Wow! Its been a busy, productive year. The University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Stanislaus County Master Gardener Program started it's first training class in January of 2019. Twenty-three Master Gardeners graduated in June and have been volunteering in the community ever since.
Before you read a synopsis of what we've been up to, I'd like to ask you to support our programs. #GivingTuesday is TODAY! Help us continue on our mission by visiting http://bit.ly/MGStanislaus to give directly to our program. If you give early, ANR will MATCH your donation!
Here are just a few of the events and classes we've held so far:
July 2019 - Stanislaus County Fair
We were excited to have a booth in front of the horticulture building to announce the start of our program! We connected with over 350 people in just a few days! This was a great way to recruit volunteers for our 2020 class.
July to present - Modesto and Oakdale Farmers Markets
Volunteers were present every week at the Oakdale Farmers Market, and at the Modesto Farmers Market on various Thursdays and Saturdays. We gave out free vegetable seeds and instructions on how to grow your own healthy produce.
October 23, 2019 - Imagine a Day Without Water
Volunteers created a poster board to show best practices for conserving water, as well as handed out a low-water-use plant list. If you'd like to have this list, email us at ucmgstanislaus@ucanr.edu to request a copy.
November 9, 2019 Salmon Festival, Knights Ferry
Although a small town, Knights Ferry is a part of Stanislaus County too! Volunteers connected with many community members and enjoyed participating in the Eco-Quiz that taught attendees about wise water use.
November 14, 2019 - Vermicomposting Basics Class
This is one of the first classes the Master Gardeners taught on their own! Five volunteers learned everything you need to know to start a worm bin, why worms eat our garbage, and how they can help reduce adding waste to the landfill.
Wednesdays, August 2019 through December 11 – Master Gardener Help Line
Master Gardeners are available at our office to answer gardening and pest management questions! Since we started in August, we've had pest management questions about ants, cockroaches, powdery mildew, fireblight, and giant whitefly, just to name a few. We had a lot of gardening questions regarding shade trees and fruit trees, as well as vegetables. Our favorite question was “what are the best tasting tomatoes to grow for our area?”
If you have a question for our helpline, you can submit it online at the email address above or leave us a message at (209) 525-6802. Or stop by and see us at the Agricultural Center. Our office is in the Stanislaus Building, Suite A at 3800 Cornucopia Way, Modesto, 95358. We are here Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to noon each week.