Save the Date and Your Unwanted Items

As you clean out the garage/basement/wherever for your fall cleaning don't forget the Shed Sale. The Shed Sale is our only fundraising activity for 2010. Anything garden related or with a garden related theme or motif is acceptable. Start a box of items now so that you will have something ready to donate for the Shed Sale. The event will be held Thursday, July 22, from 4 to 7 pm.

If you can't wait to get rid of your items, drop them off at the Extension office.

This year we will be asking for donations outside our master gardener group. If you have any ideas for this approach, please let Jennifer know.

A Master Gardener Volunteer will be contacting you to ask how you plan to help with the Shed Sale.

Holiday Market- Meet Your Local Producers

Come taste the difference of fresh and nutritious food grown by local area farmers. Meet Illinois growers and producers as they showcase their farms with displays, samples and farmers market sales at the indoor Holiday Farmers Market. Meals and beverages available for purchase, wine samples and sales, cooking demo, live music and kids activities.

This free event will be held on Saturday, November 21, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Illinois Building at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. The event is brought to you by Illinois Stewardship Alliance and Slow Food Springfield. Sponsors of the event are Roberts SYSCO, Land of Lincoln Ag Coalition, Illinois Department of Agriculture and Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association. For more information about "Meet Your Local Producers" or if you are interested in being a vendor at the event, visit www.ilstewards.org or contact Lindsay Record, (217) 528-1563.

Gardeners Day

A planning meeting for Gardeners Day 2010 will be held on Wednesday, November 18, 10 am at the U of I Extension Building, Springfield.

Who is invited? Any interested Master Gardener is welcome to assist with planning this event. Come and share your ideas for program topics and presenters. This is an annual program. Attendance at this event is approximately 150 people. If you cannot attend this meeting but would like to be on this committee, contact Jennifer.

Gardeners Day will be held on Saturday, March 20.

Garden Shed Sale Telephone Subcommittee

Anyone interested in contacting fellow Master Gardener volunteers is invited to attend a planning meeting on Tuesday, November 10 at 3pm. This group will contact each MG volunteer to ask how he/she plans to assist with the 2010 Garden Shed Sale.

Garden Shed Sale Committee

Plans are now underway for this event. Diana Hetherington will serve as one of the co-chairs for this committee. There are ample opportunities before, during and after the sale to help out. We need everyone's help. Please let Jennifer Fishburn know if you are interested in:

· heading up some of the many subcommittees: publicity, pricing, silent auction, better buys, books, etc.

The next planning meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 26, at 9 am at the U of I Extension Building, Springfield.

Master Gardener Advisory Committee Meeting

The Sangamon-Menard Master Gardener Advisory Committee will meet Monday, November 16, 9:00 am. If you have items you would like discussed please contact a committee member or attend the meeting.

Vegetable Demonstration Garden

Thank you to Barbara R. and Gary T. for clearing off the vegetable gardens.

If you are interested in helping with the 2010 garden please contact Jennifer.

Master Gardener Help Desk-Days Available

One of the Master Gardeners biggest programs is answering homeowner horticulture questions. Thank you to everyone who assisted with answering home gardening questions in 2009.

Dean Home Heirloom Garden (at Lincoln Home National Historic Site)

This project is organized by University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners from Sangamon-Menard Unit and Christian County along with Springfield Civic Garden Club members. If you would like to become a volunteer for this project in 2010, contact Jennifer.

Master Gardener Weekly Volunteer Programs:

St. Joseph's Home Garden Therapy

Thank you to everyone who assisted with garden therapy activities at St. Joseph's Home. The group will meet on November 12 to review the year.

Plant a Row For the Hungry

Please donate extra produce to the Central Illinois Foodbank or a local food pantry.

Contact Barbara R. or Ann P. if you have questions.

Demonstration Garden Committee Meeting Dates

Herb Garden/Grape Arbor Committee:

Committee chair for 2010: Terri C.

Thank you to Terri C. for chairing this committee. Thanks to everyone who helped with this year's garden.

Identification Garden Committee:

Committee co-chairs for 2010: Joyce W. and Helen A.

Thank you to this year's chairs, Kathy J., Joyce W. and Helen A. Also thanks to everyone who helped with the garden.

Perennial Garden Committee:

Committee co-chairs for 2010: Sue D.

Next meeting will be Monday, November 16, 9 am

Thank you to Sandie N. and Sue D. for chairing this committee. Thanks to everyone who assisted with the garden.

Complete your continuing education NOW!!! Remember an active Master Gardener needs 10 hours of continuing education each year. The year is winding down and so are educational opportunities.

Around the World

"Semester at Sea: An Around the World Odyssey in 108 Days" will be presented on Tuesday, November 10, 5 to 7 pm.

In 2009, Joan Walters took a trip around the world. She participated in a "Semester at Sea" sponsored by the University of Virginia. The MV Explorer ship served as a floating university for undergraduate students. You can hear about the adventure of a lifetime from Joan, who traveled on this ship as a Lifelong Learner. This two-hour program will take you to four continents and 14 countries...without jet lag or seasickness!

Program will be held at the U of I Extension Building #30, Illinois State Fairgrounds, Springfield. Cost to attend this program is $5 and will include refreshments. Pre-registration is encouraged. Register on-line at the Sangamon-Menard Unit website at www.extension.uiuc.edu/sangamonmenard. Questions call (217) 782-4617.

Windbreak Seminar

If you live in a rural area that is constantly exposed to the wind, you could save money by installing a farmstead windbreak. In the winter, a dense multi-row windbreak can save 10 to 40 percent in heating your home. Energy use to cool your home in the summer can also be reduced by a windbreak.

Windbreaks can have other benefits too. Wildlife habitat, especially with the addition of shrubs can be created. Fruit trees or trees for fuel wood production can also be incorporated into a windbreak, providing food and fuel to heat your home.

Join Dave Shiley, Natural Resources Management Extension Educator as he presents windbreak design, planting, and maintenance. Renovating old windbreaks will also be discussed. The presentation will be via the University of Illinois telenet system and local computer PowerPoint presentation allowing live discussion between the instructor and gardeners throughout Illinois. Cost to attend is $5.

The presentation is set for Thursday, November 12 at University of Illinois Extension , Building #30, Illinois State Fairgrounds, Springfield. The program will be held at 1:30 p.m. and repeated at 6:30 p.m. To reserve a packet of handouts pre-register on-line at www.extension.uiuc.edu/sangamonmenard.

Illinois Native Plant Society Central Chapter

The Illinois Native Plant Society meeting will be held November 12 at 6:30pm at Washington Park Botanical Garden. Program will begin at 7:15pm. Guy Sternberg will present "Tough Trees for the Landscape." Explore a selection of adaptable landscape trees. An emphasize will be place on Midwest Native species.

Organic Gardening Day

Organic Gardening Day will be held on November 21, at the Hawthorn Suites Hotel in Champaign. The format will be as usual, but the new venue will limit registration to 150. Anyone interested in this event should contact Chuck Voigt, Tracey Malkovich, at malkovic@illinois.edu or phone (217) 333-3420 or Fax (217) 333-9817.

Herb Day 2010

Herb Day will be held on January 16, at the usual place, the Urbana Holiday Inn. Felder Rushing headlines that program. He is always entertaining, and often informative. Anyone interested in this event should contact Chuck Voigt, Tracey Malkovich, at malkovic@illinois.edu or phone (217) 333-3420 or Fax (217) 333-9817.

Home Study Courses for Education

Sangamon-Menard Unit is offering several home study courses and stepping stones programs to assist Master Gardener's with completion of educational hours. These programs are typically offered as weekly mailings but will be offered to Master Gardeners as a packet. There are six topics to choose from: Environmentally Friendly Gardening Home Study Course, Stepping Stones to Trees, Stepping Stones to Landscaping, Stepping Stones to Perennial Garden Design, Stepping Stones to Lawn Care, and Composting Happens Home Study Course.

· Environmentally Friendly Gardening Home Study Course contains six lessons aimed at instructing the home gardener on how to reduce environmental impact in the landscape. This series focuses on more efficient watering, reducing use of chemicals, attracting wildlife, and the benefits of composting. This will count as 5 1/2 hours of continuing education hours.

$5 if pick up, $10 if mailed

· Stepping Stones to Trees is an eight lesson series designed to teach basic principles concerning tree care. This series will cover selection, planting, and maintenance of trees in the home landscape. This series will count as 5 continuing education hours.

$5 if pick up, $10 if mailed

· The Stepping Stones to Landscaping series is directed toward helping the homeowner develop a landscape plan. This is a sixteen-lesson program that includes landscaping rules, tree and shrub selection, and nightscaping among others. This will count as 12 hours of continuing education. $10 if pick up, $15 if mailed

· Backyard Basics Composting Home Study Course is a six lesson course that explains the do's and don't of home composting. The series covers what, when, where and why to compost. This will count as 5 hours of continuing education hours.

$5 if pick up, $10 if mailed

· Stepping Stones to Lawn Care covers various aspects about the home lawn. Topics from mowing, renovation, pest management, and fertilization are covered in this eleven lesson series. This series will count for 6 hours of continuing education hours.

$5 if pick up, $10 if mailed

· Stepping Stones to Perennial Garden Design is designed to assist the homeowner in choosing and creating a perennial garden. The course will cover site assessment, style, plant selection and placement, and maintenance in six lessons. This series will count as 9 hours of continuing education hours. Available free on U of I Extension website, http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/gardendesign/ $7.50 if pick up, $12.50 if mailed

There is no charge for reading the lessons at the office. They will be available for purchase if you would like to take a stepping stones set home. Please call Jennifer or Sandy in advance if you would like to purchase a set. To count as education, submit a short report outlining what you learned from the lessons.

EDU- Education

VOL- Volunteer

Unless otherwise noted, all meeting locations are U of I Extension Building, IL State Fairgrounds, Bldg. #30.

Nov. 5- Cleanup of Vegetable Demonstration Garden, 1pm (VOL)

Nov. 10- Garden Shed Telephone Committee, 3pm (VOL)

Nov. 10- Around the World, 5 pm (EDU)

Nov. 12- Design and Use of Windbreaks telenet, 1:30pm and repeated at 6:30pm (EDU)

Nov. 16- Perennial Garden Committee meeting, 9 am (VOL)

Nov. 16- Master Gardener Advisory meeting, 9:00 am (VOL)

Nov. 16, 17 and 18- Master Gardener applicant interviews

Nov. 18- Gardeners Day Committee, 10 am (VOL)

Dec. 10- Horticulture Action Committee meeting, 2pm

Jan. 15- Master Gardener Open House and Recognition Night, 4 to 6 pm

Jan. 19- Garden Shed Committee meeting, 9 am (VOL)

Jan. 21- Master Gardener training begins, 9am to 4pm (EDU)

Jan. 21- Garden Basics begins, 6 to 8 pm (EDU)