It is always a pleasure and sometimes a burden to think of things to write in the newsletter each month. The pleasure is that even as old as I am becoming, I am still able to participate in gardening and offer suggestions to new gardeners and students at Oak Forest. The burden is finding something that is relevant and interesting for you to read.

So, here goes! First let me say a bit about myself. Everyone likes to talk about themselves don’t they? I have been retired from ExxonMobil for 18 years. That is half as long as I worked for them. See, that does make me pretty old! After retirement I spent a few years on a part time job selling and tending seed displays at garden centers, Home Depot, and various other stores such as Kroger. That was a great learning opportunity for my current ‘occupation’ as a gardener. Along the way, I took a course and became a Texas Master Composter. I have always been an environmentally aware person. This led me to found Keep Kingwood Green, along with two other people, about ten years ago. Our goal is to push for more recycling in the Lake Houston area. Gudrun and I have maintained a pretty good garden at our home. Since we only have a half acre, we decided to help at Oak Forest Elementary. We are passionate about passing on our gardening knowledge to the younger generation.

So, if you are new to the club, be prepared to hear from me each month about Oak Forest, composting, recycling, and last but not least, veggie gardening. Gudrun is the expert on ornamentals, and native plants, so ask her about them. I am as dumb as a stump when it comes to flowers and natives.

We are getting into the season of falling leaves and pine needles.

No one can be a good gardener unless they use all the materials that God and Nature have given us to use. So, please do not bag your organic matter and send it to the landfill. If you grow it on your property you really need to learn how to use it on your property! It is not that hard to do.

Maybe sometime later I will talk about recycling. Composting is recycling but probably more important is the recycling of paper, plastic, metal, glass, and cardboard.

While I typically have a pretty good vegetable garden at home, much of my efforts are concentrated at Oak Forest. You will hear lots about OFE in the months ahead. Much of what we raise there goes home with the students. Only in the summer do the volunteers preserve any excess and then sell it to parents and community members to help to fund the gardening program.

Never during my working years did I ever dream I would become a gardening teacher after retirement. Today, I can’t imagine that I would get any more pleasure out of doing anything else. Teaching today’s kids where their food comes from and how good it can be if grown organically is indeed very satisfying.

OK, so far all talk and no action. Time to take action. Now is the time to plant those radishes and the other fall vegies listed on page 2. If you haven’t prepared your beds or worse yet, let the weeds go crazy in your beds, time to fix that. You might have to sweat a bit the next few weeks but it will be worth it. If you are still babying some summer veggies, they may need fertilizer after all the rain the past few weeks.

‘Till next month, happy gardening! Grow veggies!