University of Maine Cooperative Extension
fruits and veggies

Piscataquis & Penobscot

Gardening Newsletter

Volume 10 Issue 2                                         February 2012
In This Issue
February is the Month to...
Growing Sprouts
Master Gardener Training
Pollinator Workshop
Maine Garden Day
Demo Garden Programs
Bangor Community Garden
Featured Bulletins
Featured Videos
Events
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.
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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.
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February is the Month to...  

  • read, read, read.  Gardening books, bulletins, and websites can be great sources of information and inspiration.      
  • make a turtle sprout with your young gardening friends. 
  • grow edible sprouts.  See article below for details.  
  • sow onion and leek seeds indoors.  
  • start saving your toilet paper rolls, milk cartons, and egg containers for free seed starting.
    artichoke
    artichoke
  • pick a new crop to grow in 2012.  It's always fun to expand your pallet and learn something new.  You might find something you can't live without!   
  • force branches for indoor color  
  • learn more about protecting wildlife habitat and make plans to make your landscape more friendly for mammals, birds, beneficial insects, and spiders.  
Sprouts:  fresh greens you can grow any time of the year
adapted from Growing Edible Sprouts at Home by H.C. Harrison, University of Wisconsin Extension

Fresh winter greens can be grown with the following ingredients:  mason jar with screw-top ring, small piece of cheesecloth, aluminum foil, and seeds.  Here's how:
  • place layer of seeds in the bottom of the jar (see list of appropriate seed types below),  
  • cover top of jar with cheesecloth using the screw-top ring and cover outside of jar with aluminum foil,
  • rinse seeds and drain water through cheesecloth,  
  • fill jar with lukewarm water and soak for 12-24hours,
  • drain out all water,  
  • place jar in a dark location at room temperature,  
  • rinse seeds 2-4 times a day until sprouts develop to the desired size,  
  • enjoy in salads, soups, stir fries, sandwiches, or  
  • store in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.    

Seeds appropriate for sprouting include (but are not limited to):  alfafa, bean, broccoli, cabbage, radish, and chickpea.  For more details, read the full bulletin here  

Master Gardener Training Applications Due Feb 13th
Enrollment is now open for the 2012 Penobscot County Master Gardener Volunteer training.  The training will take place in Bangor on Thursday afternoons starting March 1st through May 31st.  To obtain an application and more information about the course, please call 942-7396 or email katherine.garland@maine.edu.  Please contact us if you would like to be added to our waiting list for the next training session that will be scheduled during evening hours.

Landscapes for Pollinators and People Workshops 

Learn how to have beautiful gardens that are safe and productive for you and nature.  We'll cover the following questions through discussions and hands-on activities:

  • What is a pollinator and why are they so important?
  • How can I safeguard pollinator habitat?
  • What native plants would attract pollinators?
  • How can I identify wild plants?
  • What are best practices to use in a pollinator-friendly garden?
  • What are realistic expectations for my landscape?

This day-long workshop will be offered on the following dates at these UMaine Extension sites:

  • Somerset County - April 12th, 2012
    7 County Drive  Skowhegan, ME  04976 
    1-800-287-1495 (in Maine) or 207-474-9622 
  • Piscataquis County - April 13th, 2012
    165 East Main Street  Dover-Foxcroft, ME  04426 
    1-800-287-1491 (in Maine) or 207-564-3301 
  • Penobscot County - April 24th, 2012
    307 Maine Ave.  Bangor, ME  04401 
    1-800-287-1485 (in Maine) or 207-942-7396 
  • Hancock County - April 25th, 2012
    63 Boggy Brook Road  Ellsworth, ME  04605 
    1-800-287-1479 (in Maine) or 207-667-8212 
     

Registration fee:  $10*
* Half price scholarships are available.  Please contact your local site for more information. 

Register online, or call/e-mail your local site to register.

19th Annual Maine Garden Day - registration now open
Workshops, Educational Displays and Trade Show

Saturday, April 14th, 2012 -  Lewiston High School

Over 30 workshops to choose from.  Including:
  • Shade and Fruit Tree Pruning
  • Organic Soil Ammendments
  • Growing and Using Herbs for Cooking and Crafting
  • Infrastructure for Livestock
  • Is a Root Cellar for Me?
  • Chainsaw Safety and Basic Operation
  • Edible Perennial Polycultures:  Food for Today, Food for the Future
  • and many more!
Advance registration only.  Seating limited.  First come, first served.  For more information, visit
Demonstration Garden Programs Announced

UMaine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County is happy to announce, back by popular demand, the gardening with raised beds series.  This year Master Gardener Volunteer, Dotty Hadler will teach you how to go from start to finish, or more appropriately, from boards to harvest.  In this series you will learn, hands-on, how to build, plant, maintain, and harvest from raised beds.

If you are interested in viewing last years garden, visit us on Facebook.

Objective:
For UMaine Extension staff and local Master Gardeners to care for the garden as a group and give monthly classes to show local county citizens how to successfully grow produce in a raised bed or container garden.

Location: 

UMaine Extension Piscataquis County Office

Court House Complex
165 East Main Street Dover-Foxcroft
The garden is to the left of the building.

  • Session 1 - Building a Raised Bed, Thursday May 10th, 2012 at 3:00 pm. Rain Date: Friday May 11th at 3:00 pm
  • Session 2 - Starting your Garden, Thursday June 7th, 2012 at 3:00 pm. Rain Date: Friday June 8th at 3:00 pm
  • Session 3 - Caring for your Garden, Thursday July 12th, 2012 at 3:00 pm. Rain Date: Friday July 13th at 3:00 pm
  • Session 4 - Using your Harvest, Thursday August 9th, 2012 at 3:00 pm. Rain Date: Friday August 10th at 3:00 pm With special guest Felicia Dumont, Nutrition Associate
  • Session 5 - Preserving your Harvest, Thursday September 13th, 2012 at 3:00 pm. Rain Date: Friday Septmeber 14th at 3:00 pm With special guest Jane Conroy, Extension Educator

To register for sessions, please call the office at (207) 564-3301 or email amanda.miles@maine.edu with your name, address, phone number and the session you are interested in.

 

 

Bangor Community Garden Accepting Applications   

BCG Banner Top

The garden had a tremendously successful first season in 2011.  We're pleased to announce that the Bangor Community Garden on Essex Street will be expanding the number of plots available for 2012.  If you, or anyone you know, is interested in leasing a plot in 2012, please contact Dan Muth (385-2525 or dmuth@nationalable.org) or Kate Garland (942-7396 or katherine.garland@maine.edu) to request an application.  Don't wait!  First-come, first-served.  Annual plot fees are $25 for each 4'x8' raised bed.   

canning jar with money You Can ...

 

Even though times are tough, You Can sustain your family. The Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative and the University of Maine Cooperative Extension have put together a series of workshops that will give you the skills to get started in self-sufficiency.

To register for a You Can program contact PVAEC, 48 Morton Ave., Suite M, Dover-Foxcroft, ME 04426 or call 564-6525 or register online at http://bit.ly/pyoucan. Sessions are held throughout Piscataquis County and nearby towns. Costs range from $5 to $10 with partial scholarships available. Go online to find the times and places for the following sessions.  

Feb. 7 - Slice It, Salt It, Stomp It

March 1 - Backyard Maple Syrup

March 1 - Small Scale Livestock Care

March 5 - Beginning Beekeeping

March 13 - Raise Cash as a Crop

March 14 - Simplify Your Life - Getting Back to the Good Ole' Days

March 20 - Spring Cleaning   

 

Featured Bulletins: 

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.


Starting Seeds at Home
Item #2751, Publisher: UMaine Extension
Succinct, straightforward instructions to successful preseason seed starting. Covers supplies needed, planting dates, germination time and optimum temperatures for common vegetable seeds, watering, and transplanting. Includes a diagram of a homemade PVC grow-light frame. Includes instructional video (for online viewing). 3 pages, 2008. Download it for free, or purchase at your local Extension office for $0.50.      

        

Extending the Gardening Season

Item #2752, Publisher: UMaine Extension
Provides an overview of various types of plastic mulches and their uses, as well as row covers, cold frames, hoop houses, hot caps, and insulating water tubes. Includes instructional videos for online viewing 5 pages, 2008. Download it for free, or purchase at your local Extension office for $0.75.      

 

Principles for Creating a Backyard Habitat

Habitats Series/7146.  Item #7132, Publisher: UMaine Extension
This 8-page fact sheet explains nine principles for creating landscapes beneficial to wildlife and humans alike. Includes list of backyard wildlife species common in Maine. 2000. Download it for free, or purchase at your local Extension office for $1.25.

 

Understanding Native Bees, the Great Pollinators: Enhancing Their Habitats in Maine 

Habitats Series/7146 Item #7153, Publisher: UMaine Extension 
Bees are "keystone organisms" in most terrestrial ecosystems. Without bees, many flowering plants would become extinct, and the diets of many fruit- and seed-eating birds and mammals, including people, would suffer. Learn about native bees in Maine and their habitat requirements, including ways to manage our yards for bees, so that they will survive, thrive and reproduce. Food plants, nest sites, and appropriate nest materials are covered. Includes plans and detailed instructions for building bee nesting houses. 12 pages, 2004. Download it for free, or purchase at your local Extension office for $1.50
       

 

Featured Videos:  

How to build a seed starting stand to extend the gardening season
Extending the gardening season using raised beds 
Events

 

Tuesday, February 7th 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Slice It, Salt It, Stomp It 

Preserve your garden's fresh vegetables for the winter without canning or freezing!  At this hands-on workshop you'll learn the fun and easy technique of lacto-fermination to keep vegetables in their raw state for months of delicious eating.  Mary Margaret Ripley has made over 25 diverse kinds of fermented vegetables at Ripley Organic Farm in Dover-Foxcroft. This program is part of the new YOU CAN... series sponsored by the Piscataquis Valley Adult Education Cooperative and UMaine Extension. For more information on all classes offered and to sign up for this session go to YOU CAN information

 

Friday, February 10, noon-1pm- Making Sense of Seed Catalogs, Page Farm and Home Museum, UMaine, Orono 

We all get inundated with catalogues this time of year and of course, want to order vast quantities of everything.  Bring in your favorite catalogues and roll up your sleeves with Master Gardener and garden writer, Lisa Colburn to learn how to navigate the features of the various catalogues; how to weigh the relative merits of local vs distant, large vs small nurseries; how to match descriptions of seed/plant requirements with growing conditions in our gardens, etc. etc.  Visitors to campus should stop in at the museum's front desk to pick up a free parking permit.  Directions to the Page Museum. 

 

Friday, February 17 - Best Greenhouse Practices: Effective Biocontrols & Reducing Your Heating Costs, Cozy Acres Greenhouses, N.Yarmouth, ME  

Cozy Acres owner Jeff Marstaller will give a tour, highlighting his geothermal heat system and other energy-saving installations.  BioBest's Ron Valentin will provide an expert introduction to greenhouse biocontrols (1 pesticide recertification credit).  You'll have an hour to ask questions about biocontrols (1 pesticide recertification credit).  We'll share energy-saving ideas ... not just geothermal, but ideas everyone can apply, too.  Together, we'll develop a list of everyone's favorite sources for containers, media, plants, etc, etc.  And, over lunch, you'll have a chance to catch up with friends.  Registration: SPACE IS LIMITED. Preregistration is required, online (credit card) or by mail (check).

Best Greenhouse Practices Workshop Brochure    

        

Saturday February 18th at 1pm, 1st Annual Tanglewood 5k Snowshoe Race

Join us for this fun event at Tanglewood 4-H Camp and Learning Center off Ducktrap Road in Lincolnville. The event is a fundraiser for needed repairs to the historic stone fireplace and chimney in our dining hall.  

The race trail includes woodsy, hilly terrain and views of the Ducktrap River. Register in advance on-line or on race day. Registration is open to anyone 13 years old and older. The fee of $25.00 includes hot soup, cookies, hot chocolate and coffee. Prizes will be awarded to the top three finishers.

For children twelve and under we are offering the opportunity to participate in a fun 500- yard snowshoe dash. Children's snowshoes will be available for the dash on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Questions may be emailed to: jpincince@myfairpoint.net.    

February Vacation Camp 

Journey through the snowy forest to Big Pine Lodge at Tanglewood in Lincolnville, from where you will embark on adventures to find out where animals hide in winter and how they survive! Enjoy sledding, art and the warmth of hot chocolate and a cozy wood-heated cabin!

  • February 21 & 22 for ages 6-8
  • February 23 & 24 for ages 9-13
  • Programs take place from 9:00AM -2:00PM each day; after care is available from 2-4:00PM.
  • Cost: $65/child for the 2-day program; aftercare fee is $15
  • Space is limited, register online or call Patti at 207-789-5868   

Tanglewood's trails are open to the public for hiking, skiing and snowshoeing!  

Trail maps are available at the kiosk at the head of the trail as well as on our website.  Trails are maintained primarily by volunteers - please contact Sharon Gilbert at 207-789-5868 if you are interested in volunteering!  

 

Friday, February 25th, 2-5pm - Meet Your Farmers and Fishermen at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 120 Park St., Bangor

Come to: learn about buying a share; become acquainted with local seasonal foods; meet your local farmers and fishermen; and discover how you can grow a relationship with them.  In the "community supported" model of local foods purchasing, a customer commits to buying a share of the coming harvest before the season begins. The benefit? You provide operating support to local farms and fishermen while getting your locally grown and harvested food direct from the producer at a fair price.

The event is co-sponsored by the Maine Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association (MOFGA) and local organizations at each site.
  Admission is free.  Additional highlights include: local produce & other products from the farm available for sale, light refreshments featuring local seasonal foods, live entertainment and more!  For more information, contact MOFGA's Organic Marketing Coordinator Melissa White Pillsbury, 207-568-4142, melissa@mofga.org or visit the MOFGA website   

 

2012 Maine Vegetable & Fruit School, March 8 at Seasons Conference Center in Portland and March 9 at the Bangor Motor Inn.  Topics include: 

  • Legislative Update: Pesticide Application, Notification and More...
  • Caterpillar Tunnel and Degradable Mulch Trials
  • Making Irrigation Work at Laughing Stock Farm
  • Soil Health Management for the Long Term
  • Herbicide Update for Vegetables
  • Crop Insurance Update
  • High Tunnels: State of The Art
  • A Virtual Visit to Pleasant Valley Gardens
  • Soil Testing: New Techniques, New Options to Better Know Your Soils
  • Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown Marmorated Stink Bug: New Pests, Big Problems
  • High Tunnel Survey Project: What are We Growing and How?

A brochure with a registration form is attached and more information is posted on our website.  Please register by February 22, 2012.  The cost is $35.00 and includes lunch.  Participants may receive 2 Pesticide Applicator recertification credits, and Certified Crop Advisors may earn 5 recertification credits.  We hope to see you there!  

 

Thursday, March 15th 9:30-1:30pm, Kids Can Grow Train-the-Trainer Workshop  

Volunteers and youth service agency staff are invited to a training on the Kids Can Grow experiential youth gardening program model. The training is intended to give you the training and associated documents to help you start a new pilot program in your area. The program works best when staff and volunteers can work together as a team to assure a low teacher/student ratio. Agencies and volunteers are encouraged to attend as a small team to assist in planning a program for this season. The training is free but pre-registration is required by March 12.

Through Kids Can Grow, youth grow their own vegetables, flower and herbs in small 3-foot by 5-foot raised bed gardens using square foot gardening methods as a garden planning tool. 

Kids Can Grow Training Brochure  

 

Friday, March 16th, Boston Flower Show Bus Trip

The Bangor Garden Club is sponsoring its "Day Trip to the Boston Flower and Garden Show". Join us for an inspirational day for "FIRST IMPRESSIONS" among beautiful flowers and plants. An added bonus for us this day is John Gidding, Host of HGTV's Curb appeal: The Block. He will be presenting two lectures, 11:30 am and 2:30 pm.

 

Bangor Garden Club is a social, working and educational group of folks who suggest that you make your ticket reservations at your earliest convenience. Cyr Bus seats fill quickly.

Boston Flower Show Bus Trip Brochure 

 

Saturday, April 28th, Maine School Garden Day 2012, Buckfield Jr./Sr. HS 

Teachers and educators from schools across the state will be participating in this event promoting school gardens. In 2011, over 100 educators attended this event in Waldoboro.   

 

Classes will focus on topics such as How to start a School Garden, How to grow crops in Maine year-round, What crops to grow, and How much to plant.  Through a partnership with Oxford County Cooperative Extension and the Maine School Garden Network, Maine Ag in the Classroom is pleased to offer this timely program for educators that are interested in starting or growing a garden program.  Find more information on our website.

  

Saturday, May 5, 10am-noon - Apple Tree Pruning Demonstration at Hirundo Wildlife Refuge, Old Town

We will demonstrate the renovation of old apple trees to improve their appearance and ability to bear fruit. Apple trees that have not been pruned in the recent past generally have a crowded canopy of branches that bear fruit sparsely. As part of this class, we will demonstrate the type of pruning that promotes a flowering and fruiting habit and the steps involved in beginning the renovation process. The class will be led by Renae Moran, University of Maine Tree Fruit Specialist. Glen Koehler of the UMaine Extension Pest Management Office will also be on board to discuss preventing pest damage to apple trees and fruit.

Free.  No registration required.  Directions to Hirundo Wildlife Refuge


 

 

 

 

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


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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