Dates have been set for the 2013 Master Gardener Summer Session. This year we will be meeting in Central Iowa, in and around the Ames campus on Friday July 12 and Saturday July 13. Friday evening we'll meet at Reiman Gardens for a dinner at which we'll recognize outstanding Master Gardeners from around Iowa and the projects that they have worked on. (See the following article on Search for Excellence applications.)  

On Saturday we'll start the day at the Iowa Arboretum near Luther then move to the Horticulture Research Farm at Gilbert for an update on several research projects run by faculty in the Horticulture Department. After lunch and more tour stops at the Hort Research Farm, we'll return to Reiman Gardens for a more thorough look at the indoor and outdoor displays there. Details will follow in future newsletters, but be sure to reserve these dates on your calendar now.

Applications are now being taken for the 2013 Iowa Master Gardener Search for Excellence Awards. We know that many of you are involved in noteworthy projects, but we don't always hear about them. Here's your chance to let others know what you're working on. As a guideline, consider the following categories for submission:

Demonstration garden

Youth  

Workshop or presentation

Community Service

Innovative Project

Special Needs Audience

Research (applied scientific methodology)

The State Master Gardener Advisory Committee will be meeting on campus on April 12. Each area of the state has one Master Gardener and one Extension staff member representative. You may contact your representatives with items that you would like the committee to consider.  

Committee members and the year that their current term expires are listed here:

Fayette County, 2013); Michelle Kenyon Brown (staff, Linn County, 2014)

University of Illinois Extension currently has 8 free IPM modules online for Master Gardener continuing education. The topics are: bacterial leaf scorch, brown marmorated stink bug, sudden oak death, thousand canker disease, spruce problems, downy mildew on basil and impatiens, emerald ash borer, and bur oak blight. The modules include information and pictures of the pathogen or pest, host plants, symptoms, diagnosis, and management strategies.  

Participants must create a login and password to access the modules. After studying the material presented in the module, participants take a short quiz. They must repeat the quiz until they receive a perfect score and then they are directed to an online evaluation of the module. When finished, the participant is able to print out a certificate, which validates their completion of the module. Each module takes about ½ hour to complete. Check with your local coordinator in Iowa to get approval for Master Gardener continuing education credits (½ hour for each segment) for completion of these IPM course modules.

To access the modules go to: http://mg.cropsci.illinois.edu/ 

Alaska Flowers, Fjords & Friends 

Join nearly 1000 other Master Gardeners from around the U.S. and Canada at the 2013 International Master Gardener Conference, which will be held September 7-14, aboard an Alaskan cruise ship. If you go, you'll need to register for the conference and book your stay on the ship at the conference website. 

Are you a photography buff? Each year the Iowa State University Extension & Outreach Calendar is based on a theme. For 2015 the theme will be garden whimsy. As you're out and about this year, if you see and photograph images that fit the garden whimsy theme, we'd be interested in seeing them for consideration for inclusion in the 2015 calendar. Minimum quality standards for the photos are: 300 d.p.i. for a 9 x 12 inches landscape orientation. Images may be jpg or tiff format. Deadline for submission of images will be March 1, 2014. That gives you plenty of time to create and photograph some fabulously fun garden art.

Please email your entries to Cindy or Denny or mail a DVD or jump drive containing the high-res images to us at 106 Horticulture Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011. Photographers will be credited in the calendar, but there is no monetary compensation for selected images.

Share your community garden's story and the garden could receive a one-year supply (56 bags) of Milorganite organic nitrogen fertilizer. Five community gardens will be selected as winners.

Visit Milorganite.com for details and the application form. All entries must be submitted by April 15th, 2013.

For more details call Erin Haubert at (800) 287-9645 ext. 6814.

Select Seeds, a company that specializes in heirloom open-pollinated flower seeds, donates leftover seeds to 4-H Clubs, Master Gardener Programs, Cooperative Extension activities, and schools all over the country. To request seeds for your projects write to them on Extension letterhead and tell them about your project and how they can help!

Send your requests to:

Select Seeds, 180 Stickney Hill Rd., Union, CT 06076, 800-684-0395.

Cerro Gordo County Master Gardeners staffed a booth at the North Iowa Home Improvement and Landscaping Show. The educational topic this year was "pruning".  A team of 20 Master Gardeners volunteered at the booth throughout the weekend event. As you can see, the Iowa Master Gardener and ISU Extension & Outreach logos were prominently displayed!