(Riverton, WY) Members of the Master Gardeners will be meeting at various locations throughout the summer months, visiting several of its members’ residences that will host tours of their yards and gardens.
June’s meeting was held at the residence of Jim and Carol Brodle, who gave a tour and answered questions from members and attendees about the various flowers, plants, trees, and garden areas on their property.
Also on June’s agenda were updates on the Strawberry Hoop House located at the Fremont County Fairgrounds, the Riverton Saturday Farmers’ Markets, and the success of the Plant Sale that was held at the end of May.
“The strawberries were great, especially with the kids,” said Master Gardeners President Ernie Schierwagen. “You had the kids there with their mom and dad buying up a little pot of strawberries…they were going like hotcakes…we still have some pepper and tomato plants.”
Roundtable Discussion: Weed Identification
“Since we’ve had quite a bit of moisture and warm weather, popping up is the Kochia weed (Kochia scoparia) and all those things we don’t want in our gardens,” Schierwagen said. “Kochia, in the early stage, is actually a crop; you can feed it to horses and cattle. In fact, in some countries, it’s a crop they raise like we do alfalfa. But if Kochia gets too big and too high, they won’t eat it. Like clover and even alfalfa, it can get big and stalky, and out of control.”
Other weeds discussed were cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and the puncturvine (Tribulus terristris), or goathead.
“It starts about now, stays really low, and gets a little flower on it that turns into a real sharp goathead thorn,” said Schierwagon. “It doesn’t take long for them to get going…once it develops that yellow flower, it’s almost gone too far. By the time you spray it…let’s say it takes a few days…it’s already maturing into that goathead. So you need to get rid of it now, either mechanically or chemically.”
The Master Gardeners meet on the first Wednesday of each month at 5:30 p.m.; all who are interested are invited to attend their meetings. Riverton Saturday Farmers’ Markets are from 9:00-11:00 a.m. in the Riverton City Hall parking lot at 816 S. Federal Blvd. For more information, contact Ernie Schierwagen at 307-851-7562 or e-mail e[email protected], or visit the Farmers Market Facebook page.