Happy 4th of July to everyone! It is so hard to believe we are halfway through the year.

As I am writing this the first day of summer is just a few days away (June 21) but it

already feels like we are well into the hot, humid weather that the south is so famous

for. What great memories I have of summer as a child. I am particularly fond of the

memories of running barefoot behind my father as he cut the grass in random patterns,

eating watermelon and seeing how far we could spit the seeds (obviously that was

before there was even such a thing as “seedless watermelon”), and playing under the

sprinkler. Those lazy, carefree days are long gone and have been replaced with too

many responsibilities that make it hard to even take the time to relax during the

summer months. I have decided that this year I am going to make sure I take some time

to read at least one good book (a novel perhaps), pack a picnic lunch and go to a park,

and go to the beach and lay in the sun. It’s important that I keep my list short so as not

to feel like I have added to my list of responsibilities and was unable to do all that I

planned to do during these few months.

In the meantime I also have my gardens to keep up with. Seems like just as I finish

weeding one area it is overgrown again. Why can’t my vegetables be just as prolific?

Since moving to Mobile in 2009 I have tried to grow zucchini and have been

unsuccessful, except for the year I actually harvested two zucchini from my plants. I felt

like I had had a bumper crop that year! Tomatoes have been challenging as well. Last

year I did not have enough to even try canning them. Makes me really appreciate how

hard the farmers work to produce enough food to feed not only their family but also all

of us, especially organic growers. Along with the bugs they have to combat there is also

the heat they have to contend with. And any of you who grow your own food know

how important it is to get out early in the morning or you might die of heat exhaustion.

That is when playing under the sprinkler really comes to my mind. I love to hold the

hose sprayer up and let the water fall on me like rain. I am sure some of you do the

same thing!

Most of you will be traveling to exotic places this summer – like Florida or Louisiana.

Tim and I will be spending our summer vacation at “the swamp house”. It still feels like

a vacation home as we sit on the back porch watching the fish jump and other wildlife

flit about. We have taken the boat out on spur of the moment cruises and have often

times been the only ones out on the river. Our evening excursions are my favorite. The

air is a little on the cool side (believe it or not) and the water is like glass. Sure we get an

occasional bug in the face but it is so worth it.

Make sure you take some time to relax and enjoy the lazy days of summer. And most

important – DO NOT feel guilty about it!

Blessings,

Penny

President’s Message by Penny Claiborne

Dates To Remember

July 7- Lunch and

Learn

July 9- Wonderful

Wednesdays

July 20-24- NACAA

Conference

Mobile County Master Gardeners July 2014

Inside this issue:

Chronicles 2

MGOM 3

Lunch and Learn

Southern Region

Conference

4

Farm To Table 5

All American Fruits 6

Wonderful

Wednesdays

7

Mission Statement

Officers

8

Well over 100 people

attended the third Farm to

Table Tasting Event, held

June 9 at Five Rivers on the

Causeway. This local event

has earned a reputation for

delivering a superb evening

of unique and delicious food,

wine, and entertainment in a

serene and beautiful place.

The chefs developed a lively

competition among

themselves to create unusual

and delicious foods, including

gazpacho, blackened catfish

with cheese grits, goat

cheese ice cream, pecan pie

cheesecake, fried green

tomatoes with a fabulous

sauce, roasted pig, and much

more.

Nina Ward and her

decorating team did a great

job of using driftwood, herbs,

and plants with a coastal feel

to complement the coastal

food. The saxophone player

set the mood with his jazz

selections as the sun set over

the water and a light breeze

flowed while the guests,

chefs, and growers mingled

to share their stories. And

the growers seemed

genuinely pleased to see the

fabulous creations made

from their harvests. We are

blessed to have Master

Gardeners like Regina Gunn

and all who pulled together

to make this – some say – the

best Farm to Table Tasting

Event so far. And we are

assured that plans are under

way for the next one to be

held on the second Monday

in June 2015.

For the June Lunch & Learn

program, C.P. Winters, who

loves flowers and specializes

in daylilies, shared

information about her

garden. She is president of

the Mississippi Gulf Coast

Daylily Society and maintains

a display garden composed of

around 1000 cultivars at her

home in Hurley, MS. Her

garden received official

recognition in 2009 by the

American Hemerocallis

Society. Tours are available

from late April through July.

She said daylilies basic needs

are simply sun, water, and

food.

Maggie Lacey, Manager of

Windmill Market in

Fairhope, works with local

farmers to bring fresh and

local items to her customers.

The market is open seven

days a week, has music and

art, and uses solar and

windmill power for its

electricity. Her topic for the

program at the June general

meeting was CSA –

Community Supported

Agriculture, a concept that

emphasizes the importance

of supporting community

markets and local products.

A subscription to a CSA

(Produce Club) for three

months can provide a healthy

box of food sourced from

Mobile or Baldwin County

farms each week. As a

bonus, farmer Michelle

Forland set up a small

farmers market and sold

fresh vegetables to members.

Some three thousand people

are expected to attend the

National Association of

Extension Agents Conference

on July 19-24 in Mobile. Ellen

Huckabay, Betsy Yager and

Jane Trawick are responsible

for decorations. If you are

able to help, please contact

Ellen, Jane, or Betsy.

At its regular June meeting, our

Board of Directors voted to

award the annual horticulture

scholarship to Dillon Turk, a

Mary G. Montgomery graduate

who is majoring in horticulture

at Auburn University.

Phone line time for MG

volunteers has gone back to

four-hour shifts. More help is

needed for this very important

service to the community.

Chronicles by Nancy Adams Page 2

Michelle Forland,

daughter of Alescia

Forland of the Loxley

Farm Market, is a 21

-year-old farmer. She

grows fruits and

vegetables full time

and supplies much

of the produce for

the Loxley Farm

Market and Windmill

Market's Produce

Club.

Brenda Hayslett-Funk

pictured with Ellen Huckabay

received her certification at

the June meeting.

Congratulations Brenda!

Dianne Miller is a Master Gardener with a passion for flowers, and her garden is an

exuberant display of perennials, annuals, and flowering shrubs. We have selected Dianne

as our Master Gardener of the Month for her work to prepare her garden for this year’s

Gallery of Gardens tour. Not only did Dianne have to do all the things that any gardener

would do to get ready for the tour…but she also had to re-do most of it the week of the tour

following one of unpredictable Mobile’s weather “events” – a flood combined with powerful

hail that tattered months of her work. That the tour guests could see only rare remnants of

that storm is a testament to the work Dianne did that week. And those of us who enjoyed

her garden on the tour are so glad she didn’t let the weather have the last word, because

her garden was a floral celebration of the first order. From the roses that greeted us at the

mailbox to the front flower island, the kitchen garden that led us to the intimate back yard--

once a swimming pool, now a quiet spot to sit and enjoy, this gardener’s love of flowers is obvious.

And speaking of the swimming pool-turned-flower garden in her back yard, that is a project worthy of some explanation.

When Dianne tired of maintaining the pool, she took a summer to convert it, and the conversion went something like this:

Knowing that drainage would be critical, she drained the pool and then cut out the liner by hand with scissors, before

taking a hand hammer and hammering out the thin concrete base below. Then came the several tons of fill dirt (which she

did have a crew bring in, thank goodness) followed by the planting top soil which she then began to amend with mulch over

time. The result is beautiful and stands as proof that no one is stuck with a pool they no longer want. All it takes is the

quiet determination of a Dianne Miller!

Dianne and her husband are both from Pensacola (where they met in the

charter class at the University of West Florida) and they followed his career as

a systems analyst to Homestead, Tampa, and then Mobile where they settled

in 1979. Diane retired in 2004 from a career as a teacher, ending at

Allentown Elementary.

Dianne became a Master Gardener in 2005 and has had an active career,

serving on the Board of Directors, mentoring interns on many years, and

participating in everything from the Greenery Sale to the Master Gardener

booth at Festival of Flowers. She also enjoys volunteering her time to others in

landscaping projects, and has helped both family members and neighbors

landscape their own gardens.

When asked what she likes best about being a Master Gardener, her answer

was “being surrounded by people who share a love of gardening” and also

having the chance to help other people with their gardens. And when asked

what she would like to see for the future of Master Gardeners, she said she

would like for us to find a way to reduce the loss by attrition of our membership following the intern year.

Dianne was raised on 5 acres in Pensacola where the family always had a vegetable garden, but she is not certain where

her love of ornamentals and flowering plants originated. She remembers going into the woods and pulling up wild flowers

and planting them in her yard as a child, and she shared a story that one of her elementary teachers gave each student in

the class an old-fashioned Four O’Clocks to take home, and Dianne nurtured hers along to maturity – and still includes

Four O’Clocks in her own garden. Though she claims to not know where her love of flowers began, I’m sure the

accumulation of small experiences such as this contributed.

Beyond that, I suspect that some are fortunate enough to recognize the role played by the beautiful in life, and Dianne is

one of those people. Not everything must serve a utilitarian purpose or have a specified function. Dianne intuitively knows

this truth. In her quiet and unassuming way, she goes into her garden armed with the tools of the garden artist, and she

creates. Sometimes, Beauty is enough.

Page 3 Master Gardener of the Month-May 2014-Dianne Miller by Brenda Bolton

Brenda Bolton with Dianne Miller

Lunch and Learn

Page 4

A “First Mondays” program presented by Mobile County Master Gardeners,

a program of the Alabama Cooperative Extension System

Monday, July 7, 2014

Noon to 1 pm

Where: Jon Archer Center, 1070 Schillinger

Road N., Mobile, AL 36608

Bring a friend and a lunch. Free. Drinks are

provided.

Presenter: Amelia J. McGrew, Regional Extension Agent

Specializing in Food Safety, Preparation and Preservation.

Topic: “Canning and Preserving”

For more information: 251-574-8445 or www.aces.edu/Mobile/mg

Amelia McGrew

The East Baton Rouge Master Gardener Association of the LSU AgCenter's MG Program is proud to host the

2014 Southern Region Master Gardener Conference. When gardening enthusiasts from Texas to Virginia

converge on Louisiana's capital city, they will be greeted with riveting speakers, entertaining tours and a

trade show that promises to offer those 'one-of-a-kind' items.

This event will bring together master gardeners, vendors, horticulture professionals and others with a

common interest in all aspects of gardening, the environment and plant sciences. The 2014 Conference

Committee is grateful to all who have made this conference possible through sponsorships, in-kind gifts

and hundreds of volunteer hours from our members.

Please join us in beautiful Baton Rouge from October 21st through October 24th at the Crowne Plaza

Hotel. Check back often for updates! Hope to see you there! Www.southernregionMGconf2014.com

Page 5 Farm to Table

Paula Johnson tries a pork taco. Martha Harris, Carol Eskridge, Joe Eskridge,

Ben Harris, Mary Ann Days

Catherine McLeod waits

for fried green tomatoes.

This little piggy made tacos.

President Penny Claiborne with

husband Tim and Tom Rigdon.

Greeting

Committee

Susan

Morrison,

Genie

Schneider,

(back )

Ellen

Huckabay

and James

Miles

Cheesecake!

Vicki Lager serves up gazpacho.

Page 6

Wonderful Wednesdays at Bellingrath Gardens & Home

July 9, 10:30 am - 2:00 pm

SUPER WEDNESDAY – The Tropical Paradise Garden with Summer Bulbs and

Heirloom Bulbs for Restoration Gardens by Brent and Becky Heath from Brent and

Becky’s Bulbs.

A Special Invitation to: Mobile & Baldwin County Master Gardeners

We are very pleased to welcome Mr. Brent Heath from Brent and Becky’s Bulbs in

Gloucester ,Virginia to our Wonderful Wednesday Super Program on Wednesday, July 9,

2014. Brent and Becky’s Bulbs is one of the leading bulb nurseries in the United States. Please

join us to learn how to grow and maintain summer blooming bulbs that will survive our

humid, hot summers and how to use wonderful heirloom bulbs to restore our Southern

Gardens.

The program schedule is:

10:30 – noon The Tropical Paradise Garden with Summer Bulbs

Noon- 1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 Heirloom Bulbs for Restoration Gardens

Reservations are required for this program. We are offering a special $5.00 discount for Master

Gardeners from Mobile and Baldwin Counties that are not members of the Friends of Bellingrath.

The program’s prices include admission to Bellingrath Gardens for the day and lunch .

$ 10 for Friends of Bellingrath Members

$ 15 for Master Gardeners (Mobile and Baldwin Counties)

$ 20 for Non-Members that are not Master Gardeners.

Please call 251-973-2217 extension 111 to reserve your seat for this wonderful program.

Seating is limited, so please call us soon!

http://www.bellingrath.org/images/stories/super_wednesday_registration_form.pdf

American Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)

The edible fruits of the American persimmon are best eaten when

fully ripe. You’ll know they are ripe when they fall from the tree or

when the tree is shaken slightly the fruits drop to the ground.

Persimmons can be used in cakes and puddings or eaten fresh or frozen.

More information: Persimmon Puddings and Desserts

PawPaw (Asimina triloba )

The edible fruits of the pawpaw tree weigh 5 to 16 ounces and are 3

to 6 inches in length and ripen between mid-August and October.

When ripe, the fruit is soft with a thin skin and has a nice fragrance.

The flesh is yellow with a custard-like flavor. The fruits can be made

into pawpaw custard, pawpaw cakes and pies, and even pawpaw cookies.

More information about the Pawpaw tree.

Black Chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa)

Black chokeberry or aronia is not a well-known fruit here in the US.

Oddly enough, aronia is the second most popular ice cream flavor in

Poland. What’s interesting about black chokeberry is that it was

introduced to Eastern Europe the early 20th century and developed

into a commercial fruit. These varieties were recently reintroduced to

the US and are being grown by growers specializing in rare fruit crops.

Source: Grow Rare Fruits in Your Backyard (in Iowa)

Cranberries (Vaccinium oxycoccos )

Cranberries are one American fruit that practically everyone is familiar

with, but not many people know it can be grown in containers in your

very own garden. Click here for more information. for more

information.

Muscadine Grapes (Vitis rotundifolia)

Native to the southeastern US, muscadine grapes, often seen growing

along the side of the road, make a terrific sweet dessert wine. The

greenish-rosy to dark red grapes grow in small, somewhat loose

clusters on 60 to 100 foot vines and ripen in mid-September to

October.

Recommended reading: Uncommon Fruits Worthy of Attention

All American Fruits Written by Heleigh Bostwick Page 7

Persimmon

Paw Paw

Black Chokeberry

Cranberries

Muscadine

Mobile County Master Gardeners

Mobile County Office

1070 Schillinger Rd. N.

Mobile AL 36608-5298

Phone: 251-574-8445

E-mail: aces.edu/Mobile/mg

Twitter: @MoCoGardeners

Officers

President Penny Claiborne ‘10

1st Vice President Regina Gunn ‘11

2nd vice President Brenda Bolton ‘12

Recording Secretary Nan Costello ‘10

Corresponding Secretary Beth Walmsley ‘11

Treasurer Susan Morrison ‘07

Board of Directors Term Expires

Glenda Eady ‘09 2014

Greer Wilhelm ‘10 2014

Jackie Jenkins ‘11 2015

Joe Pippin ‘11 2015

Mary Ann Days ‘11 2016

Carol Eskridge ‘12 2016

Past President - Connie Barron ‘08

Appointees

Newsletter Editor Alice Marty ‘07

Volunteer Activity Coordinator Elisa Baldwin ‘06

Volunteer Hours Coordinator Jo Hayes ‘99, Genie Schneider ‘12

2013 Class Representatives Kathy Sanders and Jan Tanner

ACES Advisor Ellen Huckabay

Mission Statement:

The Alabama Master Gardener

Volunteer Program is an

educational outreach program

provided and administered by

the Alabama Cooperative

Extension System.

Alice Marty will publish the Dirt on the 25th of each month. Articles for inclusion must be

received by the 15th of the month and may be submitted to Alice Marty MCdirt@comcast.net

or the Extension Office.

Issued by

Ellen Huckabay

Regional Extension Agent

The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M

University and Auburn University) is an equal opportunity

educator and employer. www.aces.edu

www.facebook.com/