Publications/

Hill Country Master Gardeners 2010 Executive

Committee Chris Seifert - President

Barbara Elmore - Vice President Eileen Haden - Secretary

Roy Eliff - Treasurer Randy Simmons - Ex-officio Advisor

Roy Walston - C.E.A. Advisor

Committees Archivist: Ida Luckey

Demonstration Garden: Dorothy & David Buchen, Chairs

Education: Debbie Russell, Chair

Greenhouse: Vicki Killeen & Marilyn Pease, Chairs

HCMG Office Manager: Judy Simmons

Horticultural Inquiry: Anne Moss

Information: Betty West

Jr. Master Gardener Program: Sandy Martin, Chair

Market Days: Ron Smith II, Chair

Mentors: June Sher

Nominations: Anne Brown

Programs: Penny Scroggins

Public Relations: Carol Biggs

Record Keeping & Volunteer Hours: Sharon Johnson &

John LaRoche

Intern Records: Ida Luckey

Scholarship: Judy Fleming, Chair

Speakers Bureau: Kathy Lewis

Technology: Cindy Anderson

Volunteer Coordination: Kathleen Russell & Kathy Zeliff

Website & Newsletter Webmaster - Carol Brinkman Web Assistants - Anne Moss

& Julie Bartosh Newsletter Editor – Eleanor Baldwin

Assistant Editors - Betty West & Kathie Marlow

Columnists - Christine Millar, Marilyn Pease, Barbara Elmore &

Judy Fleming Environmental Reporter -

Bernadell Larson Submissions to baldwin@ktc.com

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Lee Fry and Anne Brown pulled the dead smoke tree from the front garden at the

extension office by using a chain hooked to Anne's truck. It came out lickety-split.

Photo by Marilyn Pease