New PNW regional host -- Marc Iverson

Hi everyone!  I'm the new regional host for the Pacific Northwest Region.

My first act will be to institute a reign of terror such as the world has never ... no, wait, that was my prom.  No, wait, that was Carrie ...

Me, I'll just try to be helpful and encouraging and have an open ear for anyone who needs one.

PNW's regional forum has been a quiet forum.  I hope everyone feels comfortable posting here, and want to encourage everyone to post new topics whenever the mood strikes them.  In any forum.  It doesn't have to be the best topic ever; it enough that it's yours.  Let us know who you are, how you're doing, and what you're thinking.  

The worst that could happen is that you don't get a lot of responses.  But it's you and me and people like us that make a forum an active, interesting place to be.  What goes around tends to come around -- we get more responses to our own topics and posts by building a community between each other and by welcoming strangers ... by responding ourselves to other people and their topics and posts.  It's, like, a virtuous circle, man.  By all means, simply lurk and enjoy if you like.  The price is right!  But your participation will always be welcome.

Now to bore you further, it's forum tradition for new hosts to give a write-up of who they are, at least as relates to gardening and SFG, so here goes.

I got the ANSFG book after reading these forums for a while.  They sold me on the idea of a growing medium that would help me through the summers here in Southern Oregon, where it's commonly held that we get no rain all summer.  Temps can be around 95 to 100 degrees or better for any part or nearly all of the summer.  And the soil is no help, being either decomposed granite or clay.  Almost everybody here grows in raised beds, so ANSFG didn't seem as radical an idea to me as it might to others.  To me, it was mostly about the soil -- and Mel's Mix sounded like perfect soil.  Great water retention, great aeration, high nutrient level -- everything my native soil didn't have all at once!

Unfortunately, where I live, almost everything is in full or partial shade, so most things don't grow well.  Luckily, I've had neighbors offer up some of their unused beds for my use.  What luck!  But the only place I've been able to use real Mel's Mix in is in containers.  And that has worked quite well, wherever I've found enough sun.  Next spring, though, I'll introduce some vermiculite and peat to the rich compost in one of my neighbor's beds and be on my way to a slow conversion to Mel's Mix soil in a great bed that gets full sun.

This is my third year of gardening in the PNW, and my first year using Mel's Mix and SFG/ANSFG-style intensive and successive planting.  A couple of weeks ago I got my Master Gardener's badge, having gone through our county's required 70 hours of instruction and 70 volunteer hours(much more actually, if you want them). I volunteer at a local school garden, helping teach the kids gardening and getting them into fresh food and flowers, and volunteer at numerous other master-gardening events in the community.  Additionally, I volunteer delivering food at Food & Friends, a charity that delivers one square meal a day to needy housebound seniors.  To try to turn the occasional dollar, I help do a little business writing for a hotel development company and a commercial furnishings company, and I'm also getting set up to apprentice to a fiction editor at a publishing house.

Anyway, enough about me -- long live the PNW!  Questions, concerns, problems, let me know.  I'm not here every day, but check in often, and will always try to help.

Well that's just perfectly wonderful,  Marc.      
The Pacific Northwest is very fortunate to have you. Congratulations!

CC

Welcome new RH! Nice write-up

Congrats and I enjoyed your write-up.

Congratulations!  I have enjoyed so many of your posts you will make a great regional host for the Pacific Northwest.

Thanks, folks!

I may be the host, but you're the ones that matter. I hope you'll all contribute whenever you feel the mood, or just chat and say hello. It's all good in the PNW family.

This region has its challenges, but it really is lovely in its own way. All I have to do is look around, or drive around, in any direction and see the glory of nature. And I don't mean that slightly or ironically. There is glory everywhere I look here. There is no point at which I don't feel grace has touched the land. Nothing can replace our beauty and our luck to be here. I just hope we can appreciate the opportunity that we've been given.

It's no small thing. I've grown up elsewhere. In beautiful places, too. Fantasy places, including Hawaii. I know what beautiful looks like. I don't want to make comparisons and stir up talk about sports teams. But this really is an outstandingly beautiful region. And I say that as someone who grew up in the state most people in the world would probably spontaneously volunteer is the most beautiful. The PNW really is beautiful, and we really are lucky.

It's so nice to see more regional hosts, way to go Marc, you'll be perfect! 
Just remember to give yourself a break to avoid burn out.

Marc, you'll be a great RH!  Glad you've joined us!

So glad you are not starting a reign of terror, marc, as I am easily terrified.
Thank goodness for all those who volunteer to be hosts. I for one appreciate you all.

Congrats on your new position Marc.  I always enjoy reading your posts.  I wish you much success!!

Congrats Marc you will be a great host!!

happy gardening
rose