NOVEMBER 2018 VOL. 1, NO. 8 Denton County Master Gardener Association T H E R O O T Grow With Us Buds From The Board WHAT'S BY PAT MOYER, PRESIDENT GROWING ON Well, we made it through a very challenging Fall Garden Fest. It seems that each Garden Fest I’ve participated in since my Intern year of 2013 has had a memorable part of it. This year’s Fest was 03 Project Spotlight: no exception. This one should be known as the “one that the sky Herbal Branch opened up on.” Setting up in the rain on Friday was only the 04 Meet a Member: start. Dealing with the deluge on Saturday gave us more Ray Roberts opportunities to see how adaptive our organization can be under difficult conditions. 09 Plant of the Month: Sweet Woodruff I think we succeeded in grand form, from dealing with trying to get as many booths under cover to making an “on the fly” 11 Feature Article: classroom in the Fairground Building. The “classroom,” while a Cool Season Herbs little uncomfortable, allowed us to keep our speakers on schedule. Additionally, an unscientific poll of our vendors 15 Help Desk Q & A: indicated that, despite the weather, they were happy with the Overwintering Fest. So, I think the Fest was an overall success. Citrus Trees I’d really like to give a shout out to the FGF Team, especially CONNECT WITH US ON THE WEB Sharrie Ely, Susan Novak, Carolyn Stoy, Steve Spurgin, Russell https://dcmga.com DENTON COUNTY MASTER GARDENER ASSOCIATION NOVEMBER 2018 Buds from the Board (Cont.) Tyson, and Barbara Prins who did yeoman duty making this another successful project. I know there are countless other Sharrie would also like to thank, but I’m limited to 350 words for this article. But thanks to all of you, too. On a drier topic, please make sure you complete your membership renewal for 2019. If you have entered your Service and AT Hours into VMS like you should (12 hours DCMGA Intern Beverly of each for Veterans and 70 hours of each for Interns), Duncan (left) smiled through the rain at then the process can take as little as 5 minutes. If you this year's Fall Garden Fest, and her don’t have your Service and AT hours completed and friend drove a very long way to join us entered into VMS, then the process can be more of an for the event! issue. If you have any questions, please see Gay Campbell, our fantastic Member-at-Large, or any other member of the Board of Directors. Please, please, please, get those Service and AT Hours in and renew your membership for 2019. Wishing you Great Fall Gardening Pat Moyer P a g e 2 https://dcmga.com DENTON COUNTY MASTER GARDENER ASSOCIATION NOVEMBER 2018 Herbal Branch BY KATHY RAINEY When it comes to versatility, herbs are hard to beat. They provide wonderful fragrance, add delicious flavor to your favorite dishes, look beautiful in your yard, attract pollinators, and can be preserved for use throughout the year. DCMGA’s Herbal Branch project has been thriving for about 10 years and continues today with its original purpose —providing education on growing and using herbs. Herbs are easy to grow and care for and are irreplaceable in the kitchen. Once you begin using fresh herbs in cooking, there’s no turning back. It is delightful to step outside your door Canva Stock Photo and snip just the herb you want for the food or drink Sweet Basil you are preparing. Ocimum basilica, is part of the Lamiaceae or Mint Family. It's a tender Fall is the perfect time to plant perennial herbs annual herb requiring full sun. Harvest (oregano, rosemary, some sages) and now is also a fresh young leaves as needed. Leaves may be dried or frozen for winter use. great time to start parsley seeds (soak them 24 hours first). Unless it is a brutal winter, little parsley plants will grow over the winter and quickly grow to a nice size in the spring. Dill can be planted now from seed (or from plants if you can find them) and produce until the first hard freeze. The basil you don’t cut and use now will be going to seed. Let it, and you will have a host of little basil plants next spring. The Herbal Branch welcomes all Master Gardeners and members of the community to its monthly meetings. Meetings are typically the 4th Monday of the month at 10 am at the Joseph E. Carroll Building in Denton, room 115. Members volunteer to present programs on herbs they know and grow or on herbs they would like to know better and are willing to study. Herbal Branch is a good place for Master Gardeners to practice presentations in front of a friendly crowd. The meetings also offer food made with the herb being discussed. Speakers find it rewarding to learn more about a subject they love and to pass on that knowledge to their fellow Master Gardeners, friends, and neighbors. Some examples of popular topics have included making herbal teas and pesto, growing exotic garlic, and designing the ideal herb garden. If you have questions or inquiries for the Herbal Canva Stock Photo Branch, contact project managers Suzie Cooke Rosemary [email protected] or Carolyn Richard Rosemary officinalis is an attractive, [email protected]. perennial evergreen shrub that blooms in the winter. It likes full sun and good drainage. Harvest any time. P a g e 3 https://dcmga.com DENTON COUNTY MASTER GARDENER ASSOCIATION NOVEMBER 2018 Meet Ray Roberts BY GAY CAMPBELL No ... he is not THAT Ray Roberts. But he IS every bit as accomplished. Few individuals could claim such a full, adventurous, and exciting life. Meet retired Major Raymond D. Roberts, Sr. Ray was born in Birdville, Texas, in 1931. During the 1940s, Ray's favorite teacher at Arlington High was a navy reservist who flew airplanes on the weekends. Intrigued, Ray asked to accompany him, but was told that it was impossible without a uniform. To most 14-year-old boys, that would end the conversation. However, Ray was not to be discouraged. After rallying a few friends, Ray and his buddies stopped by the Navy recruitment office Photo courtesy of Ray Roberts on the way home from school. Unable to provide Major Ray Roberts (retired) proof of age, the boys were turned away. with Secretary of the Air Force Undeterred, they visited the local Marine Corps Heather Wilson at the 70th Anniversary office where Ray and his friends told the officers Commemoration of the Berlin Airlift. they were 18. Taken at their word with no parental consent or ID needed, Ray and his buddies were Meanwhile, in typical Ray fashion, he bought a officially welcomed into the US Army at age 14. fast motorcycle, wrecked it, had no license, and spent a night in jail. Ray chuckles as he relates The very next day, Ray found himself on a train the incident. Just before turning 16, he told his bound for San Antonio. On the way to basic Sgt. that he was tired of working so hard, that training, he wrote his father a letter telling him he was underage, and wanted to go home. His that he had joined the army and that his '37 Ford Sgt. promptly replied, "Forget it. You're in the (which he owned at age 14 with no driver’s Army now." Ray was then sent to Fassberg, license) was parked at the train station with the Germany, where he would take part in the key still inside. largest non-combat military operation of the 20th century. According to Ray, the Berlin Ray transferred to the Army Air Corp (predecessor Airlift was also the "greatest humanitarian to the Air Force) when he realized that he would aviation rescue event ever accomplished." soon be shipped to Korea. Several weeks after joining the army, Ray was forced to go before a At the end of WWII, the United States and her board and advised to admit that he was underage. allies, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet After confessing that he had lied, the army Union, divided Germany into four equal parts officially sought and obtained parental consent. and were committed to redeveloping the war- They proceeded to change his date of birth on all torn country. However, in 1948, Stalin decided military records and eventually he was sent to not to share. The Soviets developed a plan to Aviation Engineering School. blockade and starve the city of Berlin, making it easier to push out the other three allies and take over the suffering and impoverished city. P a g e 4 https://dcmga.com DENTON COUNTY MASTER GARDENER ASSOCIATION NOVEMBER 2018 Ray Roberts (Cont.) By doing so, they planned to expand Soviet reach throughout Germany and advance the spread of communism. Unfortunately for the Soviets, they miscalculated the ingenuity, compassion, and perseverance of the United States. For 15 months, Allied Forces flew around the clock, air-lifting food, coal, and other supplies to the 2.4 million starving residents of West Berlin. American and British planes took off and landed every 45 seconds. The pilots, including Ray, made three and sometimes four extremely dangerous flights a day. Each flew 12-hour shifts without current updated approach instruments to aid them. They flew day and night through rain, snow, fog, and mist. They endured blinding search lights, radio jamming, and Soviet aircraft harassment. On one mission, Ray was flying close to the edge of his zone when a Russian Yak fighter flew up beside him and locked eyes, waiting for Ray to accidentally veer out of his safe zone.