Master Gardener Column 11/7/09

In his sonnets, when Shakespeare summoned "up remembrance of things past," he longed for "the lack of many a thing I sought." (30). He was speaking of the Dark Lady, the elusive paramour he swore was "fair" and "bright," yet was "black as hell, and dark as night" (147).

Such has been the sorry tale of many tomato paramours with anticipations of luscious, full-fleshed, lip-locked ecstasies right off the vine but who instead got the cankered mold of late summer blight. Just as Shakespeare was "frantic-mad" and "past cure" (147), the tomato paramour, too, grieves for those tomatoes once sought, turned "black as hell" and "dark as night." However, there are lessons to be learned. In today's limited lexicon, Shakespeare had the "hots" which often produce undesired consequences, such as "buzz off," "yuck," or the Black Lady's, "not you" (145).

They are N-P-K: N for nitrogen, P for phosphorus, and K for potassium. The best ratios for tomatoes are 5-10-5, 5-20-20, or 8-16-16 with nitrogen the lowest. The reason is simple: nitrogen stimulates the growth of the plant, phosphorous the production of fruit, and potassium overall plant health. Ironically, much of commercial synthetic fertilizer is counter-productive to tomato plants because it's nitrogen heavy.

The best fertilizer is compost which isn't primarily a fertilizer. Paradoxically, synthetic fertilizer doesn't do any good and may even do harm if the soil isn't chock full of mychorizzae. They are fungal facilitators clinging to the plants' roots which enable the roots to take up nutrients from the soil. Compost is a source of and stimulates the development of mychorizzae as well as providing natural nutrients.

Long before tomatoes are planted, the soil should be prepared with lots of compost and organic fertilizers. They need nutrient and organically rich soil before being planted, as well as, being watered regularly and deeply.

The cankered mold of late summer blight which has swept the East
and Middle West is best fought by preparation. Three years should pass before using the same soil, or the soil should be sterilized. The fungus, Phytophthora infestans, a water mold, may remain in the soil from years past. It's been thought useful in biological warfare.

The easiest way to sterilize the soil is to put it in a black container enshrouded in a black plastic bag and let it sit in the sun cooking for several weeks. Safe soil is more easily controlled in containers. Finally, plant premium seeds because they don't carry the fungal spores which are carried by air and ground on fruit and plants. The fungal spores that caused the blight in East and Middle West were probably carried on plants from the South.

Since late summer blight occurs chiefly in hot, humid climates, it isn't "a clear and present danger" in Flagstaff, save sometimes during the monsoon, by humidification from overhead watering, or importation. Tomatoes like dry leaves and regularly well-drained wet roots. In addition to clean soil as a bulwark against soil borne fungal attacks, tomato plants should be widely spaced so that air can circulate freely to ward off air borne infestations.

A frequent complaint, in addition to lack of fruit, is blossom end rot, an affliction aptly named, because dark spots of rot slowly consume the tomato at its blossom end. No lip-locked fruit. More like yuck. The culprit is a lack of calcium as the fruit sets caused by too much nitrogen and uneven watering. The remedy: throw away the fruit and deep water.

Painful are the remembrances of tomatoes past which were "lov'd not wisely, but too well" (Othello, V, 2, 344). Growing tomatoes from seeds in clean soil, compost, and balanced organic fertilizer, with regular, well-drained deep watering are the ways to love tomatoes well and wisely.

Dana Prom Smith, a Master Gardener volunteer, is coordinating editor for the Master Gardener Column. He can be contacted at stpauls@npgcable.com. For gardening questions, please call the Master Gardener Hotline at 774-1868 ext.19 or visit the Master Gardener Web Site: highelevationgardening.arizona.edu.

Master Gardener Column 10/31/09

The International Herb Association has designated dill as the Herb of the Year for 2010. This decision coincides with the best time for planting this ancient herb - generally in late fall and winter in zones 6 & 7. In Flagstaff at zone 5, it's an annual so that the seeds sown in the fall won't come up until the ground thaws in late spring.

Dill (Anethum graveolens) is a cool season plant, needing to be planted in full sun. Although dill plants purchased locally did well in my garden this year, it generally does not like transplantation. Growing quite tall, 3 feet or more, dill plants need to be staked along with being watered regularly, weekly during dry spells. The plant seldom develops more than one, smooth, shiny, hollow stalk which displays fragrant feathery, fernlike foliage. Attractive to butterflies, the flowers resemble clusters of umbrellas characteristic of all umbellifers, such as parsley and parsnips. After flowering, the plant develops the crescent shaped seed for which it is famous.

The leaves, called dill weed, and seeds provide a distinctive flavor and aroma to a wide range of culinary favorites, including pickles, breads, potatoes, fish, dips, and spreads. An excellent and healthy paste for salmon is dill weed mixed with olive oil. A cousin to fennel, dill has many herbal medicinal uses as well as culinary ones. Don't gather dill leaves until the plant has established itself well. Then you may pick small portions of the leaves from each plant and either use them fresh in cooking or dry them for 2-3 days in a warm dark place. More drying time than that may lose their flavor and color. Harvest dill seeds when they are light brown.

Dill has many ancient ties, particularly to the Egyptian civilizations. Records found in Egyptian tombs suggest that physicians considered the herb a powerful digestive aid even in those long ago times. The Greeks believed dill bestowed good luck and fortune and could ward off hexes. Dill is native to the Mediterranean region and Southern Russia, where it is used extensively in their cuisines. Today, Europeans use dill with fish and wild game. Norwegians use dill with a variety of sauces and fish dishes. In India, bunches of dill weed (leaves and young stems) are cooked as a vegetable in dishes that feature potatoes, garlic, onions, and Indian spices. In America the prime use of dill seeds is in pickling.

Dill seeds, like fennel seeds, are considered a carminative, a reliever of flatulence, and have been used to sooth the stomachs of babies and adults alike. Colicky babies respond well to a teaspoon of seed crushed between two tablespoons and then gently simmered in 8 oz of water for 10 minutes, cooled and strained into a baby's bottle. The infant drinks the tea, burps, and falls asleep. Adults can crush two teaspoons and simmer, as done for babies, and then sip the strained tea for relief of gas (flatulence), heartburn, and stomach cramping. Leaves can be used in place of seeds for similar effect.

Dill seeds and leaves have been used by herbalists for increasing mother's milk and treating breast congestion which may come with nursing. It is also considered a stimulant to the appetite and a simple tea may be taken several times a day for these reasons.

The Herb of the Year has been an official project of the International Herb Association for the past two decades. For those interested in past and future herbs of the year may check the IHA web site www.iherb.org/hoy.htm, as well as, herbalist Jim Long's extensive coverage in The Herb Quarterly, Winter
2009, www.herbquarterly.com.

Susan B. Collins is a Master Gardener volunteer. Dana Prom Smith, a Master Gardener volunteer, is coordinating editor for the Master Gardener Column. He can be contacted at stpauls@npgcable.com. For gardening questions, call the Master Gardener Hotline at 774-1868 ext.19 or visit the Master Gardener Web Site: highelevationgardening.arizona.edu.

6:40pm-7:25pm Continuing Education
Sharing Gardening Successes for 2009
Topic I - Planting bulbs
Loni Shapiro shared photos from the hospice garden of some of the successful bulbs, provided catalogs, and three resource articles from the MG blog (Bulbs are Easy, Species Tulips and our yearly resource for catalogs).
Bob Cooper shared pictures on his computer of his winning dahlias from the county fair. He also shared ideas about planting (soil, amendments, leaving or digging up (some do some don't).

Topic II - Varieties that worked well (veggies/flowers)
Turned into a general discussion about tomatoes. The only variety mentioned was Early Girl. Some in the group are still picking ripe tomatoes outside. Large potatoes were grown from the Maine Potato Catalog (Reddale). General consensus - good garden year!

7:25pm-7:50pm Social/refreshments
Thank you to Rebecca Snow and Irene Matthews for providing snacks.
Also thanks to Rebecca's son for minding the door again.

7:50pm-8:15pm Business Meeting /Committee Meetings
20 minutes planning and 5 minutes each sharing results with the group
CE & Social Support
Ideas for speakers for next year. January/Robyn from Violas. Other ideas included: someone from Native Plant and Seed about grasses, Terra Crampton to give her Habitat Garden Talk, Patrick Pynes on Beekeeping, Dana suggested a NAU professor about soil microcosm, Tom DeGomez on fruit trees, and Brad and Phil from the NAU greenhouse to talk about their seed bank and the plants they sell.
Discussion on possible Xmas party. Date would be Dec. 14. Several offered to check out possible sites (Dana/Episcopol Church -Loni/Hospice or Health Dept.) More to follow at next meeting.

Community Programs
Congratulations on meeting goal of hosting a MG table twice each month at the Flagstaff Community Market this summer. Steve Shields is working on a booth for the Home Show for 2010 and beginning to put together
a questionnaire for a speakers bureau.

Coordination MG Projects
Loni to adapt the forms from Yavapai County with input from her committee. These will be brought to the next meeting for the larger group to review. The group agreed that the projects should have an educational component and be funded by those requesting the project. They also feel that
this meeting is a good place to approve/reject with input from Hattie. Once approved if none of the group are interested in helping it would be available for new MGs.

Volunteers - None of committee attending meeting.

8:15pm-8:20pm Announcements
myfolia.com - Ed Skiba
Ed reviewed this internet blog available to gardeners. You can journal about your garden and share with other gardeners around the world - free.
Soil and Seed conference in Snowflake this month and pine needle pick-up available for $2.50 a bag, details for both on the blog (highelevationgardening.arizona.edu)

8:20pm-8:30pm Loni had questions about her flowering quince which fruited this year. Samples brought to show and tell and the group gave suggestions about what to do with the fruit.
Next meeting: November 19th, 630pm - 830pm
Coconino County Health Department
Speaker Dan Caputo
Managing Wildlife in Your Garden

Submitted by Loni Shapiro (maxmaddy@infomagic.net)

Hello friends!
TheArizona Ethnobotanical Research Association (AERA) would like to invite you to our premier fall event. We have invited Amazonian ethnobotanist Dr. Mark Plotkin to give a presentation entitled "Amazonian Shamans, Healthcare, and Google Earth: Saving the Rainforest in Six Dimensions." Please look at the beautiful poster attached as a PDF file for all the details. We are presenting this event in conjunction with the NAU Botany Club and Department of Anthropology.

This event will be held on Saturday, November 7th at the NAU Cline Library Assembly Hall. Free parking is available in the lot behind the library, off of Riordan Road. Please go to this link for a map of the NAU campus http://home.nau.edu/maps/campus_map_09.pdf

We are asking for an $8 donation ($5 for students and past contributors), which benefits the AERA. As a special offer, we will be giving out free goodies for larger donations. If you make a contribution of between $35 and $75, you will receive a free set of our plant-themed Kachina Doll postcards. If you donate $75 or above, you will receive a free AERA t-shirt. Both these items are new and hot off the press! You can also purchase these separately at the event.

We are so excited to be hosting Dr. Mark Plotkin and feel certain you will be inspired by the work of his non-profit, the Amazon Conservation Team (ACT). We look forward to seeing you there! We have an interview with Mark in the November issue of the Noise, as well as our monthly column, "What's Up in the Forest?". Also, listen to our local radio station, the Eagle 103.7 at 8:20 a.m. on Monday, November 2nd, when you can hear Phyllis and Jessa talking about the event LIVE on air!

Please email azethnobotany@hotmail.com if you have any questions.

Peace, Love, and Plants,

Phyllis Hogan, Director, AERA
Jessa Fisher, Herbarium Curator, AERA

After Patty Hooker, my dental hygienist, finished scraping, polishing, picking, and excavating debris, I asked her if she thought plaque were a moral issue. Appearing surprised, she claimed she'd never thought about it before. Patty bears an unnerving resemblance to Sarah Palin, a discomfiting experience for a cranky old Democrat. I was puzzled about her surprise, plaque being the raison ?être for dental hygiene.

I feel guilty about plaque because, as Patty explained, plaque amongst other things is the result of bad oral hygiene. Throughout my life, in one way or another, a woman in authority has been my hygienic nemesis. My great aunt Marie Aslaakson, a hygienic warrior, who resembled a Norse berserker with battle axe in hand, would often jab the air with her wooden spoon, proclaiming "Cleanliness is next to godliness."

My junior high school, home room teacher was the school's "mental hygiene" enforcer. "To dream the impossible dream," she set about in a high-pitched, nasal shrill to cleanse the hearts and minds of boys under the hormonal assault of puberty. "Nasty boys."

Reclining in Patty's dental chair with various nozzles in my mouth while she picked, poked, and scraped, I thought about my garden's plaque. Again, I felt guilty.

Now, Patty, a charming and delightful woman, has become another woman in authority. Smiling, her blue eyes dancing, she disputed any connection between morality and plaque, smugly asserting scientific impartiality, all the while asking me if I flossed regularly.

TIME TO SCRAPE THAT GARDEN PLAQUE!

Happily, Kayla Smith, a neighborhood teenager, happened by looking for work, an unusual occurrence. An avid pine needle raker, she took the bull by the horns of the dilemma and raked up the pine needles thus avoiding both the FFD's disapproval and the HOA's fines.

Now, that the scraping was over, I was free to pick, poke, and floss, digging up gladiolus corms and dahlia tubers. Please don't say "bulbs" because if you do, gardeners of the snooty sort will look askance, flaring their nostrils as though they'd whiffed a foul odor.

I've concluded that if something takes a lot of work, time, and care in the garden, it probably doesn't belong there. As a result, I've committed to bulbs that don't mind our winters, like daffodils (bulbs) and bearded irises (rhizomes). They thrive with occasional care, especially the daffodils. Loni Shapiro and Hattie Braun know a lot about bulbs so I'm going to ask them for easy unusual bulbs.

Sadly, there is more, pruning and clipping, the nip and tuck of gardening. Of course, there is a difference of opinion about pruning, whether in the fall or in the spring. I'm a fall advocate, unless I don't get around to it, and then I'm a spring advocate.

If it's roses, cut off old, weathered, unproductive canes. Then prune the thin shoots and the productive canes about a thumb nail above an outfacing bud. Prune the interior shoots that cross one another, leaving room for air circulation inside the bush.

If it's a tree, pay attention to the tree's architecture to achieve a well-balanced effect. When pruning a branch, don't cut flush with the trunk but beyond the branch collar that little knob where the branch meets the trunk. Don't bother with salves and anointments over the cut. Trees have learned to take care of themselves. Don't whack or hack. Shape. Trees aren't proper targets of anger.

A reminder: enjoy the aspens amidst the pines and the maples and oaks while brushing and flossing, scraping and pruning, practicing good horticultural hygiene and feeling self-righteous.

Dana Prom Smith, a Master Gardener volunteer, is coordinating editor for the Master Gardener Column. He can be contacted at stpauls@npgcable.com. For gardening questions, please call the Master Gardener Hotline at 774-1868 ext.19 or visit the Master Gardener Web Site: highelevationgardening.arizona.edu.

Dave Hill and his wife Terri donated 4 gliders and Olivia White's grandparents, Ray and Joan White, donated 2 benches in honor of her 16th birthday.

The rest of the gardeners (Marcia Lamkin, Crys Wells, Leslie Penick and Charlotte) spent time putting the garden to bed, feeding the birds, working on compost, adding solar batteries to our outdoor lights, and watering. We plan to turn off the drip next week.

We had our last Saturday workday for the season, with the Grand Canyon Youth and the Honor Society, both from Northland Prep Academy. They cleaned pots, planted more than 200 bulbs, cleaned up our compost pile, put compost into our raised beds, and deadheaded lavender. There were more than 10 and they did all that work in less than 3 hours.

What will probably be our last official workday for the season will be on Thursday from 8am-12 pm. We still have some bulbs to plant, one last watering before the drip is turned off, dead heading some tall perennials, and cleaning our tools. Come join us and if you are interested we begin winter planning meetings in January. Let me know if you want to join us and I will add you to our e-mail.

"If you really want to draw close to your garden, you must remember first of all that you are dealing with a being that lives and dies; like the human body, with its poor flesh, its illnesses at times repugnant. One must not always see it dressed up for a ball, manicured and immaculate."
- Fernand Lequenne

Thanks for a great season,
Loni Shapiro
928-522-8635
maxmaddy@infomagic.net

Greetings,

I know you're a gardener and I thought you might be interested in learning about an effective gardening nonprofit that I'm supporting. They're called Kitchen Gardeners International (KGI) and they're a network of 18,000 people from 100 countries who are growing some of their own food and helping others to do the same. You might have read about them in the news earlier this year for their successful campaign to replant a garden at the White House.

With that garden in the ground and producing, they're turning their attention back to the rest of the world and the timing couldn't be more urgent. You might have seen last week that the world's leaders were meeting in Rome to figure out how we're going to feed 9 billion people in 2050 when we can't feed 6.7 billion in 2009.

KGI thinks it has part of the solution to the problem: help and teach more people to feed themselves. They are currently running a new online campaign called "Crush Hunger" to win a prize of $50,000 from the Case Foundation. They're planning on using the funds to support their work in promoting gardens as a solution to hunger and food insecurity around the world. You can read about their campaign and make a donation if you like here:

http://CrushHunger.org/

The nonprofit group that secures the most donations between now and November 6th wins the $50,000 prize. Even if you can't make a donation now, do check out KGI. Their flagship website serves up millions of portions of food and garden how-to information and all of it ad-free which is refreshing compared with some of the other gardening sites out there.

Loni Shapiro

Master Gardener Column 10/17/09

There's a chill in the air. The wind softly rustles the leaves around in the yard. The pots and flower beds look rough and will soon look bare. The perennials have run their course, and the annuals have suffered a season ending freeze. This is the time of year we fear that we have no color until spring, which makes for a long winter.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Fall for many people is a favorite time of year because of its full of color. If the weather doesn't turn cold fast, all lovers of fall will get to enjoy the color of the leaves changing. It is our last hurrah of the season, similar to the finale of a good fireworks show. Fall is also time to enjoy the wonderful rustic colors of mums and asters that scream autumn.

Our two old friends, pansies and violas, are also ready for an encore. For most of us, these two called it a season in the mid summer months because they just don't like the summer heat. They also brought us into this great season, and they are going to lead us into winter. Don't worry they will come back and welcome us into the coming spring.

Ornamental cabbage and kale are both edible. Because they are bitter most people limit them to decorative planting because of their wonderful presence in the yard. If that isn't enough to scare you off, I even read that cooked ornamental kale it turns gray. Yikes!

Ornamental cabbage and kale are underrated in the uniqueness and wonderful color they put out. The colors range from purples with pink centers, green with white centers, purple with royal purple centers, and on to much more. The colder it gets the more intense the colors get, kicking down the door of color, if you would. Their ruffled edges make them a wonderful addition to any garden. They are good to around 5 degrees as long as it is a gradual drop in temperatures. They are more than likely going to last up to at least Thanksgiving.

Cabbage and kale are very similar in appearance except that the kale seems to be a little more on the frilly side and the leaves are narrower. Cabbage is also usually edged on the outside of the leaf with an accent color. Cabbage and kale like full sun and rich, well-drained soil. If they are planted in part shade, they tend to get leggy.

In the landscape these guys can be planted in separate blocks or grouped together. When planted in a group, they look very sharp. They are also a great accent plant when used with pansies, violas, mums, and asters.

Cabbage and kale can really spice up a fall container planting. They can even be used alone. Nothing says KA POW like using them as a centerpiece with violas and/or pansies around the edges. They look equally as good with mums and asters. One of my favorites for container gardening is using a one gallon cabbage as the centerpiece and two little 4" cabbage on the side and violas to finish off the pot.

Time to think outside of the box. Ornamental cabbage and kale are fantastic when displayed with pumpkins or hay as an outdoor fall decoration. Add some rust colored mums and/or asters, and you have yourself an outdoor setting that screams autumn. So the next time that you are searching for fall color remember that ornamental cabbage and kale put the "ah!" in autumn.

Art Escobedo is a co-owner of Viola's Flower Garden. Dana Prom Smith, a Master Gardener volunteer and coordinating editor of the Master Gardener Column for Coconino County Cooperative Extension, can be contacted at stpauls@npgcable.com. For more information about the Master Gardener Program, call Hattie Braun, Coordinator of the Master Gardener Program, at 774-1868 ext.17 or visit our Web Site: highelevationgardening.arizona.edu.

This may be our last entry for this blog which may be ending on October 19. Watch for future entries on our own blog in a couple of weeks - Olivia White Volunteer Hospice Garden Project.

Last Thursday many of our regular volunteers came to help put the garden to bed for the season. Nancy Palmer spent most of her time feeding and providing water for the birds. David Hockman finished spreading our mulch and helping me move some heavy granite bird baths under shelter for the winter. Linda Guarino did some work on the drip (repairs and winterizing) and helped Marcia Lamkin put away hard scape from the Faerie Garden and the Birdhouse trellis. I planted some white bulbs in the Moon Garden, and Leslie Penick worked on the compost pile.

While working on the drip Linda came across some unusual fruits, It seems our flowering quince decided to fruit this year. It has been in the garden for probably 6 years and we have never seen fruit - but it was a very warm summer. After talking to several people at the Master Gardener Association meeting I have decided to try some quince jelly. If it works we will sample at the next meeting.

We will continue in the garden at least until the end of October on Thursdays from 8a-12p. Workdays in November will depend on when we are done. Our Saturday workday has changed to October 24th from 9-12, due to a change in schedule for the Grand Canyon Youth Corp. We will work on planting bulbs and whatever is not finished with clean-up on Thursday.

October 22, 8am-12pm workday:
Deadhead lavender
Wash pots
Put away hardscape
Assemble new benches

"How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.

At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow."
- Elsie N. Brady, Leaves

Thanks,
Loni

It's the last talk and walk of the season, and what a fantastic season it's been. We've had such great speakers and events this year.

Join us next week as we will have the new style of AZNPS T-Shirts available for sale.

Evening Program Talk: Tuesday, October 20th, 7:00pm "Plant Programs of the Museum of Northern Arizona" by MNA Program Coordinator Keri Stiverson.

Ms. Stiverson will discuss the projects at the Museum of Northern Arizona that are aiding in the revitalization of the MNA botany program. These projects include the Native Plant Materials Program, field excursions for the Plant Atlas Project of Arizona (PAPAZ), a large research and community garden, and the living roof of the new Easton Collection Center.

Weekend Field Trip: Sunday, October 25th, 9:00am***

A tour of the MNA gardens, landscaping and living roof system and an opportunity to participate in the collection of native seed that will be used in various MNA projects.

****Please meet at the Museum of Northern Arizona Garden*** Directions from Flagstaff: Head north on Fort Valley Rd (Hwy 180) as if you were going to the museum or Snowbowl. Turn right on Winding Brook Rd(there is a sign for the Peaks Senior Assisted Living Facility). Winding Brook Rd dead-ends in a T. The top of
the T is the MNA Garden. Parking is available at this location.

What: The World of Seed and Soil

Where: Northland Pioneer College, Silver Creek Campus in Snowflake/Taylor

Area gardeners and growers are invited to attend a special fall symposium, The symposium is the brainchild of two popular NPC gardening instructors, Kim Howell-Costion and Jan Mathis. "These two gentlemen will be here literally by popular demand!" says Mathis, a master gardener and forestry expert for the Navajo County Cooperative Extension Service. "They spoke at the High Country Garden Conference at Hon-Dah four years ago and people have been begging to have them visit and speak again. So Kim and I decided we'd do just that!"

Howell-Costion, an expert in her own right whose well-received NPC gardening classes often deal with seeds and with soil improvement, regards Melendrez and McDorman as mentors. "Bill has traveled as far as Siberia in search of unique seeds and Michael is one of the cutting-edge people in the field of soil microbiology. Yet they are so ... well ... they are so down to earth!"

Both Mathis and Howell-Costion emphasized that the speakers will address issues useful to every kind of grower. "Landscapers, turf farmers, nursery owners, tree growers, and home gardeners can all learn so much from these phenomenal experts," added Howell-Costion.

Bill McDorman, president of Seeds Trust, Inc., of Cornville, is presenting the afternoon program with "Gardening from the inside out and why we garden," as well as a session on seed saving. McDorman has dedicated himself to the concept of sustainable agriculture through preserving and expanding the genetic diversity of seeds, and has lectured about seeds and seed saving for more than two decades. Of special note to area growers is that one of Seeds Trust departments, High Altitude Gardens, specializes in wildflower, native grass, herb and vegetable seeds for cold climates and short growing seasons.

The Amazing World of Soil and Seed symposium is jointly sponsored by Northland Pioneer College and the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension and is offered as an NPC non-credit course (NCC AGR 37413). There is no tuition charge for the event, only a $10 fee to defray instructor expense. Those interested in attending may register at any NPC campus weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. or by calling 524-7660 or (800) 266-7845 to enroll by phone. For further information, contact Loyelin Aceves, Coordinator of Community Education, at 536-6244 or (800) 266-7845, extension 6244.

Northland Pioneer College serves the residents of Navajo and Apache counties through four regional campuses and six centers with a variety of educational options in academic, career and technical and personal enrichment subjects. NPC supports each student's educational goals through affordable tuition, small class sizes and caring, professional instructors. For more information about NPC programs and services, call (800) 266-7845.

FLOW (For the Love of Water) Screening
When: Thursday, October 15th, 7:00pm
Where: Gardner Auditorium, Franke College of Business, NAU Campus
The NAU Student Chapter of Friends of Flagstaff's Future will host a free screening of the revolutionary film, FLOW. Irena Salina's award-winning documentary investigates into what experts label the most important political and environmental issue of the 21st Century - The World Water Crisis. Salina builds a case against the growing privatization of the world's dwindling fresh water supply with an unflinching focus on politics, pollution, human rights, and the emergence of a domineering world water cartel. Interviews with scientists and activists intelligently reveal the rapidly building crisis, at both the global and human scale, and the film introduces many of the governmental and corporate culprits behind the water grab, while begging the question "Can anyone really own water?" Beyond identifying the problem, FLOW also gives viewers a look at the people and institutions providing practical solutions to the water crisis and those developing new technologies, which are fast becoming blueprints for a successful global and economic turnaround.

For more information, contact Tamara Ramirez@nau.edu, (928) 523-0499