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NEIGHBORHOOD GARDEN FOR DECEMBER 25, 2004 ****************************************************************** YOU CAN BE A MASTER GARDENER BY GEORGE EDGAR Have you made
any New Years Resolutions? Why not make one that increases your
gardening knowledge and also would make a good Christmas present to
yourself? Sign up now for the Master Gardener classes that will start in
March. Master
Gardeners are trained volunteers for the University of Nebraska
Cooperative Extension. They receive 40 hours of training in many areas
of horticulture. In return
Master Gardeners volunteer 40 hours of their time to horticulture
programs and activities in the extension office. There is a charge for
the program and Pre-registration
is required. Lincoln
is fortunate to have both daytime and evening classes. Classes
sponsored by the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension in
Lancaster County will be held in the daytime at the Lancaster County
Extension Office, Suite A, Rooms ABC, 444 Cherrycreek Road, Lincoln. You
can call the Extension Office at (402) 441-7180 for more information
and/or to receive an application form. A
request for an application form is available on the internet at (http://lancaster.unl.edu/hort/masterg.htm).
The classes will meet every Monday and Wednesday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00
p.m. starting in March. There is a charge for the classes. Topics that
will be covered include “Plant Pathology”, “Turf, Soil and
Weeds”, “Landscape Solutions”, “Fruit Selection and Care”,
“Trees”, “Vegetables”, “Fruit Problems”, “Basic
Entomology”, “Wildlife”, and “Perennials”. Classes are taught
by University of Nebraska-Lincoln professors, Extension Educators, and
Lincoln Parks & Recreation Horticulturists. The University
of Nebraska-Lincoln Campus-based Master Gardener program was developed
in 2004 to provide horticulture education and volunteer opportunities
for people who have other commitments during daytime hours. Over 120
people were in the initial class. In 2005, we are limiting the number of participants to make
the educational sessions more interactive.
Those that do not get into this year’s class will be eligible
for the 2006 class. As with the
daytime classes, 40 hours of horticultural education and then
volunteering 40 hours on University or community projects are required.
The campus-based Master Gardener program will be held for 14 weeks,
beginning on March 1, 2005 and running every Tuesday through May 30,
2005. Classes will be from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm on East Campus. There
is a registration fee which includes a parking permit that will allow you
to park on campus during class periods.
Most of the classes will be structured as half inside (lecture)
and half outside (landscape observations.
A number of topics, including plant selection and management,
landscape design, wildlife, fruit and vegetable gardening and pest
management, will be covered during the classes.
For more
information and/or an application form call (402) 472-1640 or (402)
472-8616. Information, but
not application forms, can also be found on the internet at the Nebraska
Master Gardener Program website http://mastergardener.unl.edu.
Gladys was in
the first Master Gardener classes in Lancaster County in 1977. This will
be my 9th year in the Master Gardener Program. We both
heartily recommend the program as a way to learn more about Gardening
and also provide a community service. ****************************************************************** Christmas
cactus update by george edgar I have 5
Christmas cactus. One
started blooming about Thanksgiving time and one finished last week.
The other three did not show any sign of putting on buds so just
after Thanksgiving I set them out on a table by the back door.
We had warm weather and the temperature for a few days was not
supposed to be below freezing. They
stayed there for three nights and were brought inside when the forecast
was for evening temperatures to be in the 20’s.
My wife thought I had killed these cacti by subjecting them to
night-time temperatures in the upper 30’s.
I just waited, and about 10 days later all three started to
develop buds. Two will probably bloom in about a week when our son is
here from New York. Now they are in a South window in my walkout
basement. Some books say
Christmas cactus need a dark, rest period in order to bloom. Mine are
usually in an East window in the walkout basement where it is dark only
at night and seem to start blooming when they get a cold treatment. So,
if you have tried everything else and your Christmas cactus is not
blooming, you might try a cold treatment.
Do not subject them to freezing temperatures but for 3 or 4 days
when the temperature is going to be at least in the upper 30’s during
the daytime , take your plant outside and then bring it in at night. You
just may shock it into blooming. have
a happy holiday and new year of good gardening!!! |