September Meeting

The September meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 20 at 5:30 pm. We have an opportunity to visit the prairie of Park Hills Golf Course and hear about its installation and care from Dave Fisher, Golf Course Superintendent. We will meet at the clubhouse and drive golf carts to the prairie. Please RSVP to the Extension Office. The timeframe of the meeting was changed to accommodate the golf course staff's schedule. The prairie should be beautiful at this time of year.

Autumn Joys, Oct 7

We will once again be hosting a fall gardening workshop. Master Gardeners Ron Welling, Paula Bennehoff and Pam Rosmann will be presenting, as well as Keith Blackmore and the staff of Steve's Landscaping. Two copies of the brochure are included in this mailing. Please pass them on to friends and relatives who might be interested in attending.

We would like to hold a silent auction at Autumn Joys again. In spite of a small turnout last fall, the auction was a great success. If you have items you would be willing to donate, please contact the Extension Office.

Note: Joys of Gardening is schedule for Saturday, February 17. We will begin planning that event at the October MG meeting, 10/12.

Silent Auction Items Needed for Kluck Family Benefit

As many of you know, Dan Kluck, son in law of MG Mary Isenberger, was critically injured in June in a motorcycle accident. A Hog Roast, Raffle and Silent Auction are being held at the McConnell United Methodist Church on Sat., September 30. If anyone has items they would be willing to donate for the silent auction, please contact Jenny Bronkema at 868-2421 or Tim Mulhall at 868-2314. Mary and her family certainly appreciate everyone's support and prayers during this very difficult time.

Summer Gardening Events

Master Gardeners had booths at several related events this summer, including the Gardens United Garden Walk and the July 1 Day at the Park. Thanks to the many Master Gardeners who took time out from their summer schedules to answer gardening questions and promote the activities of the program.

Pond Construction and Management Workshop

Learn about recreational farm ponds, including site selection and construction, and troubleshooting problem ponds at a workshop on Monday, September 25 at Woodbine Bend Golf Course. Registration begins at 8:30 am with session continuing through 4:00 pm. For a brochure, please call JoDaviess County Extension at 815-858-2273.

Helpline Volunteers Needed

Many thanks to those dedicated helpline volunteers who have answered some very interesting questions this summer. We still have some open days through the end of September. Call Donna if you can volunteer.

Telenets

The fall telenet schedule is included in this mailing. There is no cost to Master Gardeners for these telenets, which can be used towards the 10 hours of continuing education required of Master Gardeners. Please call the Extension Office a week in advance to let us know you will be attending.

Journal-Standard Gardening Column

Hopefully, you have had a chance to see the garden related column in the weekend Journal-Standard. Thanks to those Master Gardeners who have written articles. The intention of this column is to feature Master Gardeners discussing a variety of topics. If you have an article for publication, please email it to Margaret at mklarson@uiuc.edu. Don't worry, the J-S staff knows we are not professional writers and has been very good at editing and helping with columns.

U of I Extension Sponsors 101 Enterprises Workshop

Innovative, money making ideas to generate income from farms, homes and gardens will be the topic of 101 enterprises, scheduled for Friday, October 13 from 9:00 am–noon at the Farm Bureau. Speakers from Extension, Highland's Small Business Development Center and Farm Beginnings will cover a number of topics for would be entrepreneurs. Cost is $20.00; call the Extension Office for more information or to register.

Master Gardener Training 2007–Freeport, Illinois

U of I Extension Stephenson County will be hosting Master Gardener Training beginning in late January 2007. A schedule of the sessions is enclosed. We are excited to have this opportunity to host the training and hopefully recruit a number of new local Master Gardeners. JoDaviess, Carroll, and Ogle County will also be sending new trainees to out training.

We would like to invite all Master Gardeners to help recruit new participants for the program. If you have friends, co-workers or relatives who might be interested, please call the Extension Office with names and addresses. We have already sent out applications to about 35 interested individuals. Please let us know if you would be interested in helping with the interview process for applicants also.

As you might recall from years past, Master Gardeners can elect to sit in on the weekly classes at no charge. As the class time nears we will start to compile a list of who is interested in each week's class. If you would be interested in serving as a host for one of the class sessions, please let the office know.

One of the changes planned for this group is that they will need to commit to 10 hours working on the helpline, in addition to 50 hours of community volunteer service on various gardening projects.