It seems like January 1st not only signifies the beginning of a new year, but the starting shot for open season on gardening. What to do in your garden lists, calendars, seed and bulb catalogs and magazines are now heralding the advent of SPRING! To ease you ‘back into the groove’ of gardening, the following notes will be of interest.
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In with the New: Creating a Joyful Garden. This webinar presentation by Linda Chochran, hosted by the Hoffman Center, is a treasure trove of recommendations and ideas about using native plants which thrive in a variety of soil conditions. ‘In With The New: Creating a Joyful Garden’ is the story of Linda Cochran’s Port Ludlow Garden, now five years old. It’s also a story of letting go and moving on. Linda’s previous garden on Bainbridge Island, Froggy Bottom, was widely considered as one of the country’s finest, a botanical gem that wooed plant worshippers from around the world.’
Ms.Cochran shares beautiful photos of her garden and plant discoveries throughout the Pacific Northwest focusing on less unknown native selections suitable for our area. Many are drought resistant. As Master Gardeners responding to questions from clients new to the area, we describe the weather as a *seasonal* rain forest”. In the 8 months of rain, it’s easy to forget that 4 months of drought, until we’re in the midst of it & trying to keep up with watering. And despite the rain, so much of the coast is basically xeric, thanks to the sand, wind & salt. Ms. Cochran’s observations and recommendations are exactly on target for those of us wanting to include native plants in our gardens. As one viewer commented “The presenter is well organized, engaging, personable, and we learned about a lot of plants and ideas that were new to us. We were inspired.” Have paper and pen ready to make your list.
That
Annual Plant Sale planning is underway. The Tillamook County Master Gardeners 2022 Annual Plant Sale is set for Saturday, May 7, 2022, at the Tillamook County Fairgrounds. We are envisioning a hybrid sale comprising both an in-person and on-line option for making your selections. Over the next few months decisions such as ‘what plants to offer’, ‘who will be growing what and how many’, ‘what vendors will be present’, ‘who will be boxers, help desk staff, cashiers’ and a myriad of additional details to ensure success of our major fund-raising event. Updates and progress on our planning will be posted on our website. Mark the date on your calendar and please ‘Stand By’!
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2022 OSU Master Gardener Classes – Sign up! The 2022 OSU Master Gardener Training class is now in on-line sessions with modules available to those who have registered.
A reminder to those current Master Gardeners to register for recertification. The training will be held primarily online in a self-paced format. Each module will also be made available to you, free of charge, to apply toward your continuing education hours for the coming year. New content will be added to this online class weekly! Please see the schedule for more details. Recertifying Master Gardeners are required to complete ten hours of continuing education; any of the online modules can be counted toward your education hours! Recertifying Master Gardeners can register at https://beav.es/UsH or via the Tillamook Master Gardener Classes page.