The Leaflet - August 2026

The Leaflet

~ August 2026 ~

I was pondering the dog days of August as I walked around the neighborhood this morning. My first thought was to skip my walk, and I easily came up with a lot of rationalizations to stay inside in the air conditioning. But then I thought of the many hours I’ve voluntarily spent in the gardens, nursing plants through the heat. I adapted a couple of my cooling methods for gardening to my walk. First, of course, was going very early to take advantage of the lowest temperature of the day. I wetted down my cooling towel and slung it around my neck, then put on my wide-brimmed sun hat. My daily face lotion has SPF 50, so I used some on my cheeks and nose. Last, I carried a small bottle of water to drink at the halfway point. While I was a long way from cool and comfortable, I would describe my walk as at least tolerable and doable.

Of course, gardening in August is the same. It takes more personal preparation, including a good dose of mosquito spray, to spend needed time out in the garden. Several of us were out for Third Saturday and some folks were wearing long-sleeved shirts and slacks to keep away the sun’s rays. Some are already having issues with melanoma, as are many other gardeners. I love the wide range of clothing available in SPF fabrics and plan to add at least one shirt to my collection of ratty cotton tees. Another advantage of slacks and long sleeves is that you can spray the fabric, instead of your skin, with mosquito repellent.

There is also a lot of debate about the merits of room temperature water versus ice water. All I can fully recommend is to bring twice what you think you need and drink up. I usually end up drinking the entire second bottle on the way home. Heat stroke and dehydration are things to actively avoid. It is true that if you’ve succumbed to either even once, your susceptibility increases in future. Anyway, by the time this newsletter is published, I hope the worst of the heat is on its way out. Happy gardening!

Beth Hannabass, President

RCMGA

YMCA Children's Garden

by Holly Achurch

Earlier this year, the RCMGA was invited to participate in the YMCA Children’s Homeschool Program. With Juliet Harris as Project Lead, she took 8 weeks and a handful of Master Gardeners to teach more than 40 children of varying ages the basics of gardening. We followed their theme of “Around the World,” and discussed how various parts of the world grow foods differently. From indigenous farming in North America (Three Sisters Garden), to Mediterranean herbs (basil, thyme, and oregano), to Asia (rice and ginger), we truly took the students “Around the World.”

The highlight of those 8 weeks was teaching the class to use milk jugs for growing their own tomatoes, peppers, and beans. Once the seedlings were hardy enough to be transferred to raised beds, we let the students plant them, and now the YMCA has an official children’s garden!

The collaboration between Robertson County Master Gardeners and the YMCA Homeschool Program was such a success in the spring that we were invited to participate in their Summer Camp Day and have officially been asked to partner with the YMCA again for a fall program. Their homeschool program begins again on September 8, and we’ll be ready to teach them how to prep and clean their garden beds and plant root vegetables.

Profiles in Gardening...

Courtney Gunn

Name?

Courtney Gunn

Why did you become a Master Gardener?

My son and I have always loved gardening together, but the older he gets the more questions he had and the less I was able to answer. So, I joined MG to have more to share with him and also to show him and my daughter that investing in hobbies is so important, even for adults!

What types of gardening are you most interested in?

I love growing things we can use in our daily lives outside of food. We grow herbs to make medicine, bug spray, and infused oils. We grow luffa for body and dish washing. We grow and dry plants to use for spices in cooking.

What are two of your favorite plants?

I love my holy basil and bee balms. The smells are heavenly, and I love my nightly tea from my holy basil!

What is your favorite thing about Master Gardeners?

The amount of diverse knowledge in the group is amazing! Outside of gardening, I find it so interesting to hear about what everyone does for careers and other hobbies.

What other hobbies or interests do you have?

I’m always wanting to learn something new, so the list of interests is endless. Cooking is something I have always loved, but recently I have been wanting to get into embroidery or sewing. As a family, we spend a lot of time at the baseball fields or out on the lake!

Where, other than Robertson County, have you lived & gardened?

I am originally from Newnan, GA, just south of Atlanta.

How did you first become interested in gardening?

My grandfather always had a huge garden (and still does). He taught me the basics, and as a kid I would sell his extra veggies in a neighborhood stand. I wasn’t able to garden through college, so I got really into houseplants until we moved to our current house and finally were able to set up some raised beds.

What are two interesting things about you that we don’t know?

I hope to one day have a homestead and be able to grow and preserve most of everything we need. I am obsessed with hedgehogs and want one as a pet someday.

August's Bounty from MG Gardens

Donna Anderson and Bobby Atkinson are looking for pots for their propagation project at the Highland Rim greenhouse. If you have extra pots or trays laying around, they would be very grateful to have them. They are specifically looking for 4-packs, 6-packs, 4-inch pots, pint-size pots, and plastic trays. Please bring donations to the August meeting.

RCMGA would like to extend our gratitude to David Cook who presented “Beneficial Insects: Will Work for Food” during our July meeting. He shared information about how to attract beneficial insects to our gardens and landscapes, including plants that meet the needs of such insects as they assist in controlling harmful and/or nuisance pests.

Mr. Cook has served in many roles with UT and the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, spending decades educating others on nematology, insect and plant diseases, pesticide use, and more. We appreciate him sharing his wealth of knowledge--and humor--with our members.

It’s our favorite event of the year and you don’t want to miss it! Mark your calendars for this year’s Fall Gardeners’ Festival on Tuesday, August 25 from 9am-3pm CDT, located at 320 Experiment Station Rd., Crossville, TN. There are plenty of great gardening topics and several experts from across the state! Also enjoy vendors, educational displays, and a wagon tour of our research center. Registration begins at 8:00am, or save time and pre-register here: https://forms.gle/PTk3aRqi2GStuZ5EA

The UT Gardens Annual Membership Drive will run Monday, August 17 through Friday, August 28! Now more than ever, your new or renewing membership is a vital part of growing the UT Gardens, your State Botanical Garden of Tennessee. You can select membership to the Gardens in Knoxville, Crossville, and Jackson. We hope you'll consider supporting the Gardens in this way! Click here to learn more and show your support.

Healthy Trees, Healthy Lives is a nationwide initiative that highlights the direct connection between trees and human health. Trees not only improve air quality, reduce stress, and encourage outdoor physical activity, but they also help create healthier environments in schools, healthcare settings, and communities.

The Urban and Community Forestry Program partners with public health departments, healthcare providers, community health councils, and other organizations to promote the planting and care of trees, reinforcing the role of urban forestry in public health initiatives across Tennessee. Click here to learn more.

Do you receive Tennessee's UT Extension Master Gardener newsletter? They send out 4-6 newsletters per year. If you'd like to be in the know, click HERE to sign up!