11

...for discerning weeders

August, 2014 An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication

MEET MR. MORRILL by S. Olsen

Justin Smith Morrill was denied a college

education because his father couldn't af-

ford to send all his sons to college and did-

n't think it was fair to send just one. He

was born in 1810 and raised in the tiny

town of Strafford, VT where his father was

a blacksmith. He was very bright and be-

came a self-educated man but considered

the lack of a college education a great dis-

advantage. He was forced to leave school

at 15 and became devoted to learning. One of his

favorite subjects was architecture. He designed

his Gothic revival-style home and his gardens,

mapping out an intricate pattern of flower beds,

other plantings, fruit gardens, and orchards. He

was so successful in business that he intended to

retire at age 38 as a gentleman farmer, reading,

watching over his investments, and experiment-

ing with horticulture.

His retirement was cut short in 1854 when his

political friends pressed him into service, send-

ing him to Washington as one of the state's rep-

resentatives. He served in the House until 1866,

during which time he sponsored the ground-

breaking legislation that bears his name. When

President Lincoln signed the Morrill Land Grant

Act in July 1862, it was the beginning of a pro-

found change in the college and university sys-

tem in this country, creating equal opportunity.

Until then, most colleges were private, expen-

sive, and elite beyond the reach of most young

people despite their abilities. Traditionally,

training was focused on doctors, lawyers, teach-

ers, military leaders and clergy. Justin envi-

sioned a system of colleges where the practical

skills needed by farmers, mechanics and other

laborers would be taught. He proposed estab-

lishing at least one college in each state. Others

had similar ideas but did not gain traction until

Justin became the advocate.

The Morrill Land Grant Act established that

each state would be granted 30,000 acres of

federal land for each sena-

tor and representative

from that state. The sale of

that land would provide

endowments to be used to

operate the colleges. The

land grant bill had a time-

line of 5 years but be-

cause, in 1862, the nation

had other priorities it took

much longer for many of these colleges to take

root. In 1867 legislators passed the Hatch Act

which provided money for agricultural research

stations in each state. In 1890 the Second Mor-

rill Act passed, again with Justin's sponsorship

(by then he was a Senator). It increased the en-

dowments for the land grant schools and re-

quired that, in order to continue to receive fed-

eral support, each state must fulfill the bill's

original intent, by allowing blacks to attend

their institution or by creating and supporting

equally a black land grant college. The 1890 act

also required that land grant colleges be co-ed.

Today, every one of us has access to the re-

sources created through the land grant system

and has access to the cooperative extension ser-

vice, created in 1914, when Congress passed the

Smith Lever Act.

Justin served on the Board of Regents for the

Smithsonian from 1883 until 1898. He served

on the city's Board of Public Works and under

his tenure underground sewers were installed,

streets were paved, parks were built, and

60,000 trees were planted. He successfully ad-

vocated for the construction of a separate Su-

preme Court building and for a new Library of

Congress building to replace the original de-

stroyed during the War of 1812.

Justin passed away in 1898. At that time he was

the longest serving legislator in American histo-

ry.

INSIDE THIS

ISSUE

News! 2-3

Plants on

Vacation

4

Weed of the

Month

5

Updates and

Info

6

Coordinator’s

Corner

7

Wildlife

Happenings

7

There’s an

App for That!

8

Invasive

Update

8

Recipe

Roundup

9

Out and About 10

Book Review 11

We Need You! 11

Last Word 12

HAVE YOU

LOGGED ON TO

VMS LATELY?

DON’T FORGET TO KEEP

YOUR HOURS UP TO DATE!

22

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

Click on the images to open up a link to the

specific event page.

The board of Okaloosa County Master Gardener Association have voted to participate in this Home

Show. This is not the BIA fall home show that we normally participate in. That show has been cancelled

for Fall 2014. We will have our normal booth, inside the area where we will host garden seminars, inside

the foodcourt room. Our area will be separated by pipe and drape, although we will have walls on two

sides.

In addition, we have the opportunity to host a plant sale out on the patio if we decide we want to take that

opportunity. As big, or as small as we wish. The booth, the seminar room, and the patio space are offered

to us FREE OF CHARGE. If we incur some incidental expenses for a microphone (we have a hand held

microphone being provided, along with speakers), our Outreach budget will cover the expense. Here’s what I need from you now….

SAVE THE DATES. Contact Joyce or Jane to participate!

We would like to have gardening seminars with the following schedule –

Saturday 11:00 am __________________________

1:00 pm __________________________

2:30 pm __________________________

Sunday 12:30 pm __________________________

2:00 pm __________________________

Would you like to present a gardening topic relative to the fall? Last spring our seminars were packed, standing room only. Let’s

do that again. We’ll have seating for about 40. This is an outstanding opportunity to reach alot of people in our county. Please let

me know what topic and time you would be interested in.

Please save the dates to help work at the booth and/or the plant sale. We’ll have 3 hour shifts, including shifts on Friday to set up

and Sunday after the show closes for take down. Jane Montgomery is in the process of redesigning our booth, and that will be ex-

citing to come see. We will need approximately 3-4 master gardeners to work each shift, and I want to be sure we have “old timers”

assisting our newer master gardeners with the difficult questions, and that we all have fun and learn.

The Outreach Committee will be organizing the booth and the seminars. We will not be responsible for a plant sale, but if someone

else in the OCMGA or the nursery staff want to organize that, we’ll certainly help get the volunteers lined up, include the infor-

mation in our press releases, and be as helpful as possible to ensure our OCMGA success. Please let me know if you are interested

in making that happen.

You can view the Home Show Flyer on our member web site: http://www.ocmgamembers.org/uploads/home_show.pdf

You can find even more events by going to the member web site:

www.ocmgamembers.org and click on the calendar page. Events

throughout the Panhandle are listed. Simply click on the event

and you’ll see all the pertinent information!

33

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

Click on the images to open up a link to the

specific event page.

District Master Gardener Conference

October 9th

(pre-conference tour)

October 10th

conference

Milton, FL

More information will be posted as it be-

comes available

The Annex is Open!

The office will be open on Friday’s and

the nursery is still going strong!

Schedule a Friday to head on down and

lend a hand!

44

So you're off on vacation soon and you're busy making plans for

the care of your pets, your newspaper and your mail during your

absence. But before you go shopping for your new cruise ward-

robe, you might also want to give some thought to the needs of

your plants while you're away. A little advance planning can

help them survive your temporary absence in good shape. Ideal-

ly, you can get a neighbor or friend to check on your yard and

your indoor plants and trouble-shoot any problems for you. If

that's not possible, there are still some steps

you can take to help ensure that you don't re-

turn to a plant disaster scene.

LANDSCAPE: For flowering plants, do some

deadheading before you leave. This will cause

the plant to send much needed water and nu-

trients to buds that have yet to bloom so that

you will have flowers to enjoy when you get

back. Harvest all ripe or nearly ripe fruits and

vegetables. This will keep the plant producing well while you're

gone. Do a thorough job of weeding. Weeding eliminates a major

source of competition for your landscape plants’ nutrients and

water that may be in short supply during your absence. And

there's the side benefit of not being overwhelmed by weeding

chores when you return to the harsh reality of real life after vaca-

tion.

“Water your landscaping thoroughly before you leave” isn't real-

ly helpful advice for many of us with very sandy, porous soils,

particularly during hot, dry spells. We can 'water thoroughly'

and have plants that are dangerously wilted after just a day or

two of our intense summer heat. And we also know that summer

thunderstorms are often of the hit-or-miss variety, leaving your

yard either soaked or dry as a bone. This means that some type

of automatic irrigation is a necessity, whether you use a sprinkler

system, drip irrigation or a combination of the two. Be sure your

system is equipped with battery back-up so that it will continue

to function in the event of one of our frequent summer power

flickerings or outages. Also be sure your system has a rainfall

sensor that will turn it off if we have adequate rainfall while

you're gone. This not only makes you a better steward of our

precious water resources, it will also help ensure your plants

don't drown from over-watering as they might if they get dou-

bled up on water via both rainfall and irrigation.

CONTAINERS: Your outdoor container plants are sure to need

some extra help if you're going to be gone more than a few days.

If there is no one available to hand-water them, consider invest-

ing in an inexpensive drip irrigation system with a timer. I have

a couple of these so-called 'patio' systems with micro-emitters

and each one can water at least 10 containers. They're very

adaptable to almost any situation. You can buy complete kits or

buy individual parts and create your own system. They're not

difficult to set up. I have used both the micro-emitters as well as

the lines of tubing that comes with drip holes already punched at

various intervals, according to your needs. The pre-punched tub-

ing is easier to use from the standpoint of the initial set-up. I

thought it might clog more readily than the micro-emitters but I

have not had that problem with it.

Before you leave, be sure your outdoor containers drain well in

case heavy rainfall and/or your irrigation system provide more

water than needed during your absence. I've

found that a cut-to-fit piece of fine screen mesh

in the bottom of each container does a great job of

permitting good drainage while keeping the soil in

the container where it belongs. And the screen

doesn't add to the weight of the container, anoth-

er plus if your tend to move your containers

around often. Mine might as well be on conveyor

belts since I frequently get inspired with better

arrangement ideas for them. :)

Move your containers to a shady spot before you leave. This will

slow down the moisture loss so your plant sitter needs to make

fewer visits. It also increases the odds that your plants will sur-

vive if you don't have a plant sitter.

Self-watering containers are available. These containers have a

reservoir at the base of the pot to hold water for the plants to use

for several days to two weeks. In theory, they're a great idea but

in practice I haven't had a great deal of success with these. For

whatever reason, the reservoir hasn't drained well and I've end-

ed up with a muddy mucky soil mess in the reservoir and plants

that sit with unhealthy 'wet feet' and no obvious ability to draw

the needed moisture up from the reservoir. I've ended up re-

moving the reservoir and just using them as regular containers.

You may have better luck with them than I've had.

HOUSE PLANTS: Plants kept indoors require special consid-

eration. Before leaving home, place your house plants in a room

which receives indirect sunlight to keep them from drying out

too quickly. And, just before you depart, be sure to water your

house plants thoroughly. They should be fine for a few days. If

you are going to be gone longer than that, you might consider

placing your houseplants in the bathtub and covering them

loosely with plastic to minimize evaporation. I have actually

done this with house plants, back when I used to grow house

plants. The bathtub method works but does create kind of a

mess in the bathtub. After we moved to Florida there have been

large dogs, kids and persistent whitefly infestations all conspir-

ing to keep me doing all of my gardening outdoors. If you are a

proficient indoor gardener, you might be interested in these

more detailed suggestions for caring for house plants while you

are away: http://www.gardenguides.com/79890-care-plants-

vacation.html

Have fun and see you in September!

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

PLANTS ON VACATION by K. Harper

55

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

WEED OF THE MONTH by L. Morris

Scleranthus annuus, commonly known as Knawel or German

knot weed is a winter annual pest.

The 1/2-inch-long leaves are narrow, almost like those of a tufted

grass or creeping phlox. It blooms in the spring and continues

most of the summer. It prefers dry, sandy or gravelly soils and is

most commonly found in the eastern half of North America and

along the west coast. It grows from a fibrous taproot. Pull or hoe

this pest out of the ground before it sets seed. It may also be con-

trolled by using a pre-emergent in early spring.

The pictures are courtesy of www.pestid.msu.edu. You can see

how the flowers are green in color and blend in with the overall

picture of the plant.

Above—Agapanthus, ginger, and pitcher plants—courtesy of B. Buckellew. To

the right—Datura double yellow—courtesy of D. Hickenbotham

66

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

UPDATES AND INFO by Editorial Staff

A reminder to check out the Master Gardener program on

Crestview Television! More programs should be getting done

very soon! http://www.cvctv.info/channel.cfm?category=The%

20Master%20Gardener&id=4430

UPDATED PUBLICATIONS

Here is a guide of the popular pepper varieties used in Florida.

This 15-page fact sheet was written by Monica Ozores-Hampton,

and published by the UF Department of Horticultural Sciences,

November 2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1244

Southern Highbush Blueberry Cultivars from the University of

Florida, Written by J.G. Williamson, J.W. Olmstead, G.K. Eng-

land, and P.M. Lyrene, and published by the UF Department of

Horticultural Sciences, April 2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/

hs1245

University of Florida Potato Variety Spotlight: 'Elkton' — This

3-page fact sheet was written by Lincoln Zotarelli, Douglas

Gergela, Kathleen Haynes, and Dana Fourman, and published by

the UF Department of Horticultural Sciences, April 2014.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1237

Mole Cricket IPM Guide for Florida. This 20-page guide will

help you identify mole cricket infestations and manage them

effectively and economically while minimizing environmental

impacts. Written by C. R. Kerr, N. C. Leppla, E. A. Buss, and J. H.

Frank, and published by the UF Department of Entomology and

Nematology, May 2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in1021

American Lotus, Yellow Lotus: Nelumbo lutea. This 3-page

fact sheet was written by Warner Orozco-Obando and Lyn Get-

tys, and published by the UF Department of Agronomy, March

2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag380

Socio-Demographic Characteristics and Concerns about Water

Quality Issues of Master Gardener Program Volunteers. This 7-

page fact sheet was written by Tatiana Borisova, Michael Smolen,

Maria Pilar Useche, Jon Calabria, Nickola Sochacka, Damian

Adams, Diane Boellstorff, Jason Evans, and Robert Mahler, and

published by the UF Department of Food and Resource Econom-

ics, May 2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe942

Managing Mexican Petunia (Ruellia simplex C. Wright) in the

Home Landscape. This 6-page fact sheet was written by C. A.

Reinhardt Adams, C. Wiese, L.C. Lee, S.B. Wilson, A. M. Smith,

and R. Freyre, and published by the UF Department of Environ-

mental Horticulture, April 2014. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ep498

INTERESTING ‘STUFF’

Did you know that you can now go fishing with a carrot? Well,

maybe not the carrot itself, but you can certainly obtain a fishing

pole that is made out of carrots. Check out Curran and how it

may be revolutionizing industry. http://

www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/curran.html

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could head out into your garden and pick and apple, peach, and pear...all from the same tree? There is such a tree. Actually there are several of them—The Tree of 40 Fruit. http://sciencealert.com.au/news/20142107-25892.html

Check out a greenhouse in a hospital! http://www.henryford.com/body_wbloomfield.cfm?id=58194

Amazing pictures from the International Mosiaculture Exhibi-tion—Summer 2013. http://myvirtualgarden2.blogspot.com/2013/09/mosaiculture-exhibition.html Not that we need any encouragement...but how about yet anoth-er reason to grow native plants in your landscape? http://www.motherearthnews.com/nature-and-environment/beautyberry-natural-insect-repellent-zmaz09amzraw.aspx#axzz38RhehYOI

TIPS AND TRICKS

Here’s a tip for you. Hate shucking corn and never getting all those strings off? Use the microwave! Take your corn and cut off the stalk end a few rows from the bot-tom (use a good, sturdy knife). Place the cut ear of corn in the microwave and cook on high for 2 minutes. Remove corn. CAU-TION it will be hot! Use oven mitts or a towel. Hold the corn by the un-cut end and give it a shake. Ta-Dah! A freshly shucked ear of corn, with no silks. The kernels will be softer but the corn won’t be cooked through. The original link (and video) is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35TsFXYfpB0

Idio(t)-syncracies

What if there were no hypothetical questions?

Rum rascal Cajun

hibiscus courtesy

D. Hickenbotham

77

COORDINATOR’S CORNER by L. Williams

As I’m writing this article, I’m at a National conference. It’s the

annual meeting and professional improvement conference for

Extension Agents involved with agriculture. Most land grant

universities from around the country are represented. I was able

to attend part of a presentation given by P. Allen Smith. It was

informative and interesting. He spoke very knowledgably and

positively about Master Gardeners and was very familiar with

the history of the Land Grant University system and Extension. I

attended a presentation provided by Bayer Advanced concern-

ing honey bees. Bayer Advanced/Bayer Crop Science has been

proactive with their efforts to protect bees. You may want to visit

their Bee Care website by going to beecare.bayer.com and click-

ing on “Bayer Bee Care.” The speaker talked about the new EPA

Bee Advisory Box that appears on some pesticide labels. You

need to become familiar with this. Here is a link with more info.

(http://www2.epa.gov/pollinator-protection) We’ll be talking

more about this. By the way, the speaker was a Master Gardener

prior to becoming employed with Bayer Advanced.

Update on Office Faculty (Agent) Positions

Thankfully, the 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent posi-

tion was posted by UF and we had a good number of applicants.

Those are going through a screening committee. And, at some

point in the near future, I’ll travel to Gainesville to assist with the

interviews. Also, the Family & Consumer Sciences Extension

Agent position is currently posted and will follow the same for-

mat as the 4-H position.

Update on Extension

Annex and Nursery

Thankfully, work was

completed at the Exten-

sion Annex and Master

Gardeners and Home

and Community Educa-

tors were able to begin

the job of moving back

in and setting up shop

on July 10th. Unfortu-

nately, On Saturday, July 19 as I was en route to a National con-

ference, Andy Donatelli contacted me and informed me that

there was a leak in the Extension Annex auditorium. At the time,

we were having heavy rain. It is an older building. The soggy

saga continues… (Ed. Note: As of this printing, the Annex is

open for business!)

Reminder on Upcoming Event

Don’t miss the “Month-by-Month” (A N.G.C. Tri-refresher and

Advanced Master Gardener Training) on August 14 & 15 in Mil-

ton. This will count toward your MG recertification hours. De-

tails are available at http://wfrec.ifas.ufl.edu/events, including

the registration form.

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

WILDLIFE HAPPENINGS courtesy of http://www.wec.ufl.edu/

August continues the traditional Florida summer afternoon rains

and sticky heat, but the wildlife don’t mind and there are some

stellar activities for you to see. Here are some interesting things

to look for in August:

Birds:

First flocks of blue-winged and green-winged teal arrive to

winter on Florida lakes and wetlands.

Yellow warbler migration begins.

Mammals:

Two-year old black bear cubs will wean from their mothers.

Short-tailed shrews will begin a second round of breeding for

the year.

Reptiles:

Young sea turtles are hatching so watch where you’re walking

on the beach.

Insects:

Thousands of great southern white butterflies can be seen mi-

grating through coastal areas.

Invertebrates:

Corals along the Keys spawn at the full moon.

88

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT! by M. Stewart

In case you missed them, there are a couple of new ‘apps’ out

there. The first one is a new mobile website, Landscape Pests. It

is intended to support the diagnosis and information content for

common insect and mite pests found in Florida. Users can

search for pests using menus based on plant host or damage

symptom(s), as well as by common or scientific name.

http://pest.ifas.ufl.edu/

The other ’app’ is the Florida-

Friendly Landscaping Plant

Guide. This is a subscription

based app and is available for mo-

bile and web with a 1-year sub-

scription for $1.99. Visit: https://

ffl.ifas.ufl.edu/plants

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

NO CHOPSTICKS WITH THIS INVASIVE by D. Stever

Ligustrum sinense (Chinese Privet)

Chinese privet was introduced into the United States from China

for ornamental planting. Having escaped from cultivation, it is

now naturalized throughout the southeastern United States. The

greatest threat posed by this species is large-scale ecosystem

modification due to its ability to successfully compete with and

displace native vegetation. Chinese privet plants mature rapidly

and are prolific seed producers. They also reproduce vegetatively

by means of root suckers. Once established, Chinese privet is

difficult to eradicate because of its reproductive capacity. http://

plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_lisi.pdf

Several species of privet have been introduced in the US since

the 1700s, as garden plants and hedges, for which they are very

effective. These non-native shrubs, which are difficult to distin-

guish from one another, include: common

privet (L. vulgare L.), glossy privet (L.

lucidum Ait. f.), Japanese privet (L. ja-

ponicum Thunb.), and Chinese privet (L.

sinense Lour.). Chinese privet is thought

to have been introduced in 1952. The

Ligustrum species easily escape cultiva-

tion to invade adjacent areas, where they

can form dense monoculture thickets. As

a result, they now are established

throughout the eastern part of the coun-

try.

The privets as a group are so widespread

that they have been omitted from US and

regional noxious species legislation. In the

southeast, Chinese privet is included in

all state invasive species lists. It is consid-

ered one of the top ten weeds in AL and

GA, a severe threat in KY, SC, and TN, a Category One invasive

plant in FL, and is included in the state invasive plant lists of MS

and VA. http://www.gri.msstate.edu/ipams/species.php?

CName=Chinese%20privet.

Alternative plants for the landscape if you prefer native would be

Florida anise (Illicium floridanum) and Firebush (Hamelia pat-

ens). Non-native substitutes include Camellia (Camellia spp.),

Chinese Holly (Ilex comuta) and Sweet Viburnum (Viburnium

odoratissimum)

Gargoyle, n. Olive-flavored mouthwash.

99

RECIPE ROUND-UP

No Pectin Peach Jam—courtesy of L. Vanderpool

It is time for jam and jelly making. Stone fruits are readily avail-

able and not too expensive right now so take advantage of this

plethora of fruit to make biscuit and PB & J toppings. Many of

these preserves may also be used as topping for that evening

treat of ice cream or toast, scones, muffins and other breakfast

items.

8 large ripe peaches (about 4 lbs.)

3 cups sugar

3 tablespoons lemon juice (fresh or bottled)

1/2 cup water

Peel peaches. (An easy tip: submerge peaches in boiling water for

one minute, remove and cool in ice water. Peels should slip off or

may be removed easily.) Halve peaches and remove pits then

slice and dice into 1/2 inch chunks. Mix peaches and lemon juice

in a large bowl and let set for a few minutes.

Place peaches and lemon juice in a food processor and pulse to

reduce peaches to small chunks. Do not liquefy.

Place water and sugar in a large pan over high heat. Completely

dissolve sugar stirring constantly. Add peach puree to sugar wa-

ter, bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium. Cook for 10-12

minutes until peaches become clear. Skim foam occasionally.

Remove from heat and immediately put in 1/2 pint jars. (Jam

will be very thin when put into jars but will thicken and set as it

cools and, after a period of several days, will become thick.)

Should make about six 1/2 pints.

Cool on your kitchen counter and store in refrigerator until used.

(Be daring and add your favorite spices to jams and jellies. I add-

ed 1/16 teaspoon of clove powder and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

extract to this recipe. You could also try ginger or allspice for

enhanced flavor, depending upon your taste preferences.)

Honey Oatmeal Raisin

Coconut Chocolate

Chip Cookies—courtesy

of M. Stewart

Here’s a recipe that guar-

antees that you will not be

able to let these cookies sit

around very long!

Ingredients:

½ pound butter, softened

½ cup sugar

1 cup honey (local if you can get it!)

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. salt

1 cup coconut flour

½ cup all-purpose flour

2 ½ cups old-fashioned uncooked oats (NOT quick oats!)

1 ½ cups shredded coconut

1 cup raisin

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Make sure you have a rack on the top

slot of the oven. Yes, I said the top slot.

In a large bowl, using a hand mixer (or beater), beat together

butter, sugar, honey, eggs, vanilla, baking soda, cinnamon, and

salt until combined and creamy. Add the coconut flour and all-

purpose flour and stir until well blended. Add the oats, shredded

coconut, raisins, and chocolate chips and stir well.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a parchment lined cookie

sheet.

Place into oven and bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden

brown. Cool on cookie sheet for at least 10 minutes before re-

moving to a wire rack to cool. These cookies are soft and will fall

apart if you try to move them before fully set up. Makes about 2

dozen cookies.

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

DON’T FORGET!

We now have a full calendar on our member web-site! Click on the event and any additional infor-

mation will be posted for that event. This calendar is updated constantly so check back often.

www.ocmgamembers.org/Calendar.html

Do you have a favorite recipe?

Send it in!

1010

OUT AND ABOUT

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

Congratulations to

S. Gerber and T. Whitmoyer

on achieving their Master

Gardener status!

Night blooming cereus courtesy of

D. Hickenbotham

2013 Continued Training Conference group photo. Hey!

How’d that other guy get in there?

R. Fultyn, M. Stewart, E. Fabian, L. Fabian and one very

large chocolate chip cookie.

1111

BOOK REVIEW by M. Stewart

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014

Pests In and Around the Florida Home

SP 134

This handy guide gives you a colorful, comprehensive look at

insects and other pests that may creep, crawl or fly in and

around your Florida home. From raccoons to roaches, from pill-

bugs to pigeons, this fully-illustrated book covers the biology,

habitat, and control of the most familiar pests in the sunshine

State. Includes sections on:

Biting and bloodsucking arthropods

Stinging and venomous arthropods

Pests around food

Pests of fabric and wood

Occasional invaders

Turfgrass pests

Pests of landscape and ornamental plants

Vertebrate pests

326 pages. Price $30.00

Available at the UF/IFAS Bookstore

NOTE: Region-specific sets of Invasive and Non-native plants

are discontinued! They will be available while supplies last for

$20.

Northwest Florida set, SP 437

WE NEED YOU! by Editorial Staff

Hopefully you noticed

our little boxes of humor

scattered throughout

this edition. Thank you

to S. Berry for volunteer-

ing to be our Joke Edi-

tor. We had a few more

pictures submitted as

well as a new article

writer! Thank you!

This newsletter is for

YOU! The editorial staff

tries to keep things up-to

-date and provide you

with the latest news that

we can get our hands on.

However, it is a lot of work to come up with the ideas and arti-

cles.

With that in mind, we are sending out the call for action. If you

don’t think you would be able to write an article, send us an idea

that you may have. Is there something that you are curious

about? Is there something you want to know more about? Send

those ideas in! If you do write an article, don’t sweat the small

stuff. We are more than happy to provide editing assistance if/

when it’s necessary.

We still need someone who would be willing to tackle our

monthly book review. As you may have noticed from past issues,

the book does not always have to pertain to horticulture. A book

that interests you just may interest someone else!

Found something on the world-wide-web that you think would

interest our group? Send that in as well!

The more submissions we get, the better The Compost Pile will

be! You may email your submissions, ideas, and photos to our

editor at mgstewart2008@yahoo.com. Please make sure that

your pictures are in a jpeg format. Thanks!

1212

Your member site:

www.ocmgamembers.org

The Foundation for the Gator

Nation.....An equal opportunity

institution.

Have pictures or an idea for

an article?

Send it in!

Articles and pictures are

always welcome.

The other night I was watching TV

and there was a short interview with Sir

Ian McKellen. For those of you who

don’t know this actor...you really

should. At any rate, he was talking

about a not that had been returned

with a jacket he had sent to the dry

cleaners. The note read: “We are sorry

to return something that is not perfect.”

Sir Ian stated that he loved that senti-

ment so much he intends to have it on

his tombstone!

As for me, I got to thinking about

some of the crazy stuff that folks have

put on tombstones. There are books

written on the subject (I have a couple

of them...yes....I’m weird). I wondered

why write something you won’t see?

Well, you might know what is written

on there if you came up with it and if

you happened to upset your relatives

too much you might NOT want to know

what was written there. Still, why do

folks do it? It has to be so everyone else

can see it. So really, those epitaphs are

written for anyone else who happens

along.

After such deep ponderings I took a

stroll out to the front yard, mostly to

bring up the garbage can that had been

forgotten and I noticed the front gar-

dens. These gardens are trimmed neat-

ly, adhere (mostly) to guidelines that

the HOA sometimes enforces and gen-

erally are fairly bland. Don’t get me

wrong they look nice. The plants are

cared for and there is a nice balance of

color and texture.

What I noticed was that you really

cannot see all of this from INSIDE the

house. You see all the design features

from the street! In other words, the

garden/landscape out there wasn’t nec-

essarily done for me, it’s for whoever

happens to pass by.

Compare that to my back yard. No

grass (I ripped it out), pie wedge

shaped planting areas, garden

gnomes...and all of it visible from IN-

SIDE the house. Look out any window

and you may come face-to-face with a

deranged gnome or perhaps a gargoyle.

Anything goes in the back yard.

It’s still relatively neat and the plants

are cared for but if a garden says some-

thing about its creator...the straight-

jackets may be headed for my address!

Folks have seen my back yard and

most are polite enough not to call me

crazy (well at least not to my face).

What matters in the back yard is that

what goes in there pleases me...if I

don’t like it...it goes. The purple flamin-

go makes me smile so he stays...the

Spanish needle...I’m still fighting to rid

myself of that thing.

And I thought again of the sentiment

that Sir Ian liked so much...’we’re sorry

to return something that is not perfect.’

Is anything ever really perfect? Should

we even try to achieve perfection?

I know folks who are constantly re-

doing their homes and yards because

‘it’s just not perfect.’ I had a relative

who knitted. I actually never saw her

finish anything because she was always

ripping out the work...’it’s not perfect’

she would say.

Perhaps, just perhaps, we should not

think in terms of perfection. Maybe,

our goal should be to achieve and strive

for what makes us happy. What do we

want out of our gardens? Our lives?

What is a realistic level of satisfaction

that we need?

Like the tombstones, I’ll keep the

front yard in a state that keeps me out

of the doghouse when it comes to the

HOA folks and the backyard I will keep

in its happy state of imperfection.

Next time you’re in the neighborhood

stop by for a glass of tea and a seat on

the back porch. We’ll keep the purple

flamingo company and enjoy and im-

perfectly, perfect time.

M. Stewart —Editor

S. Farrell , K. Harper and S.

Berry—co-editors

LAST WORD By M. Stewart

An Okaloosa County Master Gardener Publication August, 2014