Jun 27, 20237 min read

BCMGA Biweekly Update from Paula Lupcho, President June 27, 2023

🍓 President’s Message

Apologies to all for the flurry of emails on Saturday and Sunday, but both topics are very important to the future of the Master Gardener Program. I encourage all BCMGA members to participate in the interview process for the candidates being considered for the Statewide Master Gardener Coordinator position. Those who participate will have the opportunity to provide feedback on both candidates. Refer to the email on Sunday for further details. The interviews are on Tuesday and Thursday (this week).

On Saturday, I sent an email about the status of funding for the OSU Statewides. In that email, I neglected to attach the contact information for Benton County Legislators. You will find that information at the end of this Update. Please take the time to let your legislators know that their support of continued service level funding is appreciated and that you support the special initiatives described in HB 5025.

The OMGA Conference Joy of Gardening on July 7-8, is only 11 days away. Registration for the Joy of Gardening closes this Friday, June 30. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to hear great speakers and meet other Master Gardeners from around the state. The lucky winners of the scholarship raffle are trainees Ken Anderson, Eric Beal, and Diane McLemore and MGs Lisa Borgerson, Deborah Hobbs, and Leslie Hauser. Classes count toward continuing education hours. https://omga.org/mini-college-2023/

The annual open house for the Oak Creek Center for Urban Horticulture is also coming up on Thursday, July 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is a family friendly event and open to the community. BCMGA will also host a plant clinic table. We need 1 certified Master Gardener to help. The sign up information is under Volunteer Opportunities. More information about this event is available on the following link.

https://events.oregonstate.edu/event/oak_creek_center_for_urban_horticulture_open_house

Special Announcement

🍓 The BCMGA Board has approved special allocation funding to other local 501(c)(3) organizations for special projects or donations. Applications must be submitted by a continuing Master Gardener and are due by July 31. The organization or special project must be aligned with the goals and purposes of BCMGA. For a copy of the application and criteria, contact Jana Tindall for more information (jl.tindall@comcast.net ).

BCMGA Committees may also apply for special allocations if you missed the first round earlier this year.

Trainee News & Opportunities

🍓 Congratulations to the trainees who have completed their hours for the trainee year and to those of you who are closing in on that goal! Please remember to enter your hours in the Volunteer Reporting System (VRS) https://mgvrs.extension.oregonstate.edu/ . This is very important. It will be a great help to mentors as they help you reach your goal. If you have questions about where to log your hours, contact your mentor or Paula Lupcho atpres.bcmga.board@gmail.com .

BCMGA News

🍓 Summer Tours: A Message from Lynn Trimpe, Vice President.

On Wednesday, July 19, at 9:30, we will have the opportunity to walk through the Inspiration Garden in Independence. This demonstration garden is part of the 7-acre Mt. Fir Park, formerly the property of the Mt. Fir Lumber Company. Inspiration Garden has been a project of the Polk County Master Gardener Association (PCMGA) since 2013 and has nearly two dozen different garden areas. The newest addition is the Peace Garden, which centers around a gingko tree grown from a seed that survived the bombing of Hiroshima. Other garden attractions include specimen trees, plants for pollinators, an Asian garden, roses, a recreated oak savannah, vegetable gardens and more.

Volunteers from the PCMGA will be available to lead folks through the various garden areas and talk about the project. Inspiration Garden is located at 799 F St. in Independence.

Directions and parking: If you are traveling north on Highway 99W, turn left at the stop light in Monmouth, so you are traveling east on Main Street. Follow that into Independence and turn south (right) on 7th Street. At F Street, turn right again (west) and travel about one block to a gravel parking lot for Mt. Fir Park, where Inspiration Garden is located. There is also a small parking lot if you continue south to G Street and turn right. There should be one handicapped spot and three other parking spaces (if compost gets moved by then).

More information:

A description of Inspiration Garden appears on the Independence city website: https://www.ci.independence.or.us/mt-fir-park-inspiration-garden/

A video produced by the city of Independence tells the story of Inspiration Garden: https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tVP1zc0TM4pKKgoMLEwYLRSNagwNUk2MDCxTDQ3SDFOTDOztDKoMDc1NTOyNDAzSkoyTDFLS_YSyswrLsgsSizJzM9TSE8sSknNAwAOehZZ&q=inspiration+garden&oq=Inspiration+Garden&aqs=chrome.1.0i355i512j46i175i199i512j0i512l4j69i61l2.14185j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:ace1d292,vid:VKLS0iq5RJg

Volunteer Opportunities

🍓 NEW. OMGA Silent Auction at the Joy of Gardening Conference, July 7-8. There are various jobs available on Saturday, July 8. Parking is free on Saturday.

Closers (2:00-p.m. – 2:30 p.m.): End the bidding, circle the winning bidder, bring bid sheets to Silent Auction committee. Each closer will have 2 tables.

Pick up (3:15-4:15 p.m.): Collect items from table for winning bidders. Need 4 people.

Carry out (3:15-4:15): Assist winning bidder to get items to their car. Need 2 people.

Contact Paula Lupcho. (plantdoc2746@gmail.com or 541-929-3050)

🍓 NEW. Oak Creek Center for Urban Horticulture: The Annual Open House is Thursday, July 13, 9:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. One certified Master Gardener is needed for the BCMGA Plant Clinic table at this event. Three trainees have also signed up to be at the BCMGA table. Log hours as Plant Clinic-Direct. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0a45a9ac29a7f85-benton35#/

🍓 NEW. Oregon State Fair. Multiple shifts 8/24-9/5. Come share your garden love and lore with fairgoers in Salem. Our activity and info booth will be located inside the air-conditioned lobby of the Farm & Garden/Floral Building. A fair admission ticket and parking pass is provided. Sign up here. Make sure to include your county so tickets can get to your Extension office. Record as ‘Plant Clinic’ in VRS.

🍓 Demo Garden: Volunteer at the Demonstration Garden. Every Wednesday 9:30-11:30 a.m. Come when you can, as often as you can, and help grow vegetables, herbs and fruit. The Demo Garden is on the south side of the Benton County Fairgrounds. Enter through the driveway for Benton Oak RV Park on 53rd St and go to the left. Wednesday work hours count as indirect--garden maintenance. Event staffing, which occurs through the summer on weekends and during the Benton County Fair count as direct--plant clinic. For more information, text or call Rosalind at 541 908 3991. Email rslnd55@gmail.com

🍓 PLANT CLINIC at Farmers Market (Corvallis): Certified Master Gardeners are needed to work during the shifts listed below. Time of clinic table is 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Contact Debbie Lauer directly by calling 541-929-7544 or texting 541-602-3138.

Available dates are:

· Wed., Sep 27--1 certified Master Gardener needed

Mentors, if you would like to work at the plant clinic with your trainee, contact Debbie so that she can accommodate you.

🍓 NEW. The Public Seed Library's next event will be a special event plant clinic on "Summer Crop Questions & Planting for A Fall/Winter Vegetable Garden", July 29 from 9:30 am - 1pm. Contact Jill Farrow at jillsfarrow@gmail.com

🍓 Master Gardener Desk (Office Plant Clinic): The office is open and there are questions coming in from the public. Volunteers are encouraged to return to the desk, in particular certified MGs comfortable with the pH meter and the microscope are needed. Sign up for shifts to answer client questions or practice skills. You can either work at the desk or in the Extension conference room if you’d like more space.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0a45a9ac29a7f85-benton38#/

Find more opportunities on the Benton Volunteer Opportunities Page.

Continuing Education Opportunities

Each program year current Master Gardener volunteers are asked to recertify by completing 10 hours of approved continuing education and 20 hours of volunteering. This ensures that your horticultural knowledge stays current. All the opportunities in this section count towards that goal. Try to get one hour of CE on a diversity, equity, or inclusion related topic. And please make sure to record these hours in VRS!

🍓 Registration is now open for The Joy of Gardening Conference hosted by OMGA. This year, the event is on July 7-8 at CH2M Hill Alumni at OSU. This is a close and convenient location to get continuing education hours, meet MGs from around the state, and hear some great speakers. You might even find something special at the Silent Auction!

You can register at:

https://omga.org/mini-college-2023/

🍓 Webinars. Opportunities from across the state are listed on the OSU Master Gardener Program’s event page. Record each as one hour of continuing education.

🍓 New OSU Publication. Gardens are for Everyone. Read and write a summary paragraph of how you will apply this as a Master Gardener volunteer for one hour of continuing education.

🍓 New OSU Publication. Grow Your Own Peppers. Read and write a summary paragraph of how you will apply this as a Master Gardener volunteer for one hour of continuing education.

🍓 Anytime. Recordings of Zoom Master Gardener training from Curry County with guest lecturers from OSU and beyond, are available for any volunteer to take as continuing education. Trainees are also welcome to watch and supplement their classes. More links are being added weekly, see the current list log on to the attached website.

https://oregonstate.app.box.com/s/byt9dzhkbzilax3h33zqkhg1aemsx5rq

Community Opportunities

🍓 Public Seed Library: Seed Donations to Public Seed Library: If you've started your summer crops and have left over seeds, individual donations of open and partially used vegetable, herb, and flower commercial seed packets packed for '22 and '23 are needed now to restock the Public Seed Library seed rack, and can be donated any time at the Corvallis Library Circulation Desk.

Extension News

Need help finding information from Extension? Here are some important links to access information.

Have a gardening question? Get help at:.

https://extension.oregonstate.edu/mg/linn-benton/have-gardening-question

Interested in gardening classes and events?

https://extension.oregonstate.edu/mg/linn-benton/have-gardening-question

Want to join Master Gardeners? Contact Benton County Extension Office, 541-713-5000
Want to partner with Master Gardeners? Please contact Brooke Edmunds to get connected: brooke.edmunds@oregonstate.edu

Current volunteers:

Need information about training, volunteering, or logging hours? First check the Volunteer Sourcebook and website.

https://blogs.oregonstate.edu/activebentonlinnmg/

Need a sign-up, promotions, or printing for an upcoming event?
- First, use the Event Checklist to collect all needed information
  - In Benton County send to Nicole Mason Martin: nicole.mason@oregonstate.edu
  - In Linn County send to Laurie Gibson: laurie.gibson@oregonstate.edu
Need to update your contact information? Need a badge?
- Contact Laurie Gibson: laurie.gibson@oregonstate.edu
All other questions:
- Please contact Brooke Edmunds: brooke.edmunds@oregonstate.edu