August Newsletter

Summer is be

ginning to wind down. Kids are getting anxious for school to begin as are some parents. The beautiful fall days are right around the corner. I hope your garden has weathered the summer’s heat and is ready for the cooler nights of autumn. Though as I write this, it’s 95 and predicted to be hotter tomorrow. The heat has been good for many of the tropical plants we use in our gardens and beds. On the KC water garden tour last month, I saw a tropical paradise in KCMO. It was a very refreshing and unique garden. We learned that with the right determination and a lot of work you can grow a banana tree in Zone 5. Happy gardening!!!

Candidates for Regional Officers

We just got this list from Darrell Donahue, the regional secretary. The candidates for 2004 officers are:

Bob Dye                              National Director
Brenda Groves                   President, Mission Springs Club
Marvin Nuemberger           1^st V.P., Northland Club
Tom Haskett                       2^nd V.P., Emporia Club
Kay Elliot                             Treasurer, K. C. Club
Claudeanne Craig              Secretary, Sunflower Club

Coming up in August

Mylan Ross, a Johnson County Extension Master Gardener, will speak to us about "Square Foot Gardening". Learn about this efficient and effective gardening strategy for getting the most produce from the smallest amount of space.

Refreshments for August

Fall Bulbs Available

Once again, for those who are interested, members of our club can get spring bulbs by the box at wholesale cost. Stuifbergen Bloembollen, a Holland bulb exporter based out of Lee’s Summit, has set up an account for our club. As an added bonus this year, their website, www.stuifbergenbulb.com has pictures of all the available bulbs for sale—including tulips, daffodils, muscari and lycoris—552 varieties in all. In addition, bloom time and height are also included. All that is needed to view price per box is the account name: mhanlin@mail.planetkc.com and the password. The password is not included here since our newsletter is on the web, however you can get it from Melissa. A price sheet and color catalog is also available from Melissa if you prefer to shop that way. Just let her know. Keep in mind that this is wholesale cost and many bulbs come in boxes of 50 or 100 or 250. Find a gardening friend or two and split the box. It’s a great deal for quality spring bulbs! Orders need to be into Melissa by September 18 (meeting date) and the bulbs will be delivered the following week.

If you’re thinking of daffodils, give Melissa a call, as she would like to split a box with someone and isn’t picky on the color or variety

2003 MO-KAN Regional Convention

8:00     Registration and Refreshments
8:30     Introductions
8:45-11:00       Programs

11:00   Lunch
12:15   Business Meeting
1:00     Leave for tour of Loose Park and Kauffman Gardens

Recap of the July Program

We are in hardiness zone 5. Other cities that are in zone 5 may be further north or west; and even though they are the same hardiness zone, growing conditions can be much different because they may have shorter, cooler summers, or more or less rainfall, and different soil. We are in heat zone 7.

You don't have to be a "native plant snob" and use native plants exclusively; there are plants from other parts of the world that have similar growing conditions

Clay soil actually has many benefits : it retains water, which is great in Midsummer, has a high nutrient content, and supports plants so that they are less likely to need staking. Of course, compost is the best thing to add to it.

Plants that are usually hard to grow in our hot summers are : primroses, 'Pacific Giant' hybrid delphineums, annual phlox, sweet peas, and bells of Ireland.

Some easy-to-grow annuals that can take the heat : vinca, celosia, cleome, cosmos, California poppy, gazania, globe amaranth, strawflower, 4-o-clocks, nicotiana, rose moss, dusty miller, marigold, tithonia, verbena, zinnias.

Some easy-to-grow perennials that can take the heat : mexican hat, yarrow, artemesia, milkweed, butterfly weed, coreopsis, purple coneflower, globe thistle, sea holly, gallardia, perennial native sunflowers (helianthus), daylily, iris, red-hot-poker, black-eyed susan, goldenrod, liatris, catmint, oriental poppy, and Russian sage.

It’s a Girl!!!!

Sophia Caroline Ernst was born on July 16, weighing 7lbs 2.9oz to Brigid and Cory. According to dad, everyone is doing fine, even big brother George is making the transition to having a new sister. Congratulations to the Ernst family!!!

National Directors Report

The National Gardeners of America Convention was held in Albany, New York, this year hosted by the Men's Garden Club of Albany, June 25 - 29, 2003. The Mo-Kan Region was represented with 13 from our region. There were approximately 175 - 200 gardeners and spouses in attendance.

We enjoyed 3 places to tour. The Cornell Cooperative Extension grounds had a large number of flower beds with plants clearly labeled and accessible by grassy paths. The gardens were maintained by the Master Gardeners. A different Master Gardener was responsible for care and upkeep of each bed. We visited the Shaker Heritage Society which dated back to 1775 - 1776. There were demonstrations which included weaving, natural dying, broom making all done the original Shaker way. We also visited the Tawasentha Park which included a 600 foot flower garden of perennials, bulbs and annuals offering color nine out of the twelve months of a year. Other things, too many to mention.

The business meeting reported 4645 members on 5-31-03. The Mo-Kan Region has 536 members. Every member needs to bring in a new member this year. The Life memberships have changed to $200.00 from the different amounts for different ages. There were only 269 who voted for the National Officers on the ballots.

There were five $1000.00 scholarships given this year, two in Ohio and three in Kansas.

Several awards were given. The Honor Clubs with the highest percentage (George Spader Award) went to the Central Great Lakes Region, The Gardeners of Lima, Ohio 89.74% increase in membership. There were 10 other clubs who had a high increase in membership. Two clubs were in the Mo-Kan Region, Northland GOA with 20.5% increase and Emporia GOA with 10.4 % increase. The Spade Club award went to: John Hunt, Richardson, Tx, for recruiting 12 new members in 2002. Spade Club award to: Dale Luthi, Kansas City, Mo. for recruiting 30 new members the past 7 years and a total of 92 over the past 20 years. Spade Club award to: Greater Kansas City GOA for the highest club participation in 2002 - 13 spade club members. Trowel awards - Class A (101 or more members) Spartanburg Men's Garden Club, 2 members with 5 renewals; Class B (None); Class C (50 or Less members) Olathe Gardeners of America, 2 members with 4 renewals.

Newsletter awards - Region award - 1st place, Paula Singleton Editor, Johnny Appleseed Broadcaster, Central Great Lakes Region. Club award - Class A (101 + members) 1st place - The Clay Digger, Patsy Bell Hobson, Editor, Northland GOA, Gladstone, Mo.; Club award - Class C (50 or less members) 2nd place, The Sprout, E. Harry Ofverstedt, Editor, GOA Overland Park, Prairie Villge, Ks; 3rd place - Excelsior Springs, Larry Golubski, Editor, Excelsior Springs Garden Club. There were many other awards that space doesn't permit.

The 2004 elected National Officers: President - Honey Barnekoff of Overland Park, Ks; 1st VP William J. Carney of Youngstown, Ohio; 2nd VP Dale G. Davies of Van Wert, Ohio; 3rd VP James A Mack of Tempe, Arizona; Treasurer - Steve Bush of Des Moines, Iowa; Immediate Past President Louis C. Jones.

A Memorial Service was held at Sunday breakfast for our departed members. There were four Mo-Kan Region members out of a total of 102.

There were three Seminars - Backyard Composting, Growing a Great Lawn, Creative Container Gardening. We learned more about gardening from the seminars.

We thank the members of Albany, New York for a great time. The weather was nice with no rain except one morning before 5:00.

The Webster Groves Men's Garden Club of St Louis celebrated their 60 years, three clubs celebrated 50 years, Men's Garden Club of Grosse Pointe, Richmond Heights Garden Club, The Gardeners of Lima and Spartanburg Men's Garden Club.

Plan now to attend the National Convention in Des Moines, Iowa June 23 - 26, 2004. The theme is "Flowers and More in 2004". You will be able to tour the National Headquarters.

Thank You!

A thank you card arrived from the 2003 OGOA Scholarship winner, Jayme Jones. She was very appreciative of the $400 scholarship and is looking forward to starting at K-State August 20^th. In addition, she had fun at our June meeting and learned some new things about roses, which she used at her job at Earl May.

August 21 August OGOA Meeting – Square Foot Gardening by Mylan Ross, 7 p.m.

August 28 “Patio and Container Gardening” Olathe Public Library, 7 p.m.

September 18 September OGOA Meeting – Wine Making by Miles Raymond,7p.m.

September 19 Bulb orders are due to Melissa

September 20 MO-KAN Regional Convention Colonial Church, 71^st & Mission

September 25 “Bulbs”
Olathe Public Library, 7 p.m.

October 16 October OGOA Meeting – Structures in the Garden 7pm

October 23 “Pruning”
Olathe Public Library, 7 p.m.

November 20 November OGOA Meeting – Organic Gardening, 7 p.m.

December 11 OGOA Annual Carry-In Banquet – 6:30pm

TURFGRASS

Is My Lawn Still Alive?

Many lawns have been dormant this summer due to a lack of moisture, and homeowners are wondering if they are still alive. To check, pull up an individual plant and separate the leaves from the crown. The crown is the area between the leaves and the roots. If it is still hard and not papery and dry, the plant is still alive.

Normally, a healthy lawn can stay dormant for 5 to 8 weeks without harm. But it is important to keep the crown hydrated because if the crown dies, the plant dies. About 1/4 inch of water every two weeks is enough to hydrate the crown. (WU)

Turfgrass Problems

Bermudagrass

Last month we had an outbreak of a disease called Cylindrosporium leaf spot on bermudagrass. The disease was seen on bermudagrass lawns in the Manhattan area and on forage bermudagrass in the Topeka vicinity. This disease resulted in elongate brown to gray leaf lesions and a general yellowing and unthrifty appearance to the grass. Because of the relatively cool, wet weather in May and June, the bermudagrass was very slow to recover from this leaf spot. With the recent warm weather the grass has rapidly grown out of the damage. The most active disease now is dollar spot. Look for numerous bleached spots about 3 inches in diameter scattered across the lawn. This disease isn't lethal, but it can detract from the lawn’s appearance. Try to manage excessive leaf moisture that contributes to dollar spot development by removing dew and irrigating in the morning.

Buffalograss

This is the time of year when bad things can happen to buffalograss. I believe the major culprit in midsummer buffalograss decline is chinch bug damage. If you have had problems in the past with thinning buffalograss, you should scout the lawn for chinch bug activity now. These insects can be difficult to detect. I suggest cutting a sod piece from the margin of a damaged area, then pounding it vigorously against a sidewalk or truck tailgate. Look for small insects to scatter. Or you can try to suck them up with a portable vacuum. If you don't know what chinch bugs look like, collect whatever moves and send them in for diagnosis. I did see chinch bug activity in one buffalograss sample submitted from Manhattan last week.

In my continuing pursuit of chinch bugs, I am finding all sorts of other minor diseases on buffalograss. A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that the buffalograss in plots here in Manhattan were damaged by a leaf spot disease caused by a fungus called Bipolaris. This disease has run its course and is no longer active. Damage to the buffalograss was minimal, but it did cause quite a bit of turf discoloration earlier this spring. My graduate student recently found another fungal disease called seed blight (Cercospora seminalis) in cultivar trials here in Manhattan. The fungus completely engulfs developing seed and turns it a fuzzy gray-green. I suspect this fungus could result in reduced seed viability and could be important in seed production. However, it probably isn't of any consequence in home lawns. Finally, I was surprised to see rust on buffalograss in western Kansas. Damage appeared minor, but I don't recall seeing this before.

Kentucky bluegrass:

Mild, wet weather earlier this summer followed by recent high temperatures may trigger summer patch development on Kentucky bluegrass. Symptoms may develop in June through August as small patches of turf, 2 to 6 inches in diameter. Grass blades in the patch change to a dull reddish-brown, then tan, and finally a light straw color. In the final stages of the disease, doughnut-shaped patches of dead grass form throughout the lawn. Healthy grass may occur within patch centers resulting in a characteristic frogeye pattern. When weather conditions are ideal for disease development, affected areas may overlap and blight large areas of the lawn. Roots of affected plants are discolored, although this symptom may be difficult to see without the aid of a hand lens. Symptoms of summer patch can be confused with insect damage (grubs,billbug), herbicide injury, or drought stress. These possible causes should be eliminated before a diagnosis of summer patch is made. The best way to confirm this disease is to submit a turf sample along with photographic images of the damage to a plant disease diagnostic lab for pathogen isolation. The turf sample should be cut from the margin of the patch that contains both healthy and diseased turf. Ideally, the sample should be 6 inches by 6 inches and deep enough to include much of the root system. (NT)

Parting Shot

Gardening Rule: When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.

Olathe Gardeners of America

Melissa’s Monologue