As a reader of Garden Notes, you are probably interested in finding useful, factual, and inspiring information about all aspects of gardening. You may already be familiar with the extensive Gardening Resources on the main UC Master Gardener Program website, but maybe not with the excellent resources available from our neighboring counties. Although some of the articles are not specific to the climate in San Joaquin County, most are general enough to be useful to multiple regions. Below are some examples and links to the resources in nearby counties. 

Stanislaus County
Just south of us, Stanislaus County Master Gardeners have created The Stanislaus Sprout weekly blog. Recent posts include:

• Get a Head Start on Your Garden by Starting Your Vegetable Seeds Indoors,
• Show Your Neighborhood Birds Some Love: Grow Native Plants, and
• Questions about caring for your fruit trees? We have answers!

The Stanislaus County Master Gardeners YouTube channel is filled with helpful gardening videos. Topics include citrus varieties, monarch butterflies, bats, the fruit bush method of pruning, and more.

Sacramento County
To our north, the Sacramento County Master Gardeners have a plethora of helpful resources in the Publications section of their website. Garden Notes articles are available on a variety of topics:

• Save Water in your Garden and Landscape,
• Wildlife Habitat Resources, and
• How to Grow Sunflowers.

Their other publication, Environmental Horticulture Notes, includes:

• Composting for the Home Gardener,
• Growing Melons in Sacramento, and
• Guidelines for the Home Vineyard.

The UC Master Gardeners of Sacramento County YouTube channel includes videos on topics ranging from blueberry pruning to landscape redesign to growing veggies year round on your patio. One interesting and comprehensive video, Building Resilient Gardens, features Karrie Reid in her capacity as the environmental horticulture advisor for the UC Cooperative Extension.

The Fair Oaks Horticultural Center,  which encompasses a water-efficient landscape demonstration, an orchard, a table grape vineyard, berries, a vegetable garden, and an edible landscape area, is their site for workshops and open garden days. 

Alameda County
The UC Master Gardener Program of Alameda County posts a blog, Over the Fence, with a variety of articles such as “How to Tell What's Digging and Eating in Your Garden”, “Soldiers in Our Garden”, and one that all gardeners can relate to: “Mistakes Were Made.”

Contra Costa County
The UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa is quite active, with Facebook pages in English and Spanish, webinars, and events. Their quarterly newsletter, News to Grow By has recent articles on:

• The Benefits of Urban Trees and Why the Best Time to Plant One is Today,
• Smart Controllers, and
• Growing Citrus in Pots.

You may also be interested in their classes, both in person and online, which can be found on their Webinars and Programing link, and the Plant Sales at their demonstration garden in Walnut Creek and at the Civic Center Library in Richmond. They tend two other demonstration gardens, the Richmond Dry Garden and the Rivertown Garden in Antioch.

Contra Costa's YouTube channel has videos on Growing a Milkweed Garden, Gardening with Native Plants, and Seasonal Prep for Your Home Vegetable Garden, among others. 

We truly have an abundance of gardening resources nearby, with both in-person and online classes and publications at our fingertips. A convenient way to stay connected with these resources is to sign up for their newsletters—you may find just the information or inspiration you need for more productive and enjoyable gardening.