Barron County Master Gardener Volunteers
Farm Technology Days 2013
1. Working with FTD Committees
2. Local Garden Center/Greenhouse connection
3. Perennial Garden on host family farm site.
4. Arranged for plants at Family Living Area and Youth area
5. Booth in Progress Pavilion
6. Plantings around admission gates
7. Adopt-a-Barrel program
8. Rain Garden, Silo Plastic, Strawbale gardening, Rainbarrel Demonstration
During one of our summer meetings in 2012, BCMGV members were asked to sign up if they wished to help with FTD. An ad hoc committee was created with an email list.
1. Working with FTD Committees
BCMGVs were not part of an official committee. Originally, we thought we would only be working with the Family Living area and Progress Pavilion, so we began meeting with the Family Living Committee in the fall of 2012. As plans were developed, and our projects grew, it was clear that we needed to be in contact with the Grounds Committee and the Tent City Committee. Throughout the process, we learned that we needed to work with Grounds on issues related to transportation of our flower barrels, mulch, and watering.
If the local Master Gardener Volunteers are going to play a role in FTD, we highly recommend that a representative from the local Master Gardener group be a member of the Grounds Committee.
2. Local Garden Center/Greenhouse connection
In the Fall of 2013, we made a spreadsheet of garden centers / greenhouses in Barron County. A letter and form was mailed to each. Then they received a telephone call asking them if they would like to participate in some way.
In February and March of 2013, each garden center that agreed to participate was called to set up a meeting to further discuss participation and donations. At this point, one garden center said they would like to take care of the whole Family Living area. Another garden center said they would take care of the Youth area. Those 2 committees were contacted and told to work directly with the garden centers.
During this meeting, we also found one garden center that volunteered to plant large containers of edible ornamentals, to be displayed outside the food tents. Other centers listed an amount of plants they would donate.
Each of these garden centers were asked to complete a donation form stating the value of their donations. They were also asked if they wanted to be listed on the FTD website as a resource for exhibitors to rent or purchase plants or displays. That information was collected and given to Tim Jergenson, Barron FTD secretary (and Extension Agent).
3. Perennial Garden on host family farm site.
The host family had a small area between two large trees in need of landscaping and planting. This also was an appropriate location for the host family gift that was selected by the Family Living Committee. The gift was a locally made concrete bench. Plants were donated by some members of the Northern Wisconsin Hosta Association, and by BCMGVs.
The original plan was to plant the garden as early as possible in the Spring so it would already look good by Media Day, but a late spring meant that it was not planted until mid May. In hindsight, this should have been done in September or October of 2012.
4. Arranged for plants at Family Living Area and Youth Area
At Farm Technology Days events in the past, most of the Master Gardener visibility is around the Family Living Tent. In 2013, one large area garden center said they would like to donate all of the plants around that tent.
The Youth committee chair had also asked if BCMGVs could help with this area. Another large garden center volunteered to work with this area.
The BCMGV President contacted the chairs of Family Living and Youth, gave them the garden center information, and those committees worked directly with the garden centers.
5. Booth in Progress Pavilion
At some point in the Winter/Spring of 2013, BCMGVs were contacted by the person who sets up the Progress Pavilion. We completed a form asking for a space right beside the Wisconsin Master Gardener booth. We asked for 6 tables for our booth.
One person in BCMGV was designated to put the booth together. She collected pictures and information about activities we are involved in at the local level. Then she made posters with the information and laminated them. The booth was set up on Monday, the day before FTD started. Two to three MGs manned this booth at all times, with shifts lasting about 2 ½ hours. Because the Wisconsin Master Gardener Booth was right beside it, some of Mike Maddox’ items “spilled over” onto ours, and it almost looked like one large booth.
A display was set up in the booth to help people locate the barrel of flowers that was “adopted” in their name. This contained a map, and a binder with a photograph of each flower barrel.
6. Plantings Around Admission Gates
The host family of the 2013 FTD specifically requested that the Admission Gates be interesting, appealing, and welcoming. The Admissions committee decided to name each gate after a youth organization and we worked with those themes. The gates were designated: 4-H, FFA, and Youth Dairy Breeders. The Admissions committee had a sign made for each gate with information about the designated group. So the BCMGV used a green and white theme for plants at the 4-H gate. The Youth Dairy gate had plants with pots color coded for Holstein, Guernsey, and Jersey, and there were items such as milk cans, etc. near the gate. The FFA gate was all done by one of the local nurseries (the owners are in the BCMGV), and also included FFA symbols.
7. Adopt-A-Barrel program
This was the biggest part of our involvement. One of the BCMGVs started the project to honor her father-in-law, and it grew into a much bigger project than anyone expected.
First, we needed to receive permission from the Fundraising Committee. Then a press release was put out letting people know they could “adopt a barrel of flowers” in honor of, or in memory of, someone. The cost was $25. We then got the word out that we needed containers from farmers that were purchased with minerals in them. These hold more than 20 gallons. With the donations and the money from this project, we thought we would have enough to buy any flowers we needed.
Our original thought was that we might have 20-30 “adoptions,” but we ended up with 127 when we cut it off early in June.
We went to the greenhouses and garden centers who agreed to give donations, and picked out flowers. They generously kept the plants at their greenhouses until we were ready to plant them.
We were concerned about the price of soil for the containers. One landscaper sold us 6 yards of planting mix at half price, and another sold us a large bale of planting mix at cost. We used a total of 10-11 cubic yards of soil.
June 1st – planted 128 large containers of plants. We put plastic bottles and plant containers in the pots to cover about ¼ - 1/3 of the space. This lightened the pots considerably. 21 BCMGVs helped with the planting. Containers were stored at the Barron County Fairgrounds. The groundskeeper helped move the pots with a loader.
June 2nd – late frost – 4 of us covered all of the containers to save the plants
June - - - volunteers signed up for watering, deadheading, and more plants were added to fill in spaces. Some of the containers needed additional soil when it settled.
9. Rain Garden, Silo Plastic, Strawbale gardening, Rainbarrel Demonstration
Individual Master Gardeners participated in several other activities. Near the Applied Technology area, MGs worked with the Education Committee to set up several demonstration gardens. The original intent was to plant these gardens early in May, but because of late spring frosts, and deer in the area, plans had to be changed.
Rain Garden – the rain garden was built one week before FTD, using potted plants sunk in the ground to demonstrate the concept of a rain garden.
Silo Plastic – this was a vegetable garden using silo plastic as a mulch. It was laid out in May, but most of the vegetables were actually in pots sunk in the ground.
A Strawbale gardening booth was set up in the Family Living Tent.
A demonstration on making a rainbarrel took place in the Progress Pavilion.
Other activities in June –
· met with Grounds Committee to arrange for transporting all of the containers to the FTD location 22 miles away. They had to be in a covered vehicle. (Grounds had contacted someone with a full size semi, but he needed us to find a driver. One of the BCMGVs had a neighbor who was available and licensed.)
· discussed with Grounds Committee regarding the mulch needed (We ordered 27 yards of mulch.)
· discussed with Grounds Committee regarding how we would get these plants watered.
· Several BCMGVs were trained to use a gator
· Planting of a few “deer resistant” vegetables in the silo plastic garden
· Creating and laminating “adoption” signs for barrels
July
· One week before event, walked through Tent City, looking for locations to place the plant containers and benches for people to sit. Arranged to have skidsteer help with unloading semi.
· Friday before event, loaded plants onto semi and several SUVs. They were delivered to Tent City, unloaded from the semi with a skidsteer, then placed around Headquarters area, media area, Progress Pavilion, and Applied Technology area. Containers were also picked up from 2 garden centers and placed around food tents and donor signs.
· Friday before event – watering. Grounds had arranged to have a 100 gallon tank on a gator, and a larger tank used for refilling, but this was much too small.
· Saturday before the event, Grounds put a 350 gallon tank on the back of a pickup belonging to a BCMGV, and another tank was put on a truck loaned to us. These both used gravity for watering so it was very slow. On this day we learned that no one had arranged to have the plants at Family Living or Youth watered. It was just assumed that we were taking care of it. So we arranged to have an additional truck with a tank on it. We were able to fill these large tanks from a fire hydrant in the nearby village – this had been arranged by the person in charge of water on the Grounds committee.
· Sunday before event – weather was very hot – so everything needed watering again.
· Monday before event – set up booth, arranged benches around Tent City, watered again.
· First Day of event – with 3 trucks and large water tanks, we got the watering down to 1 ½ hours. It rained that day.
· Second Day of event – watered at end of day
· Third Day of event – no watering of large containers on this day, so containers would be a little lighter to haul away. Only watered the small containers placed by the garden centers. On this day, immediately at 4:00, moved plant containers back from “street corners” so large equipment would not run over them. Used small trailors to move all of the containers to one central area for pickup.
· Saturday after event – semi available to us on this day, so all containers were moved back to the fairgrounds. The county fair was the following week. Some of the containers were also put at a local pioneer village for their Heritage Days weekend.
Things to remember
If Master Gardeners are going to have a large role, someone should be on the Grounds Committee.
Make a point of purchasing from those businesses that donate.
Order mulch/wood shavings.
Have a detailed plan for obtaining plants, containers, and soil.
Have a detailed plan for transportation.
Carefully consider location of plants because semis have a tendency to turn short on corners.
Have a detailed plan for watering at Tent City.
Have a detailed plan for what happens after the event.
Contact Information for
Barron County Master Gardener Volunteers
Carol Kettner, Barron County Master Gardener Volunteer President – call or email about anything. We are happy to answer questions.
715 491 5782
Wendy Kolzow - Adopt-A-Barrel organizer
Glen Wegner – Silo plastic and Rain Garden
Bob Schutz – strawbale gardening
Sheri Snowbank – rainbarrels