Post on 08-Feb-2020
Cooking with Squash, Dan Froehlich, Chef, St. Norbert’s College 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, September 28, 2016 Visitors Center, Green Bay Botanical Garden
Dear Fellow Gardeners,
I cannot believe that fall is just about here.
First, I want to thank Maxine Cashman for letting us have her yard for the picnic. What a great time again! Thank you, Maxine.
Our committee worked very hard for the upcoming year. I believe we have a very good budget, but we will still have to cut some corners yet.
Barb Vandersteen will get the election put together, and the
hope there is a good attendance. I also would like to see if you can bring a friend. This month we will have Dan Froehlich talking on cooking squash. Dan is from St Norbert College and a very good chef.
This is a short message, but keep gardening!
Your President, Carl Christensen
8/24/2016 Minutes
Regional Meeting
September 8 Committee Mtg.
2
Officers and Chairpersons
Club/Member News 3
Garden Club Schedule
Learning in Retirement Is Now
Lifelong Learning
Swanstone Gardens Day Trips
and Classes
GBBG Events
4
NWTC Scholarship Winner
Harvest Banquet 5
Rototilling Your Organic
Garden: More Harm Than
Good?
6
More About the No-Till
Method of Gardening 7
YMCA Project 8
Lighten Up! 9
Tiller Advertisers 8-10
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Tiller
The September 2016
Refreshments Betty Cox Sue Rohan
Barb Vandersteen
From the President . . .
programs sure look great for the next year.
We also now have the fall banquet coming up. So as soon as we can get all the information ready, sign up early.
Thinking about some of the garden vegetables, I have heard that the Big Zak tomato is the best so far. Some say the peppers did not do too well. Mine did not do good at all, nor the pickles.
At our September meeting, we have a lot to discuss so I
Plan Ahead! Sept. 17—Large
Produce Weigh-in at the Downtown Saturday
Farmers Market.
Oct. 8—Sunflower and Pumpkin Weigh-in at
the Downtown Saturday Farmers Market.
Come to learn about cooking with squash! Guests always welcome.
PAGE 2 Til l er
2017 Planning Meeting: This will be held at
Marsha May’s home on September 8th at
6 p.m. Committee members will work on the
budget, programs for 2017, and nominations
of officers for 2017.
Large vegetable weigh-in: It will be held at
the farmers market on September 17th. Ritalyn
Arps is chairing this event. Patti Nellis and
Scott Casperson will be handing out flyers at
the GBBG Art Festival to announce the event.
Announcements: The YMCA on Huron Road
would like us to help them out with planning
their flower beds around their buildings. A
thought for a 2017 meeting. (Editor’s Note:
see p. 8 for photos of the site.) Carl
Christenson informed us that Rock Gardens
have raised their dinner prices. Our meeting
was adjourned, and Diane Nighorn won the
door prize. We then had a picnic with pulled
pork and a pot luck of many dishes from our
members. Thank you, Maxine, for opening up
your home and yard to us.
Agnes Schussman, Secretary
Tonight’s meeting was held at 6 p.m. at
Maxine Cashman’s home. President Carl
Christenson opened the business meeting with
approval of July’s minutes, and Betty Cox
gave the treasurer’s report. She stated that we
received $256 from National after the final
results from our convention.
Silver Trowel Awards: Scott Casperson
thanked the committee for all their help
viewing and judging the nominated yards.
Winners will be contacted and invited to our
banquet.
Fund Raiser: The Family Art Festival is
being held September 10th at the GBBG.
Scott Casperson, Perry Sieloff, and members
who wish to help out will be selling photo
cards and mums (200 mums will be coming
from Schroeder’s on consignment).
December Meeting: Due to travel, Nancy
Hamann is unable to do the Christmas
traditions program for our December meeting,
but she has us on her calendar for 2017. Diane
Garret will replace Nancy and will be featur-
ing home decorating for Christmas for our
December 7th meeting.
Meeting Minutes - 8/24/2016
September 8 Committee Meeting From Ritalyn Arps: A suggestion of
changing our meeting room from the
GBBG to the Brown County Extension
Building was looked into. The cost of
GBBG is $70/year and the Extension
is $40/meeting. Further discussion
can be done at the September
meeting.
TGOA-MGCA Regional Meeting The fall regional meeting will be hosted by the
Rochelle Garden Club on Saturday, October 8, at the
Hub City Senior Center, 401 Cherry Avenue, Rochelle.
The schedule for the day is as follows:
9-9:45 a.m. Registration (pastries, juice, coffee)
9:45 a.m. Board bus to Mighty Vine Tomato Farm
10-11:30 a.m. Tour Mighty Vine Facility
Noon-1 p.m. Lunch (mostaccioli with meat sauce,
chicken strips, house salad and dressing, breadsticks,
assorted desserts, coffee & water)
1:15 – 2 p.m. Business Meeting
2 - 2:30 p.m. Door prizes & Adjournment
The cost for the day’s activities is just $10 per person
which includes tax and gratuity. Please make your
reservation for this meeting with BCGA Treasurer,
Karen Ballweg, 8864 Greenfield Drive, Belvidere, by
Tuesday, Sept. 27. Make checks payable to “BCGA”.
SEPTEMB ER 2016 PAGE 3
Club and Member News . . . The Gardeners Club of Green Bay
Officers and Chairpersons
President Carl Christensen, 920-425-3224 cchristensen14@new.rr.com
Vice President Scott Casperson, 920-435-1780 scasperson@msn.com
Secretary Agnes Schussman, 920-327-1138
Treasurer Betty Cox, 920-468-8693 2510 Heather Road Green Bay, WI 54311-5243 bchomestead101@yahoo.com
Past President
Barb Vandersteen, 920-435-0568 bvandersteen@new.rr.com
Membership and Public Relations Ritalyn Arps, 336-0225 rarps@new.rr.com
Sunshine Ruth Goeben, 920-494-3008
Tiller Editor, Website Manager, and
TGOA-MGCA National Photography
Competition and Calendar Chairperson Shirley Winnes, 920-499-4441 sawrrw@hotmail.com
Historian Barb Vandersteen, 920-435-0568 bvandersteen@new.rr.com
Civic Projects and Fund Raising
Asparagus Sale Betty Cox, 920-468-8693 bchomestead101@yahoo.com
Silver Trowel Scott Casperson, 920-435-1780 scasperson@msn.com
Inventory Control and
Education and Plant Records
———————-Open———————-
House and Program Paul Hartman, 920-437-6831 hartmanpaul@sbcglobal.net
Refreshments Coordinators Sue Rohan, 920-336-3004 drfeelgoodmd@new.rr.com Mary Naumann, 920-866-2282 marynaumann@gmail.com
Pictured above are some of the 200 mum plants
consigned to us from Schroeder’s Flowers for the GBBG
Fall Family Art Festival. Thank you to Scott Casperson
and Perry Sieloff for sharing their vendor’s spot with us
to raise funds for the garden club by selling mums and
photo cards.
Articles for next month’s Tiller are due by
October 10. Send to Shirley Winnes at
saw301@att.net or to sawrrw@hotmail.com.
Silver Trowel Garden Evaluations
Shirley Winnes, Betty Cox, Barbara
Vandersteen, Perry Sieloff, Patti Nellis, Agnes
Schussman, Scott Casperson, and Rose Borowitz spent
Tuesday, August 16, judging the gardens nominated for
Silver Trowel awards. The photo above was taken at
Swanstone Gardens after a guided tour with owner,
David Calhoon. Stay tuned—awards will be announced
at the November Harvest Banquet.
PAGE 4 Til l er
Coming Attractions Sponsored by the Green Bay Botanical Garden
Call 920-490-9457 or see http://www.gbbg.org for complete information, reservations,
and cost about any of the following:
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay
Upcoming Schedule of 2016 Meetings
Oct. 26 Brag Night – How Did Your Garden Grow?
Dec. 7 Christmas Decorating, Diane Garret
Special Events
Sept. 17 Farmers Market - Large Produce Weigh-in
Oct. 8 Farmers Market - Pumpkin Weigh-in
Nov. 11 Harvest Banquet
Nature Printing, Sept. 20 @ 6-7:30 p.m. Rob Zimmer, Nature Writer & Photographer. We’ll gather materials from the gardens, then return and learn about fun and exciting ways to design, print, and create using items from nature. From flowers and leaves to seeds and much more, you’ll never look at nature the same way again.
Pest Control 2: Fruits & Vegetables, Sept. 22 @ 6-7:30 p.m. Lisa Stubbe, Landscape Arti-sans. Lisa will discuss local insect and diseases issues affecting lawn, landscape ornamentals, fruits, and vegetables. These discussions will be broken into two discussions. Identification of plants and their specific disease/insect pests will be discussed. Come ready to learn how to identify various stages of common pests, learn how to treat them, if necessary, and how to prevent recurring issues in your landscape. Bring leaf/plant samples to contribute to the discussion!
T-shirt Skirts, Sept. 26 @ 6-7:30 p.m. Angie Kusek Schubert, Ginger Birch. Angie from Ginger Birch will be teaching us how to sew a comfy skirt from our old t-shirts! You will need to bring your sewing machine and at least three t-shirts.
Sustainable Aquaculture Techniques Leading to CSA Production, Fertilizer Production & Enhanced High School Aquaculture Programs, Sept. 29 @ 6-7:30 p.m. Bill West, Blue Iris Fish Farm. President of Blue Iris Fish Farm in Black Creek, Bill has been conducting perch research for over 15 years. Assisted in part by SARE grants, he is converting 100% of his non-edible fish waste into an organic fish fertilizer and most recently has been awarded a grant to take his entire research program into three local high schools. Through this, he has developed pond-side tank culture which has eliminated parasitic infestations of perch and bluegill, demonstrated their growth and increased fillet yield. Learn more about this fascinating approach to afford-able aquaculture in this seminar.
Fall Floral Arranging, Oct. 4 @ 6-7:30 p.m. Angie Kusek-Schubert, Ginger Birch. Lush jewel tones, richly textured foliage and unique end of season blooms combine to create a beautiful centerpiece for your home.
Garden Talk with Larry Meiller
Wisconsin Public Radio
88.1
Green Bay
11 a.m. Fridays
7 a.m. Saturdays
Learning in Retirement Is Now Lifelong Learning Institute (LLI)
LLI is a volunteer led program sponsored by the
University of Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Division of
Outreach and Extension for adults who are
interested in learning. A membership fee of $110
per member per year includes UW-Green Bay
parking registration for one year. Information and
on-line registration is available at
www.uwgb.edu/lli.
There are numerous classes to select from
including “Plant Foliage: A Closer Look”. The
presenter is John Katalinich and dates are
November 14 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Swanstone Gardens Day Trips and Classes
Go to swanstonegardens.com
and you will find the current fall/
winter catalog of trips and
classes to keep you busy. You can learn about
basket weaving, stained glass, papercrete
pottery, soap making, rug making, stepping
stones, leaf castings, scarf dyeing, and much
more. Enroll early because these fill up quickly.
Don’t have Internet? Then call 866-9367 to
request a catalog.
SEPTEMB ER 2016 PAGE 5
Thank You Note
“I am writing to thank you for awarding me The Gardeners Club of Green Bay Scholar-ship. I greatly appreciate your generosity. I was excited to learn that I was selected as the recipient of your scholarship.
I am currently pursuing two programs and three certificates. The two programs I am enrolled in are Sustainable Agricultural and Landscape Horticulture and the three certificates are Greenhouse Grower, Organic Agriculture, and Integrated Pest Management. I will be starting my third year at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Last semester I was enrolled in 27 credits and now this fall I am finishing up my degrees with 12 credits. I plan to graduate this spring. Thanks to your generous scholarship, I am now one step closer to achieving my goal.
Outside of school, I work full-time as a horticulturalist at Northshore Golf Club, I caddy in my spare time, and I even have a chicken farm at home with 150 laying hens. I hope to continue homesteading as well have a career in the horticulture field.
By awarding me The Gardeners Club of Green Bay Scholarship, you will help with the stresses involved in paying for college and will allow me to focus on my school work. I hope one day that I will also be able to help struggling students reach their goals in Higher Education by assisting them in the same way you have helped me. Thank you.”
Kylea J. Dowland Forest Junction, WI
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay presents
Annual Harvest Banquet
Friday, November 11, 2016
Rock Garden Supper Club
1951 Bond Street
Green Bay, WI 54303
5 p.m. Cash Bar & Social
6 p.m. Dinner
7-8 p.m. Program & Awards
-Break-
8:15 p.m. Auction & Conversation
Highlights of the program include:
Silver Trowel Awards
Youth Awards—
Giant Pumpkin and Big Sunflower Programs for 2017
Harvest Auction
NWTC Scholarship Winner
We award a $300 NWTC horticulture
scholarship each year. Here is the thank
you letter from this year’s recipient:
Reservations will be taken in October when full details are available.
Til l er PAGE 6
Rototilling Your Organic Garden: More Harm Than Good? By Todd Heft | October 27, 2011 - 8:06 pm | July 4, 2016 Flower Gardening, Raised Bed Gardening, Spring Gardening, Vegetable & Fruit Gardening, www.bigblogofgardening.com
Rototilling does not benefit an organic garden in any way – it creates more
weeds and damage to soil structure and organisms that cannot be reversed.
It is tough to break our addiction to power tools,
isn’t it? Every spring I have to bite my tongue
when I hear yet another homeowner talking
about rototilling his garden to get the vegetable
beds ready for planting. Certain habits are so
ingrained in us from an early age that it’s hard
to let go.
The truth is, aside from creating a new organic
garden bed, rototilling does more harm than
good to your garden. During a growing season,
garden soil creates an intricate web of
organisms which support each other as well as
your plants. This soil food web, a sort of
biosphere beneath your feet, is destroyed or
severely damaged by the rototiller.
In undisturbed soil, passageways are created by
worms and other organisms. These tunnels
allow air, water, and the essential nutrients they
carry to travel through the soil to feed your
plants. Once rototilled, these passageways are
destroyed. Also destroyed are networks of
Mycorrhizal fungi which form a symbiotic
relationship with the roots of your plants,
helping one another to thrive. Rototilling also
uncovers weed seeds which have laid dormant
deep in the soil possibly for years. In the subsoil,
the weed seeds received no light and
insufficient warmth to germinate. Guess what
they’ll do now that you’ve created such nice
conditions for them?
Once your garden beds are established, save
yourself a lot of work and skip the rototilling.
You’ll water your garden less because the soil
will hold it better, you’ll need less fertilizer
because the established bacteria and fungi will
support your plants and you’ll have fewer weeds
because you won’t be turning deep soil upside
down.
If you haven’t already, you should consider
installing raised garden beds, which will
eliminate the need for rototilling or double
digging entirely. The least disturbed soil is the
healthiest soil and the most supportive of
whatever you plant in it.
So if you want to create a new garden bed for
spring, start in the fall. Dig or rototill the area
(just this once), layer it with cardboard,
newspaper, compost and mulch and let the
worms and their friends go to work on it. When
it’s time to plant, only work the area where you
plant your seeds and seedlings and leave the
rest of the soil undisturbed.
P.S.: For creating a new garden bed, a shovel
works wonders, and it doesn’t pollute. You’ll
also burn more calories.
And here’s more . . .
“(Rototilling)…breaks up fungal hyphae,
decimates worms, and rips and crushes
arthropods. It destroys soil structure and
eventually saps soil of necessary air…Rototilling is an extreme disturbance to fungi
important in growing annuals and
vegetables.” – from Teaming With Microbes
“If you’re starting with a compacted, heavy clay soil containing little organic matter, rototilling will improve conditions a lot. A tiller is a very efficient way to loosen and aerate severely compacted soil and to chop and mix a large dose of organic matter into it. But if you are starting with soil that has decent structure and adequate amounts of organic matter, rototilling can easily destroy the worm-welcoming environment that already exists. This is because the pulverizing action of the tiller breaks up soil aggregates, disrupts capillaries, and demolishes worm-tunnel networks.” – from The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible
More About the No-Till Method of Gardening By Greg Seaman | Posted Jan 28, 2009
Prepare the bed before adopting the no-till method.
With new garden beds you need to establish a
good, fertile soil structure before you can expect
good results with the no-till/mulch method. The
soil should be ‘double-dug’ at least the depth of
two shovel blades, and large rocks, roots and
other obstructions removed. Be sure to remove
any perennial weed roots. Amendments such as
peat, lime, vermiculite, compost or other organic
material can then be worked into the soil.
Use mulch liberally, in layers.
Mulch is an essential part of no-till gardening. A
thick layer of mulch will keep the soil from
drying out and crusting over, which restricts
nutrient and water flow to the subsoil. It also
reduces water loss due to evaporation. Mulch
will provide cover for soil insects and often
dramatically increases the earthworm popula-
tion. However, mulches can also introduce
weeds to your garden bed. For example, try to
use straw instead of hay because fewer weed
seeds are found in straw. Leaves, especially
from deciduous species such as maple, add
valuable nutrients to the soil but should not be
layered too thickly. Thick layers of leaves can
form ‘mats’ which restrict water penetration and
harbor insects. You can intersperse layers of
straw with leaves, for example, to prevent
matting.
The following lists common materials used for mulches:
Grass Clippings – Cut grass before it goes to
seed. Fresh ‘green’ clippings will add nitrogen to
the soil, which helps plants grow. If you let the
clippings turn brown, you will get the mulch
effect without adding nitrogen. (As plants begin
to fruit, nitrogen should not be added.)
Newspaper – Avoid using paper with colored
inks; can blow away in the wind.
Yard waste – Cut up any branches or woody
material.
Compost – Needs to be ‘finished’ compost so as
not to attract pests. Compost is a good early
season mulch, but as the plant begins fruiting,
you should withhold sources of nitrogen.
Hay – Good mulching material but beware –
weed seeds may be introduced.
Straw – Good source of carbon; excellent
mulching material.
Seaweed – Adds trace minerals, deters slugs.
Should be applied liberally because seaweed
shrinks considerably when dry.
Fine bark – Can be acidic. You may need to add
lime at the same time.
Wood Shavings – Avoid shavings from chain
saws or tools that leave oil residues.
Leaves – A valuable source of carbon, leaves make excellent mulch. Apply in thin layers, or
intersperse with other materials to prevent
matting. Sprinkle soil on top if needed to
prevent leaves from blowing away in a strong
wind.
Forest duff – Pine needles, twigs, woody bits are
useful, but can be acidic.
‘Top dress’ amendments.
Even a well-established garden bed will need
regular amendments added during the growing
season, and in spring and fall. Compost, peat,
lime, wood ashes and other material are easily
added to the bed without digging them in.
Spread this material around the plants where
needed, and add mulch to cover.
When planting seedlings, pull the mulch back and dig into the surface just enough to set the plant.
The depth of mulch can be only a few inches
when seedlings are first planted, then added in
layers as the plant grows. Pull mulch away from
the stems of tomatoes, peppers, and long-
stemmed plants. Beds left over winter can
benefit from mulch 12″ – 24″ in depth.
Go to http://learn.eartheasy.com/2009/01/no-
till-gardening/ to learn more.
SEPTEMB ER 2016 PAGE 7
YMCA Project As noted from the minutes, the YMCA on Huron Street
requested our help with plantings at their location. This will be
discussed at the September meeting. Carl, Barb, and Scott
visited the site. Photos of the requested areas include two
cement planters, a bed around their sign, and beds by each
side of the door.
PAGE 8 Til l er
PAGE 9 SEPTEMB ER 2016
Lighten Up! When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed. But, somehow I always had something else to take care of first, the shed, the boat, making beer. Always something more important to me. Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point.
When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass, busily snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing scissors. I watched silently for a short time and then went into the house. I was gone only a minute, and when I came out again I handed her a toothbrush. I said, "When you finish cutting the grass, you might as well sweep the driveway."
The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp.
Affiliated with The Gardeners of America/Men’s Garden Clubs of America
National website: www.tgoa-mgca.org Local website: http://gardenclubgreenbay.weebly.com American Horticulture Society website: http://ahs.org
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay was begun
in 1967 and became chartered in 1968 by
the Men’s Garden Clubs of America (now The
Gardeners of America, Inc./The Men’s
Garden Clubs of America, Inc.).
Purpose and objectives of our club:
to educate its members and the public
and to promote interest in horticulture per-
taining to home gardening,
to acquire and disseminate horticultural
knowledge in regard to materials, plans,
and ideas in connection with home gar-
dens to and for the benefit of individuals
and communities,
and to encourage and promote civic inter-
est and pride in individuals and communi-
ties, and to encourage and promote pride
in individual or private gardens, commun-
ity plantings, and parks.
Membership is extended to serious gardeners
who have a concern for the above objectives
of the organization. Membership categories
and dues for 2016 are
1. $25 per individual,
2. $35 per family,
3. lifetime: $200; $5 annual local dues.
In addition to the tiller, members receive a
national newsletter.
At the national level, a photography contest is
held each year with photographs selected to
use for a calendar, five annual $1,000 scho-
larships are presented, Youth Gardening and
Gardening from the Heart programs are
implemented, a national convention is held,
and much more.
At the local level, members are involved with
numerous community institutions through
financial support and contributions of labor
and plant materials. Silver Trowel awards are
given to recognize contributions to com-
munity beautification, four awards are given
to youth in the Big Sunflower and Big
Pumpkin contests, and much more.
Shirley A. Winnes
Tiller Editor
301 David Drive
Green Bay WI 54303
The Gardeners Club of Green Bay