At the end of the year- several things come to mind: mostly THANKS and good wishes!

Thank goodness we live in zone 5 and get a break from gardening for a few months, especially after all the watering this year! (A zone 8 might kill me!). Gives us time to rev up for next spring-AND I have already received catalogs even before Thanksgiving!

Thanks to all who have helped the MG program in any way, on any committee, with planning, with watering, or in any way. All contributions are valued and keep this great program going!

Program Committee (loved the workshops and November lecture this year!)–Upcoming for 2006 possibly: trip to Indianapolis Flower Show March, editor Chicagoland Gardening Magazine April, Overnight to Wisc. In May with buying–wow!

Garden Walk committee–great job this year and they already have the gardens for 2006! DATE: Saturday June 24th.

Idea Garden: thanks to all who helped! Even if it was a little bit or help in planning- all of you help to make this an outstanding public display garden. It's beautiful! News: will be getting a new fence; new brick work done between the veg. area and Theme Gardens and also around the berries/roses. However, not getting electricity this year, sad...

Community Gardens: great job, too! For 2006, we will be emphasizing community involvement and their work in keeping these up. (Some counties have a "provide no manual labor policy"- just education & advice). Sadly, we will be phasing out the 3 school gardens and the Humane Society. But, a BIG thanks to all who have worked at all of these gardens and put in many hours on ALL these community gardens!

Also thanks to all on the Nominating Committee, Advisory Committee, those who helped with Garden Day, all those who were Garden Buddies, Office Mentors, Speakers Bureau, helped with the Cultivator, Plant-a-row, etc. EVERYONE helps make this program great! At the regional MG conference, many were quite impressed with all our county does.

........but ESPECIALLY a BIG thanks to Sandy and Christine, "our fearless gardening leaders!!"

Good Wishes: Congratulations to the new officers!

Trainees who have finished this year, congratulations! We are proud of you. Those who haven't finished yet hang in there and let us know if we can help in any way.

New Trainee Class: 2006 the training will be in town- already we have 50 applicants- there are 40 spots for in-class training and 10 for online so far. Please, again, consider being an office mentor or Garden Buddy to them to keep them involved!

A new training program under development for fall 2006 will be: Volunteer Master Naturalists; involves the C-U Park Districts and is not in competition with the MG program...more to follow.

***Alan Armitage on-line course of Sun and/or Shade Perennials being offered this winter. This is the great course I gave a review on last spring. Call Christine for upcoming details.

Woo-hoo! I am finishing my 4 years as an officer and want to say I have had a GREAT time!! This is a fabulous group and I think it has really improved over the years. We have so many different talents and abilities. I think it's important to value every member, regardless of whether they are a "black belt" or a "yellow belt" gardener in knowledge or abilities or the number of hours they are able to do.

Thank- you to everyone for this privilege I have had and best wishes for:

an inspiring, cozy winter day with gardening catalogs;

joy at new spring shoots & flowers;

and a bountiful 2006 growing season!

- Ann Tice, President

Some things to ponder for the New Year–or more gardening "sage" advice, "tree-style":

1) It's important to have roots.

2) Be flexible so you don't break when a harsh wind blows.

4) Avoid people who like to cut you down.

5) It's perfectly OK to be a late bloomer.

6) It's more important to be honest than poplar.

- Ann Tice

2006 Officers

• President Jan Fisher
• Vice-President Linda Isenhower
• Secretary Carolyn Ogen
• Treasurer Bev Cotter

MG's Certified in 2005

• Denise Novak '05
• Marilynn Bell '05
• Mary Ann Berg '04
• Terry Rathgeber '05
• Ruth Gerlach '05
• Ann Chan '04
• Jeff Howard '04
• Kris Carter '04
• Norma Kerns '04
• Barbara Lutz '05
• Sandy Emerick '04
• Mike Emerick '04
• JoAnne Broadbent '03

Business Friends of Master Gardeners Award

• Country Arbors
• Illini FS
• Green View Nursery
• Kleiss Nursery
• Landscape Recycling
• Proven Winners
• Danville Gardens

Friends of Master Gardeners Award

• Melvin Bell
• Steve Ayers
• Isabella Howard
• Ed Rawles
• Chris Tarant

State Awards

Outstanding: Chris Bochte and Heather Miller

Sustained Excellence: AnnTice

- Christine Martinez

If you're one of the growing number of people out there that wants the chance to make holiday memories last and to add to the landscape rather than the landfill, you might find that choosing a living Christmas tree may be well worth the extra expense, challenge and effort involved.

It is risky business, in our area of Illinois, to purchase a living Christmas tree and assume it will survive after planting it in January. It is important to remember that these trees are seldom guaranteed by the seller. However, with proper selection, preparation, care and planting, the likelihood of your success could be greatly increased.

Scotch pine makes for a fine cut Christmas tree but is a poor landscape tree. It usually dies in less than 25 years, succumbing to insects and disease. Better choices would be white pine, spruces, or white fir.

When choosing and transporting a Living Christmas tree, one must consider the fact that a 5-6 ft. balled and burlapped tree and it's rootball could weigh 100-200 lbs! It's important that the rootball is not mistreated or dropped. Balled and burlapped trees should not be carried by their stems because the weight of the rootball can put pressure on the roots and break them. It's best to pick up the tree by the ball itself or to roll the ball along the ground.

Planting site selection is important. No matter what species is selected, choose a sunny well-drained location with room to grow 10-15ft. wide and 30 or more ft. tall. Pre-digging the planting hole before the ground freezes is a good idea. Dig the hole only as deep as the rootball (or slightly less) and 1 1/2 - 2x the diameter. Bringing the soil indoors will insure there will be unfrozen soil available at planting time.

Another option is to deeply mulch the planting site ahead of time, then remove the mulch and dig the hole at planting time. Once the tree is brought home it must be conditioned and watered before it can be brought into a heated room. It should be sufficient to leave the tree in an upright position in an unheated barn or garage for a couple of days. Keep the rootball moistened and the burlap on the tree at all times.

After bringing the tree inside, the rootball should be placed in a pan or bucket and kept moistened (not wet) with straw or peat moss, then placed in a cool spot away from hot or cold drafts & direct sunlight for 3-5 days but no more than a week. Exposure to warm temperatures may cause the dormant tree to break buds and start to grow.

Before planting, a living Christmas tree should be reconditioned in the same manner it was before being brought into the house. If the tree cannot be planted right away, it should be placed in a sheltered area and the rootball heavily mulched.

When planting, cut the string around the trunk, remove the wire cage around the rootball, but leave the burlap in place around the roots of the tree. Once placed in the hole, make sure the rootball is level with or slightly above the surrounding soil. Backfill with the saved soil, stake, mulch and water well. The tree should remain dormant for the rest of the winter. Evergreens are prone to winter kill by loss of moisture through their leaves. Applying an antidesiccant spray to the foliage could help reduce moisture loss.

All transplanted trees need at least a year of good care to survive. The tree needs a good soaking every two weeks in dry weather. A way to keep your tree in good shape is to trim (only the new growth) every year, in mid-June, with hedge clippers. Following these simple tips should increase the likelihood of your tree's survival and give you years of pleasant holiday memories.

- Margaret Hill

While you are thinking about what you will be learning and doing as a Master Gardener next year, consider becoming a Licensed Public Pesticide Applicator and helping with our pest management needs in the Idea Garden and Community Gardens. This opportunity offers an ideal combination of an important volunteer activity, continuing education units, and experience that makes pest management in your own gardens much less burdensome.

Although we do not have to be licensed to apply chemicals in our personal gardens, the State of Illinois requires some sort of license if we apply chemicals elsewhere. Most of the CCMGs who have done this have taken advantage of the IL Department of Agriculture Pesticide Training and Certification Clinic at the Urbana Holiday Inn. The calendar of dates has not been published yet, but in previous years has scheduled the Urbana training and testing for the first Thursday and Friday in February. Other dates and sites also are offered.

The training includes several knowledgeable presentations on General Standards, Ornamentals, and Turf, among a host of categories. In addition, there are 3 manuals and 2 workbooks that augment the MG notebook information. It is helpful to study those in advance of the training because the tests are administered about an hour after completion of the training. The General Standards segment is offered the first day, covers a broad range of issues, and culminates in a multiple choice test of 100 questions. It is necessary to pass this test before any of the other category tests may be taken, but a passing grade is 70, so that it is not too difficult. The tests are closed book, but calculators are permitted for parts that cover the calculation of spray application rates. Most of us have taken the Ornamentals Certification exam and that includes 50 multiple choice questions.

One other benefit of all this is that our Extension Office (one of the State license facilities) supports all the costs for training, manuals, and workbooks if you are seeking the Public Pesticide Applicator license. (Those who apply pesticides as part of their business activities must seek a Commercial License that requires a bond and cannot be supported by a public agency.)

Contact Sandy Mason or Christine Martinez to set up your registration and order your workbooks. If you have questions about the exams or what the Pest Patrol does, the following people comprised the 2005 list of volunteers: Ann Bentley, Jeff Howard, Jim Hoyt, Nancy Jones (Nancy has a commercial license so can answer questions if you wish to pursue that route), Bill MacDonald, Sandy Mason, Josh Mikeworth, Heather Miller, Jim Simon, Bill Sippel, and Ann Tice. Also, we are fortunate to have Josh Mikeworth to take over the Coordinator's duties for 2006. For those of you who do not know, Josh is the Parks and Grounds Supervisor for the Village of Savoy, so pest control is a part of his work life, as well.

- Jim Simon

February 16-17, 1006

Holiday Inn, Urbana

• General Standards

• Turf

• Ornamentals

• Right-Of-Way

December

1 Thursday, 11:00am – Program Committee mtg. Please join the Program committee if you have ideas for future programs.

1 Thursday – Iowa-Illinois Fruit and Vegetable Symposium, Scott County Extension office, Bettendorf, Iowa. Topics include Chestnut Production; Frost Protection in Fruits and Nuts; Raspberries & Blackberries; Sweet Corn and Weed Mgt; and Irrigation and Pumpkin Weed Control. For more info: www.extension.iastate.edu/johnson.

1 Thursday, 1:00pm – Advisory Committee mtg.

6 Tuesday, 9:30am – Garden Walk mtg. Open to all MG's

6 Tuesday – 2006 MG Training Applications due.

9 Thursday, 12:00–5:00pm - 2006 MG Applicant Interviews. Extension auditorium.

13 Tuesday, 11:30 am - Holly Day Luncheon. Thank you for all your hard work throughout the year! Celebrate your efforts and join fellow MG's at the Annual Holly Day Luncheon at Kennedy's in Urbana. Call 333-7672 or email: cmartinz@uiuc.edu with your reservation by Dec. 7th. Guests welcome. $10/MG and $17.95/guest. (Make checks payable to the U of I Extension). Don't forget about the $10 "Useable White Elephant" gift exchange.

15 Thursday, 1:00pm - Idea Garden Meeting. The physical side of gardening is finished for the year but the planning never ends! Join the IG meeting and see what's in store for next year. All ideas are welcome and appreciated!

22 Thursday - Happy Birthday Christine Martinez!

27 Tuesday - Happy Birthday MG Gerri Kaha!

26 - Jan 2, Extension office is closed.

January

3 Tuesday, 9:00am - Garden Walk mtg.

5 Thursday, 11:00 - Program Committee mtg.

5 Thursday, 1:00pm - Advisory Committee mtg.

11 Wednesday, 9:00am – Speakers Bureau development and training. Details to follow.

16 Monday – Martin Luther King Day: Extension office closed.

16 Monday – Happy Birthday MG Jan Fisher!

17 Tuesday, 6:00pm – 2006 MG Trainee & Mentor Pizza Party. Extension auditorium.

17 Tuesday, 7:00pm - MG Monthly Meeting "Wildlife Control & Management" Presented by Dave Shiley, Extension Wildlife Specialist.

18-20 Wednesday – Friday – MidAm Trade Show and Workshops. McCormick Place, Chicago, IL. www.midam.org.

20 Friday - Happy Birthday MG Heather Miller!

21 Saturday – "Herb Day 2006" Holiday Inn Hotel & Conference Center, 1001 Killarney St., Urbana, IL. Registration is first come, first served. Registration fee: $49 (lunch included). Register by January 13th, 2006. For more information call (217) 333-7738.

23 Monday - Happy Birthday MG Laura Hartman!

25 Wednesday, 9:00am - First day of 2006 MG Training. Extension auditorium.

28 Saturday, 9:00am – 3:00pm – "A Winter Day in the Garden" Sponsored by the Crawford County Master Gardeners and Lincoln Trail College, Robinson IL. Registration information: http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/crawford/ or 618-546-1549. Register by January 16th.