the tollgate farm news · gardens. jennifer and past editors have devel-oped a template for the...
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Volume 26 Issue 8 august 2020
The Tollgate Farm News
Greetings Tollgate Garden Volunteers!
We are into August, the top of the summer season. We continue to strive for a safe and
meaningful interaction in the gardens. Pro-gress has been made in corralling the
weeds in the Farmhouse and children’s gar-den and team efforts continue in PAR and
the nursery gardens.
Like last season around this time, we have
had some high heat days limiting our activ-ities but not our enthusiasm. I am grateful
to all who have been out to participate in the maintenance of the gardens and the
food security efforts in PAR.
Let your talents show and grow!
I am interested in hearing from any mem-
ber who would like to participate in social media efforts to keep our members con-
nected. We would welcome new ideas, newsletter articles and assistance. Contact
Roy or myself to get started. [email protected]
I recently got a shot of nature on a self- guided drive through the Shiawassee Na-
ture Refuge near Saginaw. Several acres of managed flooded wetland units are con-
trolled by pumping and selective draining for the refuge of migrating birds and water-
fowl. We saw the usual cast of characters including herons, deer, swans, ducks,
cranes and a few unexpected ones- otters, eagles and PELICANS. And yes one lazy
woodchuck.
Get out and find your nature fix!
Renee Cottrell,
President Tollgate Garden Volunteers
Notes from the President Renee Cottrell
“Summer breeze, light fluffy
clouds…Mother Nature has a canvas for every season.”
-Terri Guillemets
Photos by Renee Cottrell
Page 2
Greetings all,
I hope and trust that this issue of the Tollgate Gar-den Newsletter finds you all well. It has been a challenging time for the gardens and for life. With no organized Saturday workdays, some of the gardens are looking a bit scruffy. Even so, many volunteers have made it through MSU’s online Volunteer Selection Process (VSP) and are com-ing to the farm on their own or in small teams to take care of the gardens. Their work has been in-valuable in keeping the gardens from turning into weed demonstration plantings. It is also good to see so many familiar faces. I certainly encourage all volunteers to stay within their comfort area. Do not feel any pressure to join us on the farm any sooner than you feel comfortable doing so. How-ever, Tollgate offers an outdoors working environ-ment where it is easy to maintain an appropriate distance from others. If you are willing to come back to the farm, your help would really be appre-ciated.
VSP Process
I strongly encourage all volunteers to work their way through the VSP process. Participating in the VSP process is required of MSU’s thousands of volunteers state-wide by the end of 2020. The pro-cess can be intimidating, but it is not overly diffi-
cult. Tollgate site director, Mike Mathis, has tasked Tollgate staffer, Carmen Hamilton, with helping the farm’s volunteers work their way through the VSP process. Carmen is a very caring person who has really become a master of the VSP process. If you have difficulties, please let me know. Carmen and I can get you through it!
Although MSU Extension had originally projected an opening date for the farm of September 1, the pandemic is still very much with us. It may well be that campus will extend the farm’s closure beyond September 1. The farm is pretty quiet these days. The open spaces and worthwhile work in the gar-dens make it a good place to be. When you are ready to get out of the house, Renee Cottrell or I would be happy to help you connect with a garden project that would suit your interests.
Garden Newsletter Editor Needed!
Our current garden newsletter editor, Jennifer Roberts, will be leaving her position at the end of 2020. The garden newsletter is one of our primary communication methods within our garden organi-zation. It keeps us all informed about workdays, special events, meeting speakers, and lots of oth-er garden happenings. We all enjoy the informa-tive articles and wonderful pictures of the farm and gardens. Jennifer and past editors have devel-oped a template for the newsletter, so the process of putting it together is as easy as it can be. All of the articles are submitted by Tollgate volunteers and MSU staff. Please contact myself or Renee Cottrell if you are interested in learning more about this opportunity to support the farm.
Tollgate Garden Facebook Page
I would like to start a Facebook page for our Toll-gate Garden community. Access to the page would be limited to Tollgate garden volunteers. Members could post thoughts and images on any horticultural area, including the Tollgate gardens, their own gardens, or garden topics in general. The page could be a forum for talking about what’s happening in the Tollgate gardens, upcom-ing events, gardeners seeking gardening advice, “what’s wrong with my plant” questions, etc. Much of the discussion would probably be similar to what we talk about on our Saturday workdays. I am looking for someone who would like to work with me and Tollgate’s garden advisory group to help administer this Facebook page. If you are interested in this project, please contact me and we can discuss it further.
Thanks!
Roy
Roy Prentice
FROM THE TOLLGATE
FARM MANAGER
GREETINGS
Photo by Roy Prentice
Page 3
The Nursery Team is continuing to enjoy
our summer in the nursery! It’s been a very
different year, as we’ve worked in small so-
cially distanced groups of 2 or 3, rather than
the larger work groups working shoulder to
shoulder for our big potting sessions on Satur-
day workdays. But we have stayed focused
on what needs to be done to reclaim the
nursery from the weeds, and then maintain
them.
We’ve focused primarily on keeping our
plants growing and healthy. After going
through the entire nursery to weed and identi-
fy dead plants to remove from the nursery, we
fertilized all the pots to provide the best oppor-
tunity for them to not just survive, but to thrive.
We have been watering our plants regularly –
using the automated irrigation system where it
is available in the nursery rows under the trel-
lis and watering the pots in the shade house
at least 3 times each week. We routinely walk
the rows and look for weeds. Plants growing
in a pot need to use all the space available for
strong healthy roots, so we work hard to keep
the crown of the plant just an inch or less from
the top edge of the pot. We often re-pot plants
that have sunken low in the pot to provide
maximum space for roots to grow. This also
helps to protect plants through the winter –
with less space for snow and ice to accumu-
late and melt during warmer spells, there is
less moisture held in the pot that results in
dead plants in the spring. Some plants are
particularly susceptible to problems of ex-
cess moisture in the pot, and thus are hard
to overwinter successfully – Asclepias tuber-
osa (Butterfly Weed) is the famous example
of this problem!
YES, we will be requesting donations of
some of the great plants in your home gar-
den to help us stock up the nursery! I know
many of us have had much more time than
normal to focus on our gardens at home this
summer – and fall is a great time to renovate
and move some things around in your garden.
Look for a message later this month with di-
rections on how to donate plants to Tollgate
this fall.
If you are missing Tollgate and the Nurse-
ry, see the pictures nearby. Hope that they
will take you on a bit of a stroll through the
nursery to check out what’s there and maybe
bring back pleasant memories of the Nursery
and Tollgate workdays
As always, If you have questions, want to
learn more about the Nursery or find out about
joining our team for next year, please contact
Peg Palmer - [email protected].
VOLUNTEERS TOGETHER DIVIDING GROWING SHARING
NURSERY NOTES Peg Palmer
NURSERY NOTES
Above photo provided by Peg Palmer
Asclepias tuberosa—Butterfly Weed
Page 4
F
RO
M T
HE
NU
RS
ER
Y
Opuntia humifusa—Prickly Pear Cactus Ferns—Ostrich, Japanese Painted and more
Geranium ‘Azure Rush’—Hardy Geranium Rudbeckia—Black Eyed Susan
Eutrochium purpureum -Joe Pye Weed
Polygonatum -Solomon’s Seal (Variegated, Giant)
Hosta -Green Leaves
Photos on pages 4 & 5 provided by Peg Palmer
Page 5
F
RO
M T
HE
NU
RS
ER
Y
Darmera peltata—Indian Rhubarb Dicentra—Bleeding Heart
Bergenia cordifolia—Pigsqueak Corydalis lutea (yellow), C. ochroleuca (white)
Astilbe—Rheinland (mostly)
Aquilegia—Columbine Asclepias incarnata—Swamp Milkweed
Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’ - Bugloss
Page 6
Photos by Renee Cottrell
Page 7
Photos by Renee Cottrell
Page 8
Photos by Roy Prentice
Page 9
Photos by Roy Prentice
Page 10
Left: This turkey family that makes frequent
appearances all over the property. It ap-
pears to be two hens that have combined
their families, the chicks being of two dis-
tinct size groupings. They can be seen in
the back fields, walking along the drive-
ways, or strolling through the gardens.
Photos on this page by Roy Prentice
Page 11
Take a Tollgate Picture
Now that we have permission to resume volunteer activities at Tollgate, consider tak-
ing some pictures for the Tollgate calendar. The preferred format is jpeg, landscape files.
Send photo files at full or actual size in separate emails if necessary. Please email your files to Larry Bolam at [email protected].
Summer is a beautiful time at Tollgate, think about capturing that beauty in a photo
for the Tollgate calendar.
Wishing you a wonderful summer outside & in your garden!
Click on this link to the form on the MSU Extension Tollgate Farm and Education Center website: MSU Tollgate Garden Volunteers Membership Form. Forms will also be available at the
next Tollgate Volunteer General meeting and attached to this newsletter.
Thank-you!
Angie Carter
Photo by David Komraus Photo by Roy Prentice
Photo by Renee Cotttrell Photo by Roy Prentice
Page 12
Volunteer Activity Day and Meetings Information
248-347-3860 ext. 400
● The next Tollgate Gardens Advisory Council
meeting will be held on Tuesday, September
1st at 7:00 pm. All Tollgate Gardens Volunteer
members are welcome to attend.
● Listings to contact individual Council Members
and Area Garden Leaders are available at all
general meetings and in the Volunteer
Communication Center.
● Tollgate Volunteer Membership is renewed
annually. The 2020 Tollgate Garden Volunteers
membership is from January 1, 2020 to
December 31, 2020.
Farm Manager Roy Prentice - 248 347-3860 ext. 251 email - [email protected]
President .......................... Renee Cottrell
Vice President… ............... Marilyn Alimpich
Secretary… ....................... Dave Komraus
Treasurer .......................... Sue Janczarek
Membership ...................... Angie Carter
PR ...................................... TBD
Programs .......................... Jackie Stengel
Hospitality ........................ Teresa LaRosa
Farm News Editor ............. Jennifer Roberts
For membership questions or to update your current membership information send email to:
MSU Tollgate Gardens Volunteers For general information and questions Contact Roy Prentice or See Website:
http://tollgate.msu.edu/volunteering/
Activity Days Until further notice group work activity days are on hold. Volunteers may work individually at Tollgate following the guidelines established by MSU Extension. You may contact Roy at [email protected] to be re-ferred to the appropriate Area Garden Leader/ or Renee to be assigned work activities. Watch your e-mails for updates as available. We strongly recommend you bring your own tools for your garden activi-
ties during the pandemic crisis. All tools borrowed from the toolshed
must be sanitized with a 10% bleach solution prior to returning to the
shed after use
If you aren’t getting
The Tollgate Farm News
email, Check your
SPAM folder
• Trowel
• Pruners
• Loppers
• Garden Scissors
• Your Favorite Weeding Implement
• Hand Saw
• Plant Division Forks
• Shrub Rake
• Sun Screen
• Garden Gloves
• Knee Pads
• Insect Repellant
List of Suggested Gardening Implements to Bring
from Home as Needed
• Spades
• Garden Rakes
• Brooms
• Wheelbarrows
• Weed Buckets
• Leaf Rakes
• Garden Hoe
• Long Handled
Garden Forks
Garden Tools Available for Use at Tollgate
Page 13
In the event of an emergency please notify:
____________________________________________ __________ - _____________________________
Name Phone
Were you a Tollgate volunteer member last year? Yes ( ) No ( ) Are you interested in serving on a committee or garden project? Yes ( ) No ( )
If yes, please note below if you have a particular area of interest.
________________________________________________________________
A donation in support of the Tollgate Volunteer organization would be greatly appreciated ($20 suggested). If you would like the newsletter mailed to you rather than
emailed, please include an additional $10 to cover postage. Check here to have the newsletter mailed to you. ___
Make checks payable to: Michigan State University
Return to: Tollgate Gardens Volunteer Office 28115 Meadowbrook
Novi, MI 48377-3128
Questions: Phone: 248-347-3860 Ext. 251
2020 Membership is from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020 Please read this Privacy Policy:
By filling out and submitting this form you authorize the Tollgate Garden Volunteers (TGV) and MSU to
use your contact information to communicate with you via email, newsletters and other formats. If you
wish your email and other identification information to not be used by the TGV and MSU, please check
this box ( ). (By checking this box you will not receive email notification of workdays, or other volunteer
Name_____________________________________________
Address____________________________________________
City _______________________________________ MI
Zip______________ - _________
________________________________ Name you would like on badge
Telephone Number Day ______ - ___________________________
Evening ______ - ___________________________
Email ____________________________________
Date Submitted __________________________
2020 Please print all entries. Thank you.
MSU Tollgate Garden Volunteers Membership Form