Rotary: Conroe, Lake Conroe clubs host gardening experts for summer plant advice

This is the time of year when our yards and gardens are flourishing in the heat so local Rotary Clubs heard from local gardening experts.

Michael Field with the Rotary Club of Lake Conroe said the club’s meeting on July 21 featured Colton Price. Colton discussed Garden and Lot Scale Soil Ecology and Regeneration. This is a timely subject for all of us who would like to know more about maintaining our yards and gardens.

That same Tuesday, Michael Potter with the Montgomery County Extension Service visited with Rotarians about gardening and the various duties his agency deals with from gardening to home economics to 4H to various groups sponsored by the Texas A&M University system. Extension Agents’ paychecks come from both the local county and from the State of Texas.  Michael Potter told Rotarians that the Master Gardeners program started in Montgomery County and is now the largest in the State with over 400 active Master Gardeners.

Applications for those interested in becoming a part of this intensive program will be due in September. They also host Junior Master Gardeners along with a Naturalist Group also sponsored by the Texas A and M System dealing with happenings in Mother Nature. The 4 H Program is also a program for our youth sponsored by Texas A and M University with such programs focusing on both urban and rural programs. In addition to all of these programs, Michael’s office also has a hotline for those needing help with their yards and gardens. Michael is known State-wide as a “turf specialist.” He lectures all over Texas addressing problems with grasses so Montgomery County has a recognized horticulturalist. He even knows about orchids since he received part of his agriculture degree in Hawaii.

The Rotary Club of Conroe will host the High School Pigskins Preview. The Head Football Coaches of all of the Conroe ISD High School will provide their prognosis of the coming high school football season on Tuesday, August 4th. What is even more important is the “blood, sweat, tears, and love” these football coaches and their staffs incorporate in developing these youth into the young adults that provide a healthy Community Environment. Members and their guests of the Rotary Club of Conroe will be the first in our Montgomery County to hear the coaches talk about their football teams’ possibilities and how they develop our youth into responsible young adults!

The Rotary Club of The Woodlands will also hear these same coaches, but their upcoming focus is on their blood drive. This Club’s official vampire, Stephen Bauer told me, “Our Next Blood Drive is August 6th.  Please come and donate and ask your friends to come as well.  Every donation can save up to 3 lives. We still have plenty of spaces available so please e-mail me at stephen.bauer@unitedcapitalwealth.com or call me at 214-476-8237 and we will get you signed up.”

Interact Clubs through District 5910 will meet on Saturday, August first for a leadership building meeting. The District’s Interact Coordinator, Bunny Pratt out of the Beaumont area, will host a District-wide meeting of Interact Club Officers and Board Members at the Northside Baptist Church on F. M. 3083 in Conroe. This meetings of hundreds of high schoolers in Interact Clubs across the multiple counties of southeast Texas is focused on team-building and honing leadership skills while programs for the coming school year are planned by the Officers and Boards for the 53 Interact Clubs in District 5910. If you want to see what lies in the future, attend one of these District-wide youth leadership meetings. It is awe-inspiring to see the potential for our future in these high schoolers who are today’s young adults!

For more information on Rotary, contact Ron Saikowski at rsaikowski@comcast.net.