Recreative Natives Tour

On a beautiful October day, several Chilton County Master Gardeners toured Recreative Natives, a native plant nursery in Cropwell, Alabama. Jessica Thompson, the owner of this one woman nursery, has a background in landscape design and used many natives in her designs. When she moved to Alabama 15 years ago she discovered there were no nurseries in Alabama that grew only native plants. She began to propagate natives for her own landscape and this led to a full time nursery and a passion. In 2024, she grew over 15,000 native plants mostly from seeds. She focuses on native plants of Alabama and the Southeast.

For more information go to the nursery website https://recreativenatives.com/

article by Trisha Williams; photos by Audrey Giles

Jessica Thompson tells about how she got started with her nursery, Recreative Natives in Cropwell, AL
L-R Harriett Jackson, Hugh Nichols, Trisha Williams, Lanell Baker, Audrey Giles, hostess, Jessica Thompson, V.P. Betsy Smith and Pres. Skip Coulted
Just browsing😊
learning from the best!
Our Pres. Skip Coulter, loves to present each hostess with a small gift, this time, a $2.00 Bill?!!
L-Right Betsy Smith, Harriett Jackson, Trisha Williams, Lanell Bakes, Hugh Nichols, and Skip Counter. Not pictured, Audtey Giles Eating lunch at the old Rexall Drug store, which is now a Mexican Resturant.
Enjoying lunch at El Cazador restaurant in downtown Pell City

Fungus Among Us

The speaker for the October Chilton County Master Gardener meeting, Alisha Millican, spoke on Fungus Among Us-About Mushrooms. Alisha is an Advanced Master Gardener and her area of expertise is mushrooms. She is active in the Alabama Mushroom Society. Her program was an introduction to types of mushrooms, not an ID COURSE! Alisha recommends training with knowledgable experts, such as members of the Alabama Mushroom Society if you want to forage for wild mushrooms. Identification apps on your phone are not reliable sources. Never eat wild mushrooms unless you are positive of the identification! Alisha said all edible mushrooms should be cooked as some people cannot tolerate them raw.

Many photos of various mushrooms were shared including puffballs, lobster, chanterelles, oyster, cauliflower, lion’s mane, chicken of the woods, shoehorn, bird’s nest and more. We learned that mushrooms can be spicy, sweet, bitter, earthy, or licorice flavored, among other flavors.

Some helpful websites are: http://Alabamamushroomsociety.org, http://Namyco.org, http://Mushroomobserver.org

The announcements for one upcoming tour and 2 volunteer opportunities are:
Oct 14 Tour to Recreative Natives Nursery
Oct 26 MG table at Humane Society Family Day at Ollie Park 2-6pm
Oct 30 MG table with Shelby County MGs at Alabama Power Stewardship Event Beeswax Park, 245 Beeswax Park Road Columbiana, AL  35051 – 2-5pm

V. Pres. Betsy Smith presents speaker Alisha Millican with handmade pen made by one of our MG’s!


Helping the Humane Society

Several of the Chilton County Master Gardeners volunteered at the Chilton County Humane Society this past Monday (Sept. 30, 2024) improving the entrance landscape. The windows boxes were planted with pansies, cast iron plants were added to the flower beds, the sidewalk was refreshed and there was even some decorative touches added.
Photos and article by Lyn Webb
Editing and posting by Audrey Giles

Pictured left to right, Teresa Freeman, Lyn Webb, Sharon Hosch, Jerry Farmer, Wally Walters, Pat Farmer, Hugh Nichols, Clair Sluyterman van Loo, and Lee Walters. Not pictured, Harriett Jackson

What’s a Chick Chain?

The Chick Chain is an Alabama Cooperative Extension System 4-H project. The participants receive baby chicks to raise and train for the annual show and auction. They work hard caring for their chickens and learn to keep valuable and up-to-date records. 

The culmination of their efforts is the Show and Auction held each fall at the Chilton Research and Extension Center. This year the counties involved were Autauga, Bibb, Chilton and St. Clair. 

Showing their birds in front of a judge and the audience helps to build confidence. Raising the birds and keeping good records promotes responsibility. 

Volunteers from the Chilton County Master Gardeners Association put together 120 sack lunches for the 4-H’er’s that included a hot dog, potato chips, a home-made cookie (by some of the CCMGA volunteers), and a soft drink. Although we were favored with a few rain showers this year, it was still a fun day for the 4-H’er’s and all the volunteers as well

photos by Audrey Giles and Amy Baker

Microgreens?!

Our Vice President, Betsy Smith, introduced our speaker for our September meeting, Capital City Master Gardener Association’s Janell Diggs (ajdiggst23@yahoo.com), along with intern, Jane Ficquette. The presentation’s title was “Growing and Cooking with Microgreens”. Microgreens are versions of herbs and vegetables in their tiny sprout form. They are 5 times more nutrient dense than full-size plants. Mrs. Diggs provided a hands-on opportunity, supported by her experienced “how to” presentation, which consisted of three main points . . . Supplies, Process, and Cooking. She provided small covered containers filled with the correct soil for sprouting, provided radish seeds and demonstrated how to spread and dampen the seeds with a mister. We took them home, inverted the lid and weighted down the lid with a book. Then when they had sprouted, we took the lid off and in a few days we had microgreens! They can be used on salads, sandwiches, scrambled eggs, used as pizza topping, etc. They are used at high-end restaurants and used by nutritional researchers.

At the request of our members, Mrs. Diggs also discussed the role of Capital City MGA’s Education Committee. Besides the Vice President’s role of program development (monthly speakers), the Committee commits to approximately 3 annual outreach and educational projects per year. The committee selects topics based on interests surveys and assessments. They decide on short-range and long-range goals and then divide the planning and preparation based on various member’s skills. Janell discussed start- up efforts to increase our community presence and to provide horticultural-based learning opportunities. The program was very interesting, as well as immensely helpful to us on setting goals and deciding on yearly outreach programs.
Article based on minutes taken by Kerry Rush
Photos by Audrey Giles and Hugh Nichols

“All About Hostas!”

Our guest speaker for our August meeting was Bionca Lindsey from the Autauga County Master Gardeners Association. Bionca earned her Advanced Master Gardener Certification by learning and teaching “All About Hostas”. She was a very entertaining and informative speaker! 

Photo of Betsy Smith and Bionca Lindsey
V.P. Betsy Smith and special guest speaker Bionca Lindsey

Hostas are the number one selling perennial in the United States. They are native to China and grow in the US zones 3 to 9. There are over 11,000 cultivars of Hosta. They thrive in shade or part shade and require a dormancy period of 4-6 weeks prior to their spring arrival. Bionca shared the many shapes, colors and sizes of Hosta. They are very hardy and can actually be divided any time, but spring and fall are ideal. Fertilize in the spring, using an organic, slow-release fertilizer (10-10-10 or 20-20-20). A few of their enemies are heat, slugs, deer, voles and even a few viruses. Thank you, Bionca for a wonderful program!

Miscellaneous items from our meeting included approval of the August minutes presented by Kerry Rush; announcing the option of contributing to Chilton County Coordinator Lucy Edwards’ wedding gift; the financial report by treasurer Judy Cobb; various volunteer opportunities for the members by Trisha Williams, Harriett Jackson, and REA Jacob Turner; information on registration for 2 fall conferences; our contribution to the 2025 AMGA Conference’s Silent Auction; update on CCMGA’s published article once a month in the Clanton Advertiser by Sharon Hosch; update on the Conservation Group by Betsy Smith and Hugh Nichols; update on the Demo Garden Shade House activities; and updates about the forming of the Nominating committee. And as always we want to thank our Hospitality Committee and food providers for our wonderful refreshments 🥗🍪🥮☕️❗️We had 32 present with 25 members, 3 interns, and 4 guests!

Special guest speaker Bionca Lindsey

A Keyhole Garden

Our Keyhole Garden that is maintained by Chilton County Master Gardeners at the Demo Garden is ready for Halloween! There are pumpkins planted in this Keyhole Garden. These types of gardens are for people confined to wheelchairs and are just the right height for them and also have a place cut out to reach to the middle of the raised garden. The Demonstration Garden is located at the Chilton Research and Extension Center, 120 County Rd. 756, Clanton AL 35045

Photos by Hugh Nichols and Audrey Giles.

June Meeting: Celebrate and Remember

The June Chilton County Master Gardener meeting was a time to celebrate and remember. We celebrated Betsy Smith for earning her Advanced Master Gardener degree. Betsy’s specialty area is Herb Gardening. Regional Extension Agent Jacob Turner presented her with her certificate and pin. 

Our President Skip Coulter, lead the association in a time of remembrance for three of our recently passed members, Joan Barber, Rick Miller and Alan Reed. Members shared stories and special recollections during a slide show of photos.

Special guests were Kerry Smith, Master Gardener State Coordinator; Devonne Ellis, AMGA President; and Debbie Boutelier, AMGA Vice President. They are visiting MG Associations around the state. It was a treat for members who have never met them.

This month’s program was presented by three of our association’s Conservation Group members, Hugh Nichols, Betsy Smith and Trisha Williams. Our Conservation Group was officially formed in May 2023 and one of the CG’s mission statements is, “To promote education and awareness of native plant species growing in, or around, Chilton County”. To fulfill that mission, the CG has created a presentation template for use in community educational and awareness settings. The presentation identifies the coordinating partners (Alabama Plant Conservation Alliance, U.S. Forest Service, Auburn University Davis Arboretum, to name a few) and begins with the relevance of biodiversity in Alabama. Complete with corresponding photos, topics include native, non-native, and invasive plants. Endangered or at-risk plants are discussed, and the three focus plants of our CG (Mohr’s Barbara Button, Alabama Canebrake Pitcher Plant, and Owls Eye Ginger) are detailed along with accompanying photos of the group on field trip locations. An extensive list of resources that support the group’s goals is provided within the presentation. 

Byline:
Trisha Williams and Kerry Rush
Photos by Audrey Giles

Awards and More

Our February Master Gardener Meeting featured the presentation of an American flag to our association by Ocie DeVaughn, President of Lodge 322 of Woodmen of the World. Thanks to Hugh Nichols for contacting them about how we needed a large flag for our meeting place. We’ve went from a little bitty hand held flag to a nice large flag and a stand alone pole! Thank you, Woodmen of the World Life Insurance for such a nice donation!

Mr. Ocie DeVaughn President of Woodmen of the World Lodge #322

Elizabeth York, current Shelby County MGA President and a former Chilton County MGA member, taught us about growing cool season vegetables. Elizabeth told us that in Alabama we can have select vegetables growing nearly the entire year. The main concern for growing from seeds is the correct soil temperature for germination. For more information on growing vegetables check the Alabama Cooperative Extension System website: www.aces.edu.

V. President Betsy Smith presents the speakers gift to Elizabeth York

FEBRUARY is the time of year for our annual awards presentations and there were many honored this year!

This year we had the privilege of presenting Perfect Attendance certificates to Harriett Jackson and Judy Cobb. Congratulations ladies for attending every meeting in 2023!!

L-R Harriett Jackson and Judy Cobb

Pins for working the MG HELPLINE were presented by the Chairman, Hugh Nichols. Diane Clapp earned a pin for 3 days. Amy Baker, Amelia Bloomfield (absent) Pat Farmer, and Lynn Webb (absent) earned pins for 4 or more days.

L-R Pat Farmer, Amy Baker, Diane Clapp, Hugh Nichols

Trisha Williams presented the STARS awards for volunteer service

BRONZE STARS 100-299 hours)
Bobby Atkinson, Amy Baker, Margariette Hoomes(absent)

L-R Amy Baker and Bobby Atkinson


SILVER STARS (300-499)
Leslie Durham, Peggy McGraw, Hugh Nichols, Susan Parkerson (absent) Kerry Rush

L-R Peggy McGraw, Leslie Durham, Hugh Nichols, Kerry Rush

GOLD STARS (500-999)
Clem Clapp, Judy Cobb, Cheryl Herbster, Ronald Herbster (absent)

L-R Cheryl Herbster, Clem Clapp, Judy Cobb

DIAMOND STAR (8000-9999)
Trisha Williams


Trisha williams

Certificates were presented for:

TOP INTERN HOURS: Bobby Atkinson:

TOP CONTINUING EDUCATION HOURS: Lyn Webb (absent)

THIRD PLACE VOLUNTEER HOURS: Hugh Nichols

SECOND PLACE VOLUNTEER HOURS: Pat Farmer

FIRST PLACE VOLUNTEER HOURS: Harriett Jackson

L-R Pat Farmer, Harriett Jackson, Bobby Atkinson, Hugh Nichols

PROJECT OF THE YEAR: Clanton Recreation Center Phase II

L-R Bobby Atkinson, April Oaks, Kathy Oaks

For the first time there was a tie for MASTER GARDENER OF THE YEAR! Congratulations goes to Lanell Baker and Hugh Nichols❗️❗️

L-R Lanell Baker and Hugh Nichols

We also want to give a BIG shout out to our HOSPITALITY TEAM! They always do a great job with the decorations and delicious food❗️❗️

L-R Diane Clapp, Jane Rabey, Cheryl Herbster

Congratulations to our award winners and a huge thank you to all our Master Gardener volunteers for all they do!

These are just a few of our members that helped make 2023 a great year!!



A New Year

Our January meeting started off with our new President, Skip Coulter calling the meeting to order. Then member Ron Herbster led the group in the Pledge Alliance to the Flag. President Skip Coulter took a moment to thank Past President Jerry Farmer for his service and dedication this past year.  Jerry was presented a gift card to Petals From the Past from all the members. He then passed the gavel to the new president, Skip Coulter

 This month’s guest speaker, Mrs. Debbie Boutelier, was introduced by Vice President Betsy Smith. Mrs Boutelier currently serves as the Vice President of the Alabama Master Gardener Association. She is an herbalist and has served as the President of the Herb Society of America. She is the owner/consultant of ”Rooted in Thyme Apothecary” in Prattville) Potager Gardening was the topic of Debbie’s presentation. Potager is a French word that means “for the pot”. This type of garden (Jardin in French), is always located near the kitchen, provides vegetables, herbs, and edible & nonedible flowers “for the pot”. Compared to a standard vegetable garden, a potager garden places an emphasis on freshness (as opposed to preservation) and instead of traditional rows, incorporates small, compact areas with design principles. A most interesting program, thank you, Debbie Boutelier! The monthly business meeting was held after that and the meeting was adjourned at 11:31.

Debbie Boutelier 1-24

Speaker and V.P.
V.P. Betsy Smith presents Debbie Boutelier with speakers gift