The Holidays are over, now what do you do with your poinsettia? Poinsettias are a native plant of Mexico and can grow up to 10 feet tall in their natural environment. Your beautiful poinsettia can be kept for the next Christmas season, if you adhere to the following tips. Keep the soil evenly moist, and don't let it dry out. Poinsettias need at least five hours of bright light a day. Poinsettias need daytime temperatures between 65-75 degrees and nighttime temperatures not below 50 degrees. In the spring, cut each stem back to six inches and apply fertilizer every two weeks. In June, the poinsettia can be put outside in a place where they will have morning sun and partial shade in the afternoon. Bring your plant inside before the outside temperature goes below 65 degrees. Starting Oct. 1, the poinsettia needs full darkness from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. This can be done by putting it into a dark closet or placing a cardboard box over the top of the plant. Continue the hours of darkness for eight weeks and your poinsettia should bloom by Christmas. The flower of the poinsettia is the small yellow part, or cyathia. The red bracts are modified leaves to attract pollinators. Poinsettias bloom for a long time. The cyathia and bracts will drop off the plant when the pollen is gone.
Now, to get through the winter months. January's cold weather and curling up with seed catalogs just seem to go together. Planning for spring plantings and looking for new plants to try in my garden is something I enjoy doing, but not as much as turning the soil for the first time in the spring or harvesting the first spring vegetables. My name is Tamara Schulte and I have been gardening since I was a child. My grandparents and parents instilled in me a love for growing, nurturing and harvesting the fruits of my labors. I am a member of the Green County Master Gardener Association. We present workshops and trainings, volunteer, and fulfill continuing education requirements each year.
The GCMGA started in 2004, and about 135 people have taken the 100-hour Master Gardener Training in the last 14 years. There are 33 certified members who are ready to share their passion and love of gardening. Master Gardener volunteers are available to answer questions about gardening, vegetables, fruits, perennials, flowers, lawn care, and trees or shrubs. MGV have a wealth of knowledge and experience and look forward to sharing their talents with everyone from preschoolers to seniors. You are never too young or old to dig in the dirt. You don't need a big plot of land to plant a garden. A pot, soil, and seeds are all you need to get started. MGV hold a plant sale and symposium each spring and plan garden tours each summer to share our love of gardening.
Volunteering is a large part of our mission. Community service, continuing education, exchanging ideas about garden practices and providing a link between the community and the UW-Extension are the goals of GCMGA. In 2017, Master Gardeners volunteered a total of 2,155 hours conducting youth and adult education and community service projects. Since 2004 a total of 24,773 hours have been donated by MGV. In Green County, current group activities are at the New Glarus Historical Museum Prairie, Monroe Arts Center, New Glarus School Gardens, Pleasant View Nursing Home Gardens, Green County Justice Center Garden, New Glarus Flower Clock/Village Garden, National Cheesemaking Center, and the Albany Community Gardens. MGV teamed up with the Pecatonica FFA Chapter to donate 100 garden kits, including seeds and UW-Extension gardening publications, that were distributed to food pantries around Green County.
The GCMGA meets the fourth Thursday of the month from February to October. The public is invited to attend meetings. A calendar of events is posted on the GCMGA website. Speakers or tours are planned for most Master Gardener monthly meetings at 7 p.m. at the Green County Justice Center. Association officers for 2018 are president Rae Wellnitz, vice president Tanna McKeon, secretary Kristi Leonard, treasurer Lynn Lokken. Each year the GCMGA awards up to $1,000 in scholarships to graduates of a high schools in Green County entering horticulture fields of study.
The Master Gardener website and blog has information about our organization, including forms for organizations to request speakers or projects, scholarship forms, and the calendar of events. Any horticulture questions or requests need to go through the UW-Extension office. Staff will then direct the question or request to the appropriate MGV. UW-Extension phone number: 608-328-9440. GCMGA website: https://green.uwex.edu/horticulture/gcmga/.
- Tamara Schulte is a master gardener with the University of Wisconsin-Extension. She can be reached at schulte1@tds.net.
Now, to get through the winter months. January's cold weather and curling up with seed catalogs just seem to go together. Planning for spring plantings and looking for new plants to try in my garden is something I enjoy doing, but not as much as turning the soil for the first time in the spring or harvesting the first spring vegetables. My name is Tamara Schulte and I have been gardening since I was a child. My grandparents and parents instilled in me a love for growing, nurturing and harvesting the fruits of my labors. I am a member of the Green County Master Gardener Association. We present workshops and trainings, volunteer, and fulfill continuing education requirements each year.
The GCMGA started in 2004, and about 135 people have taken the 100-hour Master Gardener Training in the last 14 years. There are 33 certified members who are ready to share their passion and love of gardening. Master Gardener volunteers are available to answer questions about gardening, vegetables, fruits, perennials, flowers, lawn care, and trees or shrubs. MGV have a wealth of knowledge and experience and look forward to sharing their talents with everyone from preschoolers to seniors. You are never too young or old to dig in the dirt. You don't need a big plot of land to plant a garden. A pot, soil, and seeds are all you need to get started. MGV hold a plant sale and symposium each spring and plan garden tours each summer to share our love of gardening.
Volunteering is a large part of our mission. Community service, continuing education, exchanging ideas about garden practices and providing a link between the community and the UW-Extension are the goals of GCMGA. In 2017, Master Gardeners volunteered a total of 2,155 hours conducting youth and adult education and community service projects. Since 2004 a total of 24,773 hours have been donated by MGV. In Green County, current group activities are at the New Glarus Historical Museum Prairie, Monroe Arts Center, New Glarus School Gardens, Pleasant View Nursing Home Gardens, Green County Justice Center Garden, New Glarus Flower Clock/Village Garden, National Cheesemaking Center, and the Albany Community Gardens. MGV teamed up with the Pecatonica FFA Chapter to donate 100 garden kits, including seeds and UW-Extension gardening publications, that were distributed to food pantries around Green County.
The GCMGA meets the fourth Thursday of the month from February to October. The public is invited to attend meetings. A calendar of events is posted on the GCMGA website. Speakers or tours are planned for most Master Gardener monthly meetings at 7 p.m. at the Green County Justice Center. Association officers for 2018 are president Rae Wellnitz, vice president Tanna McKeon, secretary Kristi Leonard, treasurer Lynn Lokken. Each year the GCMGA awards up to $1,000 in scholarships to graduates of a high schools in Green County entering horticulture fields of study.
The Master Gardener website and blog has information about our organization, including forms for organizations to request speakers or projects, scholarship forms, and the calendar of events. Any horticulture questions or requests need to go through the UW-Extension office. Staff will then direct the question or request to the appropriate MGV. UW-Extension phone number: 608-328-9440. GCMGA website: https://green.uwex.edu/horticulture/gcmga/.
- Tamara Schulte is a master gardener with the University of Wisconsin-Extension. She can be reached at schulte1@tds.net.
