By UC Master Gardeners of Butte County
The Master Gardeners Spring Workshop Series is in full swing! The series began in February, but worry not -- there are plenty of topics still to be covered from now into June: fifteen workshops to be exact, seven of them on all-new subjects and eight on tried-and-true popular topics. All workshops are free, but they do require advance registration. For full workshop descriptions and to register, visit our website.
MARCH
Post-Fire Soil Recovery NEW (Monday, March 10). Wildfires can damage soil, increasing the risk of erosion and nutrient depletion. This workshop will cover the steps you can take to bring your soil back to life, including erosion control, incorporating compost, adding microbes, reseeding, and mulching.
Healing Gardens NEW (Wednesday, March 19). Quiet, solitude, and a connection with nature can be vital to one’s peace of mind and even help speed recovery from illness. Join us for a presentation that looks at a number of gardens designed specifically for this purpose and then explores ways in which we can create therapeutic, healing spaces in our own home gardens.
Salvias and Companions NEW (Friday, March 28). Learn how useful salvias can be in creating water-wise and habitat-friendly gardens. Salvia selection, planting, watering, and pruning will be covered. The talk will also introduce a number of companion plants that thrive alongside salvias.
APRIL
Growing Berries and Grapes (Wednesday, April 2). Learn about the best varieties of berries and grapes to plant in our climate, along with optimum methods of planting, training, pruning, irrigating, and harvesting them.
Companion Planting in Your Vegetable Garden (Saturday, April 5). Companion plants provide one another with things they need, such as nutrients, shade, and physical support. Learn how to accomplish this in the home vegetable garden in this workshop, focusing on the potential symbiotic relationships between various vegetable, herb, and flower combinations.
Growing Flowers NEW (Friday, April 11). This workshop will take you from the fundamentals of flower garden planning through site selection and preparation, seed starting, propagating, and multiple growing techniques, so you can get started on the flower garden of your dreams.
Gophers, Moles, and Voles (Tuesday, April 15). Learn how to combat vertebrate pests that plague your garden. A demonstration of exactly how to set gopher traps will be included.
Primal Spring Therapy: Jumpstart Your Garden NEW (Saturday, April 19). Get ready to rev up your spring garden! From fine-tuning fruit trees to supercharging perennial garden beds, we'll share practical takeaways valuable for novice gardeners and old pros alike, focusing in particular on soil-building techniques, prepping for the summer vegetable garden, and making hardscape changes.
Composting (Tuesday, April 22). Learn how to use leaves, garden waste, and kitchen scraps to enrich your soil. This workshop will cover both cold and hot composting methods, demonstrate helpful composting tools, review tips for building bins, and discuss composting techniques that range from simple to complex.
MAY
Wildlife in Native Gardens NEW (Tuesday, May 6). In addition to native plants, there are many things you can incorporate into your garden in order to attract, feed, and support the life cycles of many different kinds of wildlife. Learn how to turn your garden into a haven for birds, insects, lizards, and more.
DIY Hardscaping NEW (Thursday, May 8). Paths, fences, water features, and paved areas can be important elements in a drought-tolerant landscape. Start by choosing hardscape materials that are permeable so water will filter through and recharge our groundwater. Create places for humans to sit and rest in the garden; incorporate boulders, rocks, and loose rock walls to provide habitat areas for wildlife.
Weed ID and Control (Tuesday, May 13). Knowing what the presence of particular weeds indicates can help you manage soil more efficiently and with less reliance on herbicides. Using the gardens at Patrick Ranch as a lab, a team of Master Gardeners will show you how to identify common weeds, what their presence might reveal about the health of the soil, and how to use mulch to prevent and control weeds.
Garden Tool Maintenance and Care (Saturday, May 24). Learn how to extend the life of your tools and make them work harder for you. This workshop will also include demonstration of some less common tools, in case you want to upgrade your toolshed.
JUNE
Succulents (Tuesday, June 3). Succulents do well in our Mediterranean climate because their thick, fleshy leaves retain water during long dry summers. This workshop focuses on the heat and water requirements of succulents, and covers types that are suitable for planting in the ground and in containers.
“Black Gold” Vermiculture (Friday, June 6). Worms will consume and digest kitchen and garden scraps. The castings they excrete form the rich, nutritious compost known as Black Gold. This workshop, taught by a Certified Composter, will show you how to start the process and keep the worms happy so they continue to create Black Gold for your plants.
For full workshop descriptions and to register, visit our website.
UC Master Gardeners of Butte County are part of the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) system. To learn more about us and our upcoming events, and for help with gardening in our area visit our website. If you have a gardening question or problem, email the Hotline at mgbutte@ucanr.edu or leave a phone message on our Hotline at 530-552-5812. To speak to a Master Gardener about a gardening issue, or to drop by the MG office during Hotline hours, see the most current information on our Ask Us section of our website.