As I ride off into the sunset ...
After 29 years working for Oklahoma State University Extension, the past 25 right here in Oklahoma County, I have taken a medical leave of absence. There are many things that
I am going to miss; one of them will be writing this article for The Oklahoman.
I will try hard not to make this too rambling, but I am sure it will be, since I have a lot to cram into this open letter to you, the readers.
I tell people all of the time that I have the greatest job in the world. Through phone calls, walk-ins and emails, I encounter 15 to 20 people every day, and they all have a question or problem. Ninety-nine percent of the time we can give them answer to their problem.
They do not always like the answer they get, but they always say thank you. How many jobs out there do you get thanked 15-20 times a day for doing your job?
Twenty-nine years ago, we thought that Austrian pine and Leyland cypress were two of the greatest evergreen plants on God’s green Earth. Turned out not to be true.
Twenty-nine years ago, we had never heard of Pine Wilt, Rose Rosette Virus, Crape Myrtle Scale or Asian Pear Rust. Today, we are all too familiar with those plant maladies.
I am going to miss my coworkers. I am going to miss working with the Master Gardeners. Most of all, I am going to miss meeting and educating the residents of Oklahoma County. I also will miss preparing and delivering workshops on horticultural topics.
Some of my musings that I have quoted often to people:
On planting tree and shrubs:
•“Put the same dirt you took out of the hole back into the hole, no matter how sorry it is.”
•“When you planted that tree, you ended up with extra dirt; don’t haul it off, it was given to you build a basin around the tree to hold water.”
•“The purpose of staking a tree is to keep it from blowing over, not to keep it from moving.”
On vegetable gardening:
•“If you don’t want squash bugs, don’t grow squash.”
•“Pick your tomatoes when they first start to blush pink; if you leave them out on the vine, four things can happen, and all of them are bad.”
•“Cole crops are much better as a fall crop compared to growing them in the spring.”
•“Start your fall cole crop transplant the first of August. Who doesn’t like gardening indoors, where it is 75 degrees, in August?”
Other random quotes:
•“The only redeeming thing that I can say about Siberian Elms is they don’t get Dutch Elm Disease.”
•“I have found only two things cause death in our native oaks, Hypoxylon Canker and site disturbance.”
•“Just because you can water every other day doesn’t mean you have to.”
I am sure I could go on forever, but Richard Mize probably needs for me to get this to him for Saturday's edition.
The next article will be written be Annie Napier. Annie is a horticulturist here in the Oklahoma County Extension Office.
I am turning over writing responsibility to Annie’s able hands. Welcome her aboard. Stop in and say hi if you are in the area.