University of Maine Cooperative Extension
fruits and veggies

Piscataquis & Penobscot

Gardening Newsletter

Volume 9 Issue 6                                             June 2011
In This Issue
June is the Month to...
Healthy Eating Resources
Gardening with Youth
Deer Tick Information
Featured Videos
2011 Summer Teacher's Institute
Bird Monitoring Program
Featured Extension Garden Publications
Mission
University of Maine Cooperative Extension is the major educational outreach program of the University of Maine, with offices statewide.  UMaine Extension provides Maine people with research-based educational programs to help them live fuller, more productive lives.
Quick Links 
Goal
 The goal of the Piscataquis & Penobscot Gardening Newsletter is to provide timely information on practical, sustainable, research-based horticultural practices, tools and techniques which will improve home gardening success in our two counties.  Upcoming events and programs of interest will also be included.
Find Penobscot County Extension on Facebook
Find us on Facebook
Find Piscataquis County Extension on Facebook
Find us on Facebook

June is the Month to...

  • Install drip irrigation in your landscape. 
  • Sow bean, pumpkin, squash, cucumber, beet, spinach, carrot, lettuce, and pea seeds directly into your garden.  Soil temperatures are now warm enough for a wide varieity of seeds.  Direct seeding plants is an easy and inexpensive way to grow a vegetable garden. 
  • Mulch gardens to improve moisture retention and reduce weed pressure.  For more information:

    http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-326/426-326.html 

  • Fertilize your lawn (if needed).  See this great video on how to grow healthy, low-input lawns
  • Celebrate National Pollinator Week:  June 20-26. 
  • Grow something you've never grown before.  You may find something you really like:  a tastier tomato, a more heat tolerant pansy, or maybe a more prolific varieity of squash.  Visit the All America Selections Display Garden at Rogers Farm to see the hottest new cultivars of ornamental and vegetable plants. 
  • Look for Eastern tent caterpillars (Malacosoma americanum).  The caterpillars overwinter in egg masses on host trees.  Locating egg masses early in the spring (April/May) is a great way to control this insect; if you observe an egg mass prune the branch out of the tree.  This can prove to be very difficult, because the egg masses are camouflage and very small.  Another effective way to manage this insect is to knock down the developing nests when you first notice them (the earlier the better). Check out this fact sheet for useful information including the life cycle, host tree species, pictures, etc:  http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/pest_al/etc/etc.htm

Healthy Eating Resources 

We are pleased to announce a new resource: a collection of recipes to help Mainers make nutritious meals and snacks from fresh produce. Each recipe includes step-by-step, easy to follow instructions and nutrition information. Recipes are available at the Maine Harvest for Hunger and Food & Health Web sites.

Gardening with Youth
So many important lessons can be taught in a garden.  Here are some tips on how to introduce youth to a healthy life-long hobby.  
  • Give them choice and responsibility.  Let them choose their favorite veggies, favorite colors or establish a special theme for their garden.  They'll get more excited about gardening if they have ownership over their own space.
  • Start small.  You don't need a big back yard, good soil, full sun, or even a lot of time to get started.  It can be as easy as using an old kiddie pool located in a bright spot in your yard.  Just put a few holes in the bottom, fill it with potting soil, choose plants that will tolerate the amount of sun that you have, and you are set to go!  Container gardens or small raised beds are easy for kids to plan and maintain and don't take up a lot of space in the yard.  Be sure to have a good watering plan for smaller gardens that tend to dry out quickly. 
  • Be ready to learn together.  Gardening is a very humbling hobby - there's always something to learn.  Make the most of learning moments and give youth the opportunity to teach you something new. 
  • Use your resources.  Many very creative people have put together great activities for youth gardening.  There's no need to reinvent the wheel.  See below for a list of resources.
  • Keep it safe.  Start by having your soil tested for lead contamination.  Always wash fruits and veggies before eating and avoid toxic or harmful plants around young children.  Try to use mostly hand tools.  Use extreme caution when applying pesticides - even the organic pesticides can be very harmful to human and environmental health.  Be sure to follow the label instructions carefully.
  • Keep it fun.  Avoid epic weeding sessions by having a weekly 5 minute weeding "blitz", using mulch, and avoid letting weeds go to seed.  Remember that your hands don't always have to be dirty when you are in the garden.  Reading a book about plants, making crafts for the garden, and playing games around the garden are all excellent ways to learn and experience the joys of gardening.

Resources:

Maine Apprentice Gardener Curriculum

Maine School Garden Network 

Kids Can Grow 

Maine Agriculture in the Classroom

University of Illinois Cooperative Extension - First Garden

National Gardening Association - Kids Gardening

 

Junior Master Gardener Handbook.  1999.  Texas Cooperative Extension.  JMGKIDS.  College Station, TX.     

Deer Tick (Ixodes scapularis) - From the Maine Center for Disease Control:

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in Maine and the second most common of the reportable infectious diseases in Maine.  May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month in Maine so remember to do your tick checks.

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that is carried by Ixodes

scapularis (the deer tick).  Cases have increased over the last five years in Maine, and occur in all 16 counties.  Lyme disease is most common among school age children and middle age adults.  As the weather continues to get warmer, more ticks will be out in the open, and most infections in Maine occur during the summer months.

 

The most common early symptom of Lyme disease is an expanding red rash that occurs at the site of the tick bite within 3-32 days after being bitten.  Fever, joint and muscle pains may also occur.  Lyme disease is treatable, and the majority of patients recover after receiving appropriate therapy.

Lyme disease is preventable.  Maine CDC recommends following the "No Ticks 4 ME" approach which includes:

1.  Wear protective clothing

2.  Use insect repellent

3.  Perform daily tick checks;

4.  Use caution in tick habitats

 

Ticks must be attached for 24-48 hours before the bacteria can be transmitted, so prompt removal of ticks is extremely important.  Anyone with a known tick bite, or who has been in a tick habitat should watch for symptoms for at least 30 days after the exposure.  If symptoms develop, call your physician.

 

Additional information:  Maine CDC has numerous educational materials available at Maine DHHS website

 

Source: Maine Forest Service May 16, 2011 Forest and Shade Tree Condition Report.  

Featured Videos: 

2011 Summer Teacher's Institute 

 

The 2011 Teacher's Institute will be held July 25-29 at the University of Maine, Farmington.  They will be visiting Backyard Farms in Madison (see below) and new programs in Ag Education including an apprenticeship program for high school students will be showcased. They will also be attending a workshop on hydroponics in the classroom and how to build and set up your own using fish and plants. Hands-on Learning, 3.5 CEU's, taste testing, and so much more!  For more information, visit the Maine Agriculture in the Classroom website.

Build a Bond with Birds
 
By Jason Martin, NestWatch 

Whether in a shrub, a tree, or a nest box, bird nests are all around us. By monitoring a nearby nest you can help scientists study the biology of North America's birds and how it might be changing over time. Every spring and summer, volunteers from across the country visit nests and report their findings to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's NestWatch program. As a NestWatcher, you keep tabs on bird family life, following the progression from incubated eggs, to fuzzy chicks, to gawky youngsters ready to take their first fluttering flight. All the information you gather is submitted online to the NestWatch database.

Instructions and all the materials you need to participate are available on the NestWatch website at www.nestwatch.org. You'll also get directions on how to find and monitor nests without disturbing the birds.  It's fun, it's easy, and it's free. 

The Cornell Lab's immensely popular NestCams are back too. Cameras broadcast live video over the web from the nests of Barn Owls, bluebirds, wrens, Wood Ducks, and many other species. Our newest camera is focused on a Great Horned Owl family in Houston, Minnesota. Check it out at www.nestcams.org.

 

Featured Extension Publications

The following horticulture related Extension publications are available online or can be ordered at the Extension Office nearest you.  Many other publications are available for free online or may be purchased at our secure publications web site.

Fertilizing a Home Lawn in Maine Item #2154 Publisher: UMaine Extension
Learn how to use fertilizer on your lawns to reduce the amount of pollutants getting into Maine ponds, lakes, rivers and coastal waters. Recent research has provided information that should change the way we choose to fertilize our lawns. Includes instructional video for online viewing. 3 pages. 2011. Download it for free, or buy a printout. $0.75

Selecting, Planting, and Caring for Trees and Shrubs in the Maine Landscape 

Item #2366  Publisher: UMaine Extension.  This 6-page bulletin discusses the functional aspects of evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs in the Maine landscape. Covers criteria for plant selection, forms of plants available from nurseries, transplanting wild plants, and good planting practices. 2003. Download it for free, or buy a printout. $1.00 

 

Trickle Irrigation: Using and Conserving Water in the Home Garden  Item #2160  Publisher: UMaine Extension.   4-page bulletin explains how trickle irrigation can conserve water by directing it where it is needed. Describes the benefits and disadvantages; lists resources for system design. 2003. Download it for free, or buy a printout.  $0.75 

Edited by:

Theresa Tilton, Administrative Assistant 

 

Contact Info
Donna R. Coffin, Extension Educator

207-564-3301 or in Maine 1-800-287-1491
and
Katherine Garland, Horticulturist
207-942-7396 or in Maine 1-800- 287-1485

In complying with the letter and spirit of applicable laws and pursuing its own goals of diversity, the University System shall not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, including transgender status or gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, or veteran's status in employment, education, and all other areas of the University System. The University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities upon request.  A member of the University of Maine System.
Information in this newsletter is provided purely for educational purposes. No responsibility is assumed for any problems associated with the use of products or services mentioned in this newsletter. No endorsement of products or companies is intended, nor is criticism of unnamed products or companies implied.

SURFACE MAIL RECIPIENTS CAN CONTACT THEIR COUNTY EXTENSION OFFICE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION WHEN WEB LINKS ARE INCLUDED IN AN ARTICLE.

 

Piscataquis County Office 207-564-3301 or 800-287-1491

165 East Main Street Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426

 

 

 

Penobscot County Office 207-942-7396 or 800-287-1485

307 Maine Avenue Bangor, ME 04401