Call 303-730-1920 or email Master Gardener volunteers with your lawn, landscape and garden questions.
Connect with us at our demonstration gardens:
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Attend Classes
July 10, 2021 @ 9 AM
Vegetable Gardening @ Silo Park: Common Garden Weeds
July 13, 2021 @ 9 AM
July 15, 2021
Vegetable Gardening @ Silo Park: Diagnosing Tomato Problems
August 10, 2021 @ 9 AM
August 14, 2021 @ 9 AM
August 21, 2021
9:00am-12:00pm
August 28, 2021
September 10, 2021
September 11, 2021 @ 9 AM
Vegetable Gardening @ Silo Park: Garden Pollinators
September 14, 2021 @ 9 AM
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Enjoy the Arapahoe County Fair: Past, Present, and Future
By Donnetta Wilhelm, Colorado Master Gardener
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It’s time to visit the Arapahoe County Fair July 22-25 at 25690 E. Quincy Avenue, Aurora. The Fair offers a broad range of entertainment and educational opportunities for all ages. There is something for everyone to enjoy and learn from: the heirlooms of the past, practical gardening tips in the present, and sustainable landscape trends for the future.
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Retro Photo: Fair Vegetable Display ca. 1979 |
PAST
Does mid-July conjure memories of piping hot corn on the cob, cotton candy, and lemonade? Perhaps the memory includes a game of ring toss, tin-can alley, or a spin on the Ferris wheel. Step back in time with a visit to the Homestead featuring the barn and porch entrances with interactive, family-friendly activities and demonstrations rich in history and agricultural heritage.
The Arapahoe County Fair has been a fixture since 1906, so visit the booths and exhibits that are full of history: how past generations used animals, such as milk from cows, wool from alpacas, and honey from bees. Behold vintage quilts, heirloom knitting and crochet exhibits, sewing, basket making, and the horticulture displays that include timeless herbs of lavender, rosemary or thyme, old-fashioned roses or delphinium, home grown and home harvested vegetables, including the Cottage Garden or Everlasting Glory floral arrangements.
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Photo: Fair Vegetable Judging ca. 1981 |
Continue the step back in time with information from the booths of Arapahoe County’s historic 17 Mile House Farm Park and the Plains Conservation Center, where Master Gardener volunteers currently maintain the garden using similar garden methods and authentic seed varieties as settlers in the 1800s. There are endless ways to participate in events that are rich in history, and to join in many of the fun traditions of the Fair. |
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Volunteer Spotlight: JoAnne Hoffman |
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Colorado Master Gardener℠ (CMG) volunteers are a dedicated group of individuals who are knowledgeable and passionate about sharing gardening, landscape and horticulture education. This month we are highlighting JoAnne Hoffman. |
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When did you join the Colorado Master Gardener program and why did you join?
I joined the Master Gardener program in 2008. I had met some Master Gardeners at the Boulder Farmer's Market the summer before and talked about the program with them. I also found out that one of my patients was a Master Gardener and she filled me in on the program. I have always liked to grow flowers and veggies and have found Colorado’s climate somewhat difficult, so I thought I should learn about it.
I had no idea that the program involved volunteer work until I went for an interview, but I was so happy that volunteering is the main focus.
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Pollinator Paradise at the Arapahoe County Fair
By Lucinda Greene, Horticulture Programs Coordinator and Assistant Horticulturist
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Illustration: Pollinator.org |
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During your visit to the Arapahoe County Fair, plan to stop by the Pollinator Habitat Garden in the East Exhibition Hall. Designed and built by Master Gardener volunteers with the help of sponsors Tagawa Gardens and Ewing Irrigation & Landscape Supply, the exhibit showcases common pollinators and their habitat. Learn how to attract these pollinators to your garden by providing food, water, and shelter. The garden features larger-than-life papier-mache models of a two-tailed swallowtail butterfly, a painted lady butterfly and other pollinators including the green metallic sweat bee, a hoverfly, and a broad-tailed hummingbird. |
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Welcome to the Clayton
Elementary School Community Garden
By Becky Clemons and Rachelle Stoddard, Colorado Master Gardeners
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The Clayton Community Garden was originally established in 2011 and is a partnership between Clayton Elementary School and Denver Urban Gardens (DUG). This is a new project for Master Gardener volunteers.
The primary goal is to build student excitement about gardening through education and hands-on activities. In turn, students can share the excitement of nurturing plants with their families and other community members. The school’s focus has always been helping their families and community by providing them with a relaxing place to connect with one another, learn new skills and grow their own fresh food.
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Who's in Your Garden?
By Martha Kirk, Colorado Master Gardener
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Thanks to the abundant moisture we received in April and May along the Front Range and the warmer temperatures of summer, we are seeing all sorts of things in the garden.
Powdery Mildew
From a distance this plant was almost unrecognizable. It looked more like the color of an artemisia than a peony. Indeed, it was a peony, and it was covered with powdery mildew, a white powdery growth on its leaves. Powdery mildew is a fungal disease that is common on lilacs, roses and peonies, among others, and it is specific to the host plant.
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Where are All the Insects? And Other Observations |
We have received many inquiries about insects this season. Specifically, people are wondering: Where are the insects? Where are the bees? Does a lack of insects mean they are rapidly declining? The short answer is likely “no.” This season’s insect population does not indicate a steep decline.
Insect populations fluctuate from year to year depending on variables like weather. Spring was unusually wet along the Front Range and may have delayed or affected insect populations including insect predators like lady beetles and pollinators. Without the insect predators available, the aphid population has been thriving.
Now that we are in July, more of the usual garden visitors are arriving, including lady beetles, lacewing larvae and solitary bees.
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Lisa Mason
CSU Extension Horticulture Agent
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It's Not Too Late: Recommendations for
Mid to Late Season Vegetables
By Judy Kunz, Colorado Master Gardener
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Illustration: Big Dog Constellation Sirius, astronomynv.org |
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The dog days of summer occur between July 3 and August 11 and coincide with the path of the sun as it occupies the same region in the sky as Sirius, the Dog Star. Sirius is the brightest star visible from earth and part of the constellation Canis Major or Greater Dog. Dog days historically occur during the hottest part of the summer, lagging a few weeks to a month or so behind the longest day of the year. Dog days are sometimes associated with high heat and humidity, going swimming or fishing, taking a vacation or just “vegging out” with a good book on the patio.
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From the Diagnostics Lab:
Patchy Lawns Could be on the Way
By Jeff Cole, Colorado Master Gardener
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Photo: csuhort.blogspot.com |
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It was no surprise that most lawns looked great because of the spring precipitation. However, with the heat and dry weather earlier this month, some lawn problems have started to appear. Did you know that the vast majority of turf problems are due to improper irrigation? June was blistering and there was no end in sight until recently. As a result, many lawns have become “patchy.” There are many possibilities for patchy lawns, but there are two common issues.
Irrigation
This doesn’t necessarily mean that sprinklers are not running enough but it can mean that there is possibly a bad sprinkler head or a head in need of adjustment. Maybe the head is broken or maybe it is not covering enough area. To diagnose the problem, perform a simple test by poking a long, narrow flat head screwdriver into the turf. Compare the results in the patchy area to the healthy area. If it is difficult to penetrate the turf in the unhealthy area, this indicates that the soil is very dry and there is probably a sprinkler coverage problem.
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I Didn't Know That!
By Donnetta Wilhelm, Colorado Master Gardener
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Hello, gardener and distressed sprayer of insecticide. Have you met me? I am just a teenager, and like human teenagers, I have a voracious appetite. I am a lady beetle larva. I feast on aphids, scales, spider mites, and mealybugs, just to name a few. My parents also eat what I eat, although they also feed on pollen, nectar, and honeydew. I have normal teen angst and, ugh, I’m-so-misunderstood! I’m still developing, so like human teenagers, I’m going through the awkward stage that scares gardeners. Please put away the insecticide when you see me and be patient with me and my 70 species of friends found in our regular hangout of Colorado. Give me a chance to develop and become a beautiful, productive adult that you will enjoy having around. Click here to read all about me as an adult.
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l to r: Hippodamia convergens, Harmonia axyridis, Coccinella septempunctata, Adalia bipunctata
Photos: Hippodamia convergens (Convergent lady beetle larvae) Susan Ellis / Harmonia axyridis (Multicolored Asian lady beetle larvae) Winston Beck, Iowa State University / Coccinella septempunctata (Sevenspotted lady beetle larvae) Russ Ottens, Georgia State University / Adalia bipunctata (Twospotted lady beetle larvae) Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University
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PHONE
(303) 730-1920
EMAIL
Mastergardener@ArapahoeGov.com
LOCATION
6934 S. Lima St., Suite B
Centennial, CO 80112
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CSU Extension programs are available to all without discrimination. |
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