MVSKOKE RESERVATION – The College of the Muscogee Nation Extension Program is now hosting an in-person garden series. The new program meets weekly at the CMN Community Garden every Thursday from 11 a.m. to noon in Okmulgee and runs through the growing season.
The series is presented by CMN Horticulturalist and Extension Educator Courtney Natseway (Mvskoke) who also manages the college’s garden and greenhouse. A CMN alum, Natseway earned a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture from Oklahoma State University and has experience working at the Tulsa Botanical Garden and in the medical cannabis industry.
Each week Natseway and her team will cover a new topic and offer tips and insights for all levels of gardening. Topics already covered in the series include managing pests, fertilizing, and transplanting. Other topics will include native pollinators, herbs, and seed starting.
“Our goals consist of developing an heirloom seed program, sharing traditional ecological knowledge, promoting agriculture, enhancing nutrition, and reconnecting people to nature and the outdoor world.” – CMN Extension Coordinator Chris Azbell
The series is open to all, anyone wanting to learn and share gardening tips can participate in the extension program regardless of tribal citizenship. The meeting will be canceled for severe weather, but CMN Extension Coordinator Chris Azbell related the series will persevere throughout Oklahoma’s notoriously moody weather. “A few sprinkles will not deter us,” Azbell said.
The program is in the stages of cultivating an heirloom seed collection, and currently gives out seeds to participants as well as a limited number of plants, which are available for Mvskoke citizens.
In addition to the weekly in-person garden talks, a web-based series is in the works for the program. “Mvskoke Gardening” is a collaboration with Mvskoke Media and will provide gardening guidance by Natesway and the team. It will also feature Extension Educator Ben Yahola, who highlights traditional Mvskoke cultural connections in the garden.
The video programming was an idea of Azbell’s, who saw an opportunity to align cultural programming with the Extension program’s mission statement. Azbell related, “I actually thought of the idea after watching Oklahoma Gardening. I thought it would be nice to have our own gardening show intertwined with the Mvskoke culture and the Mvskoke language.”
Azbell, whose background is in environmental science, does not consider himself a gardener but more of an enthusiast. He explained that his wife is the gardener in his family, while he provides the labor and some good ideas. He also takes the same path in his role at CMN and stated, “I take the same approach in my role as extension coordinator. Come up with good ideas and then get good people to carry out the mission.”
“Mvskoke Gardening” can be found on Mvskoke Media’s Youtube Channel in mid-June. The in-person gardening series will be hosted every Thursday from now until Sept. 26 at the CMN Community Garden.
Editor’s Note: This story contained a spelling error. The last name Natseway initially appeared as Natesway.
