St Charles County Master Gardeners

St Charles County Master Gardener Steering Committee Meeting Minutes

Monday, 12 October 2020

 

Attendees: Kevin Minard, Jan Carron, Rebekah Davis, Joe Walker, Cindy Platzer, Marsha Brown, Justin Keay, Patti Kolek, Rebekah Davis (remote call-in)

 

Call to Order: Kevin Minard called the meeting to order at 9:04 AM

 

Secretary’s Report: Rebekah Davis- Steering Committee Meeting Minutes for 14 September were approved as written.

 

Treasurer’s Report: Joe Walker- Joe reported the net monthly change for September. End of September 2020 cash in bank was identified. Revenue and expenses from 2019 were shown for comparison. Unallocated dollars are N/A. Remaining Demo Garden allocation are N/A. Joe provided additional Greenhouse, Demo Gardens, Annual Income Statement by Category, and Transactions by Class Documents for Steering Committee to view.

 

MU Horticulturalist Specialist: Justin Keay- Dig-In Update: Justin gave the group an update on Dig-In 2021 including the schedule, classes, and information on the keynote speaker. The classes will be recorded. Registration options are still being considered. The group discussed ways the event could be advertised including listing the event in the Gateway Gardener Magazine.

 

MG Communications: Justin defined Horticulturalist/Coordinator roles, County Extension Specialist role, and Extension Council roles with the Steering Committee. For the sake of streamlining communications: Alex Reichert will be cc’d only on emails announcing Steering Committee meetings and their minutes.

Support Staff: Jan Carron mentioned that the Office Support Staff may assist Master Gardeners again, providing limited office support and use of supplies.

 

MU County Engagement Specialist: Alex Reichert- No report

 

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Membership: Waneta Parmenter, Bonnie Winkeler- Kevin Minard presented Waneta’s e-mail regarding 2019 MG Trainees / Interns INACTIVE discussion: Cindy proposed the 2019 MG Trainees / Interns be given all of 2021 to earn their volunteer hours. Motion was approved.

 

Demo Gardens: Cindy Platzer- Cindy announced that Marsha Brown is her new Assistant Overall Demo Garden Lead. Cindy reported the gardens are fully staffed now, there were around 50 active MGs participating in the Demo Gardens this year.

 

Greenhouse: Laura Stiemel, Nancy Torke- Kevin Minard discussed Laura’s e-mail- The greenhouse is closing on Oct. 24. People are needed to help clean; planning to spray everything. Contact Laura if interested.

 

Plant Sale: Marsha Brown, Laura Stiemel- Marsha reported that off-property alternatives for the plant sale are being considered, in case C Room is not an option at that point. Alternative plans may include arranging the sale to be a drive-through pickup after pre-ordering online. The drive-through would be limited to 50-people in 2-hour increments. Marsha is investigating charge cards. Using URL to MOBOT plant pages for descriptions and care information would be ideal. Contact Marsha if you know how to prevent any legality issues.

 

Speakers: Val Mertz- Kevin Minard discussed Val’s e-mail- 22-October monthly meeting will be on Zoom and feature Allene Gremaud, Specialist in Nutritionist and Health at Extension speaking about “Nutrition in the Garden”. Hort Line:

 

Patti Kolek- Hortline is still operating on a call in basis. Patti mentioned that activity has picked up.

 

Education: Jan Carron announced she is taking over as Lead of the Education Committee.

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New Business:

 

Jan Carron- Jan is looking into ways to take registrations and fees for Dig-in and plant sales next year. The Office may be unable to assist.

 

Old Business:

Joe Walker- Garden Certification by Audubon Society: Joe reported that the Native Demo Gardens recieved the Platinum level of certification, this is the highest level in the Bring Conservation Home Program. This certification also designates the St Charles County Extension as the first institution in the county to be certified with the Audubon Society’s program and the 29th property overall to recieve the platinum certification. 

 

Current Candidates for Steering Committee- Laura Steimel and Rebecca Poon, Kevin Minard is investigating a few other possible candidates.

 

Good of the Order: After a brief discussion, Kevin Minard motioned to approve canceling this year’s MG Holiday Party due to the pandemic. The motion was approved. The group discussed looking into adding additional members to the Steering Committee. This will be discussed further next year.

 

Meeting was adjourned at 10:29 AM

 

Respectfully submitted, Rebekah Davis AS APPROVED, 19 November 2020