St Charles County Master Gardeners

St Charles County Master Gardener

 

Steering Committee Meeting Minutes

 

Friday, 12 June 2020

 

Attendees:  Kevin Minard, Jan Carron, Rebekah Davis, Joe Walker, Alex Reichert, Cindy Platzer, Mary Medina

 

Call to Order:  Kevin Minard called the meeting to order at 9:09 AM

 

The Steering Committee met at Quail Ridge Park due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. 

 

Secretary’s Report:  Rebekah Davis-  Steering Committee Meeting Minutes for 1 May, 8 May, & 21 May were approved as written.

 

 

Treasurer’s Report:  Joe Walker- Joe reported the net monthly change for May ($xxxx.xx).  End of May 2020 cash in bank was identified.  Cash in bank number includes the $xxxx pledge for the erosion project.  Cash in bank will need to cover capital allocation for greenhouse, 2021 plant sale expenses, 2021 Dig-in expenses, and normal operating expenses until 2021 plant sale.  Available funds to allocate for MG expenses were shown.  Unallocated dollars are N/A.  Remaining Demo Garden allocation are N/A.  Given the spending freeze, unallocated and Demo Garden Allocation dollars will need to be revisited as we prepare for next year.  Joe also reported most monies from donations and plant sale revenue have been recorded, some additional sales are still anticipated.

 

 

MU Horticulturalist Specialist:  Justin Keay-  Kevin Minard reported on behalf of Justin:  The Steering Committee discussed the new Policies and Procedures along with the tentative changes planned as the St Charles County Extension slowly eases restrictions.  Phase 2 is scheduled to come into effect 1 July which will allow 50 people on the Extension property.  The Extension building will remain closed to the public until Phase 3. 

 

 

MU County Engagement Specialist:   Alex Reichert-  Alex reported that the Erosion Control Project is picking up again by City of St Peters.  The project is designated a priority by St Peters due to the affected sewer line.  Easement rights are being investigated before the project goes out to bid.  While there isn’t a firm start date yet, the project is certain to commence sometime this year.

 

Alex reported that the St Charles Extension does not plan to sell the current property, citing it is not economically feasible despite some concerns regarding budgets and current operation deficits.  Further stating that St Charles County itself isn’t planning for any budget cuts in the coming cycle. 

 

 

Committee Reports-

 

Membership:  Cindy Platzer gave an update on the Trainee Mentorship Program: She would like to have the Steering Committee and Demo Leads meet with the Trainees in July for a graduation ceremony/ meet-and-greet.

 

 

Demo Gardens:  Cindy Platzer-  There are no Demo Garden tours scheduled at this time.  A fig tree will be presented to the Fruit Arboretum to commemorate the efforts of the Plant Sale Committee that ensured a successful plant sale this year despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

Cindy reported that the Master Naturalists are exploring the possibility of building a hoophouse the same size as our current one on the Extension Center property.

 

 

Greenhouse:  The Steering Committee was reminded that a fan will need to be replaced by next spring.

 

 

Plant Sale:  Donna Lindsey- Nothing to report other than a lot of weeds!

 

Cindy Platzer mentioned that perennials are now being sold.  The Plant Sale Committee is interested in scheduling a fall perennial plant sale.  Mary Medina suggested it may be a good idea to get a booth at the farmers market in the fall to sell the perennials.

 

 

Speakers:  Val Mertz- Next monthly meeting will be a fieldtrip to St Peters Earth Centre 25 June at 6:00 PM.   

 

 

Hort Line:  Hort Line is still active from volunteer’s homes.  The number of calls are down at the moment.  There will be no Hort Line training this year.

 

 

Education:  The Education Committee is meeting every 2 weeks, with 11-14 members regularly attending said meetings.  The Committee has created an updated master list of MG speakers and topics.  Mary Medina is organizing a Dig-In Committee for the 2021 event.  The chosen topic “Grow It, Eat It!” will tie into the Extension nutrition faculty.

 

Kevin Minard mentioned that Chuck Baur has offered to host a Zoom class on how to create a PowerPoint which will hopefully be ready in the next 2-3 weeks.  We are partnering with the Library to offer Zoom MG presentations to the public.  The presentations and dates are not scheduled yet but Waneta Parmenter, Ann Schappe, and Maureen Walmsley are making progress. 

 

The Steering Committee discussed having a dedicated St Charles MG Zoom account: Vice President Jan Carron volunteered to be the proposed account’s primary host and facilitator.  Joe Walker made the motion that the Steering Committee authorize the expenditure of one year use of Zoom for use by the Master Gardeners, specifics to be determined by the committees that are going to be using it besides the Steering Committee.  The motion was approved.

 

The group discussed and agreed to contribute to the St Charles Extension Newsletter by assisting the Education Committee in writing a monthly general gardening column.  Alex Reichert stressed that the articles need to be general topics which are University approved.  

 

 

New Business:  Kevin Minard reported on MOMGA (Missouri Master Gardeners Association) news, the state meeting is still on for September. 

 

The Steering Committee discussed the hour requirement for trainees and agreed it would remain at 30-hours for this year.  The 5-hour requirement for the Demo Gardens will also remain.

 

Mary Medina- The Lake St Louis Farmers Market is on hold for MG participation at the moment.  Mary is also waiting to hear from Tom Holt concerning if the MOMAD event will still be occurring this fall.

 

Tom Conley will continue to create monthly quizzes and would welcome a list of topics.  It is suggested that he look at MOBOT (Missouri Botanical Gardens) for ideas.

 

 

Old Business:  Discussion on communication/social media needs, per February meeting, are still pending.

                       

MGSC President will be sending approved meeting minutes for publication to our web site via Mary Carey <https://www.stcharlescountymastergardeners.com/> and to our newsletter via Mary Medina, after the end of each month.

 

 

Good of the Order:  The next Steering Committee meeting will be 26 June in person, location TBD.  The SC agreed to start meeting bi-weekly.

 

 

Meeting was adjourned at 11:20 AM

 

 

Respectfully submitted,

                                   Rebekah Davis

 

 

 

AS APPROVED   26-June-2020