Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up webinar series launches a year of getting good at growing food

The cost of food keeps climbing. One in five people faces hunger in Oregon. And the pandemic showed us the fragility of our supply system. Growing our own food—for us, for our families, for our neighbors—is an action gardeners can take to strengthen food security in our local communities. This year’s Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up series is aimed at helping gardeners take a bite out of hunger.

Nine free closed-captioned webinars will be broadcast via Zoom and streamed via our Facebook page on the second Tuesday of the month, at noon, February through October 2024. Experts in their field, from OSU and beyond, present on topics such as how to get the most yield from cool season veggies to growing produce to donate to food banks to how to grow culinary mushrooms.

This series is open to the public, for the experienced gardener and OSU Extension Master Gardener volunteers receive 1 Continuing Education Credit for each class. You can take one, or take all. This webinar is being recorded and will be available to view on our website within two weeks of airdate. Register today!

Here’s a bonus: if you can’t wait to attend these live events, we’ve pulled a collection of eleven past webinars devoted to growing food in this series and made them available on our website. That’s eleven hours of free education to get started with right now! We’re predicting a bumper crop of successful gardeners growing plants for food all across Oregon this year: see you online and in the garden!

Welcome to, and from, our new Statewide Master Gardener Manager, Dr. Leslie Madsen

After a national search, Dr. Leslie Madsen (she/her) has joined OSU Extension as the Statewide Master Gardener Manager beginning December 29th, 2023.  Dr. Madsen most recently was the Associate Director for Educational Development in the Center for Teaching and Learning at Boise State University. She is an expert in evidence-based teaching practices that are informed by emerging technologies including different learning styles in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI), as they apply to formal and informal learning platforms. She is equipped to support our coordinators and volunteers with evidence-based teaching practices, support both face-to-face and distant learning, support DEI efforts across programs, conduct educational assessment, evaluation and implementation, and support various digital accessibility technologies – among many other capabilities. Welcome Dr. Madsen!


A note to Oregon’s Master Gardener Volunteers

As I’m cleaning up my garden one last time before listing my Boise house for sale, I find myself looking eagerly to the future. I love to learn, and I have so much knowledge to glean from you about gardening in a temperate, wet forest biome rather than dry, sagebrush steppe. 

Because I’m a historian as well as a gardener, I’m also thinking of the botanist I most admire, the late Alice Eastwood (1859-1953), who served as the herbarium curator at the California Academy of Sciences for 57 years. 

Here’s my favorite story about Eastwood: 

When awakened in April 1906 by the big San Francisco earthquake, Eastwood hurried down to the Academy to check on the collections. As flames licked at the building next door, the 47-year-old Eastwood scaled the banister of the broken staircase to reach the sixth-floor herbarium. Once there, she lowered 1,500 specimens—most of them type specimens—out a window. She commandeered a cart and horse and ensured the specimens stayed ahead of the flames, even as her own home burned. (Today you can find six of Eastwood’s other specimens in the Oregon State University Herbarium.) 

Not surprisingly, Eastwood became a bit of a celebrity. On Eastwood’s 80th birthday, Smithsonian agrostologist Agnes Chase wrote,  

I recall how thrilled I was in the spring of 1906 when the men here were all talking about how Alice Eastwood had saved the precious types in the California Academy Herbarium. At that time women were not admitted to the august Botanical Society of Washington, so we rejoiced not only that the types were saved but that you saved them. And not only do we admire your work. Your unfailing kindness and helpfulness to other botanists has endeared you to all of us.

Chase’s letter to Eastwood captures the fondness I already feel Oregon’s Master Gardeners—even though I’ve only met a couple dozen of you. Your generosity with your time and knowledge is such a tremendous gift to the people of Oregon. I am so impressed with the amazing work you already have done, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work alongside you. 

Eastwood also was famous for cultivating enthusiasm for gardening by building a network of garden clubs, botanists, and volunteers. Like Eastwood, I’m eager to welcome new Master Gardeners and expand our collaborations with organizations throughout Oregon. To accomplish this, I’ll need to draw on your wisdom, experience, and imagination. 

Our work together begins in the New Year. Should you want to say hello before then, the best way to reach me is via email at madsenle@oregonstate.edu. I’m looking forward to connecting and growing with you! 

Guide to Being a Master Gardener Volunteer: revised publication is now out

The quintessential guidebook for being an OSU Extension Master Gardener volunteer has been updated and modernized. It’s available to read online and download and features all things Master Gardener, including our connection to OSU, the priorities of the program, and policies and guidelines. Access it here.

What does it mean to recertify? What are the continuing education requirements of Master Gardeners? How do we provide gardening recommendations to the general public? What is the relationship between OSU and the county-based Master Gardener Associations?

You’ll find the answers to these questions, and many more, in the updated guidebook, plus links to even more background and items to read. The new version is a more nimble, modernized version, and can easily be updated as needed. Happy reading!

You’ve got a problem, we’ve got a project. 

Is your garden home to this problematic pest? 

(Photo) Cornu aspersum (also known as Helix aspersa; European Brown Garden Snail)

The slug and snail experts at OSU want your samples for a new USDA-funded project. 

In fact, if you’re in Western Oregon with a significant number of these slimy shelled mollusks, they’d like to come pull samples every few weeks. 

Or, you can even mail them in. 

Please contact Rory Mc Donnell and his lab via email or phone for details on how to get involved. Tel: +1 541 737 6146.  rory.mcdonnell@oregonstate.edu.

Thank you Master Gardeners for helping science at OSU!

Master Gardeners, let’s play some trivia!

The Oregon Master Gardener Statewide Trivia Tournament is happening during our “quiet gardening times” of October and November 2023, and January and February 2024.  Open to OSU Extension Master Gardener volunteers throughout Oregon, these five sessions offer the opportunity to learn more about specific gardening topics, have fun, and even win prizes.

  1. Register to play.
  2. Join via zoom.
  3. Connect to the trivia app (Slido) on your phone or computer.
  4. At the start of the tournament evening, you’ll be directed to the Slido app to begin competing.
  5. Multiple choice trivia, 50 questions per session.
  6. Winners will be announced live during the Zoom event.

Each session counts as one Continuing Education Unit for Master Gardener volunteers.

Did we say prizes? Yes we did. For each session, you can win gift certificates to mail-order garden companies in the PNW.

  • 1st place: $100 gift certificate
  • 2nd place: $50 gift certificate
  • 3rd place: $25 gift certificate

Winners will receive gift certificates approximately one week after each event.

Register for each event:

Let’s identify woody plants! Wednesday, October 18th, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Name that flower: herbaceous annuals & perennials, Wednesday, November 15th, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

The buzz on biologicals: biological controls in food crops, Wednesday, December 13, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Least wanted: noxious and invasive weeds in Oregon, Wednesday, January 17th, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Right place, right plant: Oregon natives in the landscape, Wednesday, February 21st, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm

For questions or accessibility requests, contact Nicole Sanchez, 541-883-7131, Nicole.sanchez@oregonstate.edu

Braiding Sweetgrass – a review and a request from Master Gardener Donna Leveridge-Campbell

Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants has so much to offer.  And I believe other gardeners would especially appreciate this book, as I do.  It’s also available in an audio version read by the author, and as a beautifully illustrated adaptation, Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults. Both make this book, a gift to the co-inhabitants of Mother Earth, even more accessible.

Braiding Sweetgrass book cover with green braided grass horizontally across the cover

Dr. Kimmerer speaks from multiple perspectives as an Anishinabekwe, Potawatomi woman, a mother, a gardener, a philosopher, a botanist and professor of plant ecology, and from so many other aspects of herself.  She beautifully integrates mind, body, emotion, and spirit as she shares “healing stories that allow us to imagine a different relationship, in which people and land are good medicine for each other”.  This is a hugely important book for our times.  I hope the lessons and wisdom of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) within the stories will be incorporated into all of our lives, while avoiding cultural appropriation. 

“I hold in my hand the genius of indigenous agriculture, the Three Sisters.  Together these plants––corn, beans, and squash––feed the people, feed the land, and feed our imaginations, telling us how we might live. … a visible manifestation of what a community can become when its members understand and share their gifts.”  For example, the corn stalks provide support for the beans, the bean roots house the Rhizobium bacteria that shares nitrogen with the plants, and the squash leaves keep moisture in the soil and other plants out.  And Robin reminds us they “are fully domesticated; they rely on us to create the conditions under which they can grow.  We too are part of the reciprocity.  They can’t meet their responsibilities unless we meet ours.”

As one who loves her children, and also loves her garden, Robin lists some “loving behaviors”.  And she makes the case that “The land loves us back. … She provides for us and teaches us to provide for ourselves.  That is what good mothers do.”  Robin taught her daughters to garden “so they would always have a mother to love them, long after I am gone.” 

The author writes with a heartfelt, holistic perspective and explains complex scientific and indigenous knowledge, uniting them beautifully, in an easy-to-read style.  As she says, “We see the world more fully when we use both.”  Robin is an incredible observer and listener to nature and to other teachers, as well.  She is a humble seeker and poetic sharer of knowledge and profound wisdom. 

One of her many significant reflections is on how our thoughts and feelings are so greatly influenced by our language.  She explains that English is a “noun-based language”, and that it leads to objectifying non-human life forms.  “Only 30 percent of English words are verbs, but in Potawatomi that proportion is 70 percent.”  And the language is “a mirror for seeing the animacy of the world, the life that pulses through all things”. … “So it is that in Potawatomi and most other indigenous languages, we use the same words to address the living world as we use for our family.  Because they are our family.”

In explaining the tradition of the Honorable Harvest and the “inescapable tension” of “the exchange of a life for a life”, she asks the question, “How do we consume in a way that does justice to the lives that we take?”.  In the edition for young adults, the answer is summarized as:  “Never Take the First,  Ask Permission,  Listen for the Answer,  Take Only What You Need,  Minimize Harm,  Use Everything You Take,  Share,  Be Grateful,  Reciprocate the Gift.” 

Robin addresses many of my own concerns, moral dilemmas, and feelings of guilt as a relatively ignorant and clumsy human on this Earth, trying to decide what to do –– or not do.  “Something beyond gratitude is asked of us.”  … “The most important thing each of us can know is our unique gift and how to use it in the world.”  She inspires me to discover my own gift. 

In talking about the berries and their place in ceremony she explains, “They carry the lesson, passed to us by our ancestors, that the generosity of the land comes to us as one bowl, one spoon.  We are all fed from the same bowl that Mother Earth has filled for us.  …  We need the berries and the berries need us.  Their gifts multiply by our care for them, and dwindle from our neglect.  We are bound in a covenant of reciprocity, a pact of mutual responsibility to sustain those who sustain us.  And so the empty bowl is filled.”

In each chapter the author shares metaphors and life lessons learned from plants, “our oldest teachers”, and from Indigenous interpreters.  Robin shares her journey toward greater understanding of her place in the world and the roles of humans in the web of life.  It feels like she has written to us with the informal intimacy of a caring friend.  Writing with a respectful and generous spirit, she seems to be understood and appreciated by people coming from various perspectives and levels of knowledge and awareness.

In an online conversation, Robin Wall Kimmerer spoke with Daniel Wildcat about “Indigenuity” (Indigenous Ingenuity) solutions for the Earth.  She reminds us that Indigenous people around the world “are still here” and many have the “knowledge that will bring us into the future”.  She gives me hope. 

Please read Braiding Sweetgrass and share it with others.  It’s a great read, and offers lessons and perspectives that are much-needed in these challenging times. 

—Donna Leveridge Campbell is an OSU Extension Master Gardener volunteer in Coos County and a member of the Statewide Growing & Belonging Committee

Corinne’s story: supporting the things you love

“I’m donating today on Dam Proud Day because I believe in supporting the things I care most about, and at the top of my list is the Master Gardener program.

I love plants and I love people. Master Gardening is a perfect combination! I have been a life-time educator, and my Extension service gives me the opportunity to continue my learning and give to my community. 

I especially enjoy working with young people. Children have a wonderful natural drive to ask questions and learn more. Their sense of wonder and intense desire to explore always keeps me on my toes. 

I think it’s important for everyone, of all ages and abilities, to have access to the natural environment and to be able to experience hands-on opportunities to discover how they fit into our world.  Garden education is important for us to understand who we are, where our food comes from and the importance of caring for other living things around us.”


Today is a rare opportunity for making a significant difference in supporting Seed to Supper and updating our Master Gardener curriculum. You can join Corinne’s giving, at any level, today on Dam Proud Day.
 
Challenge grants have been made to double our funds! Come check our progress and see the names of your fellow Master Gardeners who are committing to support this vitally important program. Will you add your name to the list?

Master Gardeners give on Dam Proud Day: a personal ask from Dr. Gail Langellotto

Today is the day to act. 

Over the past month, you have heard the stories of Oregon State University’s Extension Master Gardener volunteers. Master Gardeners are neighbors, friends, and family members who volunteer their time to cultivate resilient and healthy communities through sustainable horticulture education and gardening projects that are rooted in science. Master Gardener volunteers work across the state in community gardens, at farmers markets, in schools, and online to support sustainable gardening success for all gardeners.

Today, you have an opportunity to help us continue this important work. For Oregon State University’s Dam Proud Day, we are fundraising to support the Seed to Supper Program and an update of our foundational textbook, the Sustainable Gardening Handbook. The Seed to Supper program is an introductory vegetable gardening course for beginning and low-income gardeners, that includes considerations for gardeners who don’t have easy access to land. Our Sustainable Gardening Handbook is the text used to teach new Master Gardener volunteers. We need to update this resource, to include advances in the science of sustainable gardening, as well as consideration of climate change impacts on Oregon gardeners.

Donations can be as low as $5. A symbolic gift of $50 recognizes the 50 years that the Master Gardener Program has been serving communities across the United States!

All together, all on one day. Every donation helps us get closer to our goal, and unlocking the FIVE challenge grant gifts that we have set up.

Please join us by making a gift to the Statewide Master Gardener Program fund for Dam Proud Day.

Jessi’s story: the smile of eating the first ripe fruit of the season

“I have been a gardener all my life so I have a strong connection with plants of all kinds! Growing up in Colorado and North Idaho, gardening was challenging! So when I moved to Oregon, the gloves were on and I was getting muddy! After several years of trial and error, mostly error, I became a Master Gardener in 2022. I had been seeking a strong community of sustainable gardeners that work with research-based materials and practices for many years. I have been more than pleased with the support and amazing resources available through OSU and look forward to being a part of the Master Gardner community for many years to come!


I am proud to be a part of teaching and sharing researched-based resources and knowledge with all ages as well as encouraging sustainable, organic gardening for generations to come. Seeing the smile on a person’s face when they learn something new, connect to the earth and their peers, or eat their first ripe fruit of the season (or ever) is the most amazing and rewarding sight! Bringing people back to their roots and teaching the many ways gardening brings joy and freedom is also extremely gratifying! 

With our changing climate and society, there is a large push to be more self-sufficient and green in the way we live our lives. I feel like it is a crucial time to spread knowledge and help people get familiar with their environment and innate abilities to grow at least some of their own food, medicine, and craft materials all while helping our natural environment begin to rebalance. Once empowered, I believe people feel more connected to their environment and have a newfound sense of pride and protection for that environment and themselves.”

—Jessi Frank, Lane County Master Gardener


This is but one of the many stories of the OSU Extension Master Gardener program we’re sharing this month in honor of Dam Proud Day. On April 26, Beavers everywhere will come together to support the things we do best: transformative educational experiences and life-changing research.
 
We are excited to be raising support specifically for our Seed to Supper program and updating our foundational resource, the “Sustainable Gardening Handbook” to reflect current knowledge. Please join us in gathering your friends and colleagues to give to support the Master Gardener Program on Dam Proud Day, at any donation level. See you (online) April 26th!

Deb’s story: Master Gardeners educate and rally for firewise gardening

“I’m the tall one with white hair in the orange-y sweatshirt. This was my neighborhood’s first fire fuel reduction event and a great opportunity to talk about firewise gardening.”

“Obtaining Master Gardener certification was my goal for a long time. While I’d gardened most of my adult life, I’d done so in climates much less daunting than that of Central Oregon. While I had learned a lot along the way, I wanted to deepen my understanding of horticultural science. Retirement gave me the time and high desert gardening challenges the impetus to finally pursue it. 

My neighborhood is in the wildland interface on the outskirts of Bend. I have taken what I’ve learned about firewise gardening in the past two years and rallied a group of neighbors into working toward Firewise USA certification. We have worked with our county forester, local fire department and city code department to bring about significant changes in how our common native areas are managed and are educating neighbors on firewise best practices in the design, plant selection and maintenance of their own landscapes.

Several factors related to climate change and drought complicate how any of us should approach gardening. Master Gardeners are increasingly aware of the numerous inconvenient contractions between best practices associated with water-wise, firewise, pollinator-friendly and native plants gardening. In addition to these new gardening challenges many homeowners are first-generation gardeners, eager to create a landscape without the benefit of having had a relative mentor to give them basic guidance. Master Gardeners play an essential role in helping our neighbors and community leaders make good, safe decisions that will help rather than hurt Mother Nature.”

—Deb Goodall, Central Oregon Master Gardener


This is but one of the many stories of the OSU Extension Master Gardener program we’re sharing this month in honor of Dam Proud Day. On April 26, Beavers everywhere will come together to support the things we do best: transformative educational experiences and life-changing research.
 
We are excited to be raising support specifically for our Seed to Supper program and updating our foundational resource, the “Sustainable Gardening Handbook” to reflect current knowledge. Please join us in gathering your friends and colleagues to give to support the Master Gardener Program on Dam Proud Day, at any donation level. See you (online) April 26th!