Fond du Lac County Master Gardener Association
Minutes of the March 13, 2012 Meeting
The March 13th meeting was called to order by President Doug Kindschuh at 10:00 a.m.
35 Members were present. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
The Purpose of the Fond du Lac County Master Gardener Association, as stated in our By-Laws, was read.
Purpose: The purpose of this organization is to provide, in conjunction with University of Wisconsin Extension, horticultural information and education to Fond du Lac County residents; provide continuing horticultural education to its members; facilitate the exchange of ideas, information and experiences among members.
The Secretary & Treasurer Reports were approved.
Diane Soffa read a letter from Chegwin Elementary School thanking the MG volunteers for assisting in their school gardening program. Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum also sent a letter thanking us for our past monetary support and is requesting our monetary support again in 2012. It was suggested that we have a speaker from Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum at a future MG meeting.
The Action Advertiser had a large article and photo advertising our Day in the Garden event on March 31, 2012.
Mike Rankin indicated the Master Gardener organization now has an office set up in the UW Extension office. The Helpline will be located in the office.
Day in the Garden: Dolores Braun reminded everyone to turn in their registration form. Committees are in place, everyone is to volunteer as needed during the day. Set-up begins on Friday after 4:00 p.m.
Plant Sale: Volunteer sign-up sheet was circulated. The greenhouse of the campus may be available for starting plants.
School Gardens: Anna Toman indicated there is a need for additional volunteers and they need a garden tiller.
Public Relations: The public relation committee has increased publicity of our Day in the Garden event and provided information about our MG organization. Articles have been published in various newspapers, e-mails were sent to other Master Gardener organizations and information displayed on a bulletin board at the Fond du Lac Public Library.
MG volunteers will be on the KFIZ (1450 am) radio program “Landscape Smart” on Saturday mornings from 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. from March 24 thru November 3, 2012. This is a call-in show and the program is sponsored by Rademann Stone & Landscape.
Lin Morris indicated the purchase of a laptop computer for our organization is in process. When it is set up, it will be used during the Helpline and Power Point presentations added. Helpline training will begin in April and volunteers are needed for both the Helpline and the radio show.
Master Gardener Motor Coach Bus Trip: Gail Williams, Janet Tess and Shirley Frieler have made arrangements for another wonderful bus trip to tour three locations: Monches Farm, Shady Acres, and Northwind Perennial Farm on June 5, 2012.
Campus Gardens: Hal Barfknecht indicates there are six gardens in need of adoption: Courtyard Garden, Hilltop Tree Garden, East Commons Garden, North Commons Garden and North Rain Garden and Father Blied Garden at Lakeside Park.
WIMGA: Ellen will be attending the state MG meeting in April. The September meeting is in Ashland featuring Melinda Meyers as the main speaker. The National MG Conference is an Alaskan Cruise.
Message from the Fond du Lac County Master Gardener Board: President Doug Kindschuh read a statement from the Board of Directors to the membership. Briefly, the Board recommended that if either a new project or funding is to be considered, a Project Worksheet is to be completed and the board will review and present it to the membership for a vote when the required information is complete. Also, the recommendation is to not add new projects or funding requests beyond what was approved in the Budget. All members were sent a copy of the notice with the March Meeting Agenda.
Jim Johnson indicates that free rocks, large and small size, are available free from the campus. Wood chips are also available.
The next meeting of the Fond du Lac County Master Gardeners is April 10, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alice Dann, Secretary