- (Public Value) UCANR: Developing an inclusive and equitable society
- Author: Margaret J O'Neill
Tips for Spring (and Summer) Fruit and Veggie Garden Success!
I begin each spring full of visons of wonderful summer harvests in the veggie garden! It's a wonderful time to dream about what the possibilities are, and they seem endless! There are plants of all types and varieties in the garden centers, seeds of every kind imaginable online and in catalogs, and people like the Master Gardeners are telling you every chance they get that “you can do it, and we are here to help!” ….and we stand by it …..“you CAN do it and we are here to help!!!”
So here are a few tips from our Master Gardeners to you to help you reach you veggie garden dream!! Each tip has a resource linked to it if you want to learn more.
1) Good access to water: Keeping the soil your veggies are growing in evenly moist, like a wrung-out sponge, is key
2) Size matters: It's easy for us all to get carried away with a big veggie garden in the spring when there are plants and seeds for sale everywhere and the weather is not blazing hot! When planning your summer/warm season veggie garden think about caring for it in the summer when it's hot, and try to keep it to a manageable size. This is also especially true this year with the need to save water in our drought. Each year as I learn more, I expand my garden little by little when I feel like I can handle a little more responsibility! Check out our blog post about Ten Tips for the Busy Veggie Gardener to get some more tips on this: https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=48940)
3) Mulch for your veggie gardens: Mulch can be used in your veggie garden too! It will keep weeds out, help keep soil moisture in, and also help cool the soil on hot summer days. Check out this blog from the University of Illinois to learn more about the pros and cons of different types of mulches in the veggie garden: https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2022-01-20-common-mulches-used-vegetable-garden
4) Using compost to build your soil: Compost is a great way to improve your overall soil health, and it can help improve drainage in heavy clay soils and improve water and nutrient retention in sandy soils. Adding some finished compost to your veggie beds or containers is a great way to get soils rich in organic matter, which is so important for good veggie growth. Check out this class we just did online about Composting Basics at Home on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwC4VZgTuUc
5) Pollinators in the garden? Hopefully! Lots of summer fruits and veggies need pollination, and will suffer in size, quality, quantity, and shape if they don't get adequate pollination. Planting flowers and using least toxic methods of pest management will help make your garden fruitful and beautiful. Check out this comprehensive publication on “How to Attract and Maintain Pollinators in Your Garden” to learn more https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8498.pdf
6) Pests in the Garden: In addition to having pollinators for proper pollination, there are also many insects that act as beneficial predators. To learn more about using integrated pest management (IPM) in your garden to manage pests with least toxic methods check out one of our Master Gardeners favorite sites, the UC IPM page, to find out about the pests bugging your garden: http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/menu.homegarden.html. While you are there check out the section on Natural Enemies in the garden to learn all about beneficial insects: http://ipm.ucanr.edu/natural-enemies/ Want to learn more about how soil is tied to your plants health and is a key part of overall integrated pest management? Check out this blog from last month titled Integrated Pest Management: Building on the Basics: https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=51690
7) Should you start your plants from seeds or transplants? It depends! With seeds you can often find more varieties, but they can be harder to start for the busy gardener. Most root veggies do best when started from seeds. Starting with transplants (plants that are already 4 to 6” tall) can give you that instant garden look but can be more expensive. Best of both worlds for non root veggies: start them from seed at home and then transplant them into the garden. Having trouble with your young seedlings dying off? Check this link to learn about “dampening off” and how to manage it http://ipm.ucanr.edu/QT/dampingoffcard.html
8) Seed Saving from your summer garden? Seed saving can be a great adventure and there is so much to learn and explore! Did you know we offer free monthly classes on seed saving online? Check out the recording of our April class on “Seed Saving from your Cool Season Veggie Garden” https://youtu.be/QkdZECMbNDA and check out this short video on seed saving tips (https://youtu.be/I0St3DMm2h0)
9) Fruit Trees: Don't forget about growing fruit trees at home! Fruit trees are a great way to expand your home food forest and there are lots of different types of trees you can grow. They can be grown in big and small yards, and even some will grow in large pots! For more information about growing fruit trees at home check out UC's California Backyard Orchard site at https://homeorchard.ucanr.edu/
10) While you're at it grow some herbs too, they are another great addition to your home veggie garden! Check out our blogs on easy ways to grow herbs at home in this blog https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=50170 The University of Illinois Extension also has some great information on growing herbs too! Remember they have a different climate than we do here is So Cal, but there is still lots of great information so check it out at https://web.extension.illinois.edu/herbs/directory.cfm
Lastly…..You can do it….and ….We are here to help! As always, we are here to help by phone or email! Send us an email with any questions you have about your garden, and including pictures of your plant problems or questions can help too. Don't want to email? Give us a call and leave a message and we will get back to you to help with any of your plant related questions! Also check out our free classes online and in person in your neighborhood throughout the county to learn more about a wide variety of gardening related topics! See our website for more information and check out our helpline at: https://mgsb.ucanr.edu/
San Bernardino County Master Garden Helpline:
Phone number: 909-387-2182
Email: mgsanbern@ucanr.edu
For a general overview of veggie gardening check out this publication “Vegetable Garden Basics” https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8059.pdf


- Author: Margaret J O'Neill
This month's UCCE San Bernardino County Master Gardener Spotlight is on Dee Denton. She is new to our team here in
-Maggie O'Neill, UCCE San Bernardino County Master Gardener Program Coordinator
Tell us a little about yourself Dee:
In 2017 my family found themselves with more fruit than we could eat or share. This city girl found herself wanting to learn about food preservation and found the Master Food Preserver program. I was accepted into the program and was certified that very year. I started preserving a ton of stuff – almost anything I could get access to. I jumped into my volunteer commitment even before I graduated the program and was so excited to talk about the skills I was learning. I felt so empowered that I was learning skills that would help my family one day.
Why did you decide to be a MG?
I joined the Master Gardeners so I could learn best practices and researched based information to ensure the best outcome from growing food for my family. I want to make sure that I teach my younger family members how to be self-reliant - growing and preserving food is a great place to start. I want to make sure they have the skills they need to leaders and a contributing member of their community.
What are your gardening passions?
I want to have a garden that is plentiful. I want to grow items that I may not normally purchase in a store or farmers market. I want to make sure that I teach my younger family members how to be self-reliant and growing food is pretty important. I want to make sure they have the skills they need to be productive.
What is a tidbit or two you've learned as a MG that the public reading our newsletter could gain from?
I have learned that the gardening education is there if you want it. If you have any issues, you can reach out the volunteer staffed hotline for advise and they will get back to you with your options to address your issue. Talk about an EASY button….
What advice would you give someone considering becoming a UCCE MG?
Join the volunteers in San Bernardino to make a change! I know what you are thinking - Public speaking is not for me. Let me tell you something – I FAILED speech in college and now I am excited to get up in front of a group and share with others everything I have learned. This program needs dedicated people to make changes, people just like YOU! There is lots to do, so don't let public speaking stop you from making a difference.
- Author: Margaret J O'Neill
Around the office and at events Roxana was always full of gardening questions and really showed an interest in learning more and improving her skills. Her genuine interest and enthusiasm for gardening was inspiring and she always wanted to the take the program but couldn't quite yet due to her busy schedule. During the COVID pandemic, Master Gardener Coordinator Maggie O'Neill graduated another class of Master Gardeners, including (lucky for us!) Roxana!
Right away she saw what a need there was to offer the classes and information we had for the public about growing food, sustainable landscaping and better living through gardening to the Spanish speaking audience. Roxana was ready to get started right away on translating presentations and teaching classes in Spanish. With her leading the way, we began offering classes in Spanish every month and also held “Ask a Master Gardener” times where we answered questions in Spanish for the public. With Roxana's help, other Spanish speaking Master Gardeners volunteered at information tables, events and gave presentations. Roxana's enthusiastic personality and genuine interest in growing her own knowledge as a gardener and program ambassador has helped us reach many new audiences! Her genuine desire to make a difference coupled with her knowledge about improving mental and physical health through gardening have made her an invaluable contributor to our Master Gardener program. We look forward to continuing to expand and develop our Spanish language gardening outreach with Roxana and know with her determination she is really “growing” places!!
Let's hear a little bit more about Roxana in her own words!
Hi there!! My name is Roxana Price, and I was asked to describe my experience as a Master Gardener with you. Before
I became a Master Gardener in 2021 through the online course (due to the COVID pandemic). I have to say, if it wasn't for the MG program being offered online at the time, perhaps I would not have been able to achieve such an endeavor, and that to me was the silver lining I needed. (But it would be a lie if I told you I did not miss the in-person interaction.)
Prior to becoming a Master Gardener, I remembered simple things I had learned in school long ago about flowers, seeds, the process of growing plants, and fruits, and vegetables. I realized I had become accustomed to purchasing my fruits, veggies, and plants at grocery stores, not making the connection that I too could grow, plant, harvest my own food. The Master Gardener class provided infinite possibilities and options for my family and me and provided another tool under my belt to better serve the community I work, and live in. Especially my gente (people), the Spanish speaking community, where now I can share evidenced based gardening tips in Spanish to!
Presently, I am experimenting with composting and preparing space for my future vegetable garden. I have learned that planning is key to successful gardening. I have learned to propagate my house plants and have gained a tip or two about proper watering techniques. I am far from being an expert on gardening, but I have discovered that the more I experiment and put what I have learned in the Master Gardener program to practice, the better my garden will be. I love being connected to the Master Gardener community, and the volunteers in it. I have plenty of resources, and plenty of volunteers that are willing to lend a hand or a tip. In addition, I get my “fitbit” steps at the events throughout the San Bernardino community I volunteer at as a Master Gardener and connect with members that, like me, enjoy gardening, and building community.
I look forward to continue to volunteer as a UCCE San Bernardino County Master Gardener for many years to come. I am also presently enrolled in the Master Food Preserver class. There is No stopping this chica (girl). That is right, I will be able to grow, harvest, and now preserve my own food 2022! I hope my husband is prepared to be the test taster! I am forever grateful to have had the opportunity to work, and learn, and play with the San Bernardino UCCE team. I hope that my shared experience inspires the next Master Gardener prospect to become certified Master Gardener too. Hope to see you around the gardening watering hole, peeps!!
- Author: Margaret J O'Neill
Have you found yourself in the garden looking at a plant and wondering what is going on with those leaves? You think your plant is getting enough, but not too much, water but it just doesn't look right. Or have you been out checking your veggies and seen strange bugs and wondered what they are and if they and are they harmful to your plants? Do you have an old tree in the yard that is just not looking its best and wonder what to do?
Well, we have the resource for you!! Our Helpline is here for you! Our helpline is a free resource for the community where we answer questions on a wide variety of topics. Some examples include: what vegetables to plant this time of year; what is eating your plants; why are your plant's leaves twisting; what type of tree would be good for your area; why are your tomatoes not producing; how should I use compost or mulch in my garden; how do I fertilize my plants; what is the best way to manage ants and other pests in my yard; what type of tree is this in my new back yard……and much more…but you get the idea! We get questions about anything and everything gardening related and we love to help!
Kelly, one of our Master Gardener helpline volunteers says:
“We at San Bernardino Master Gardener Helpline learn from our clients every time we pick up the phone or read email inquiry. It's a mutual sort of learning like a cross pollination of information that occurs when fielding the broad range of questions from our residents in surrounding communities (& Sunset Growing Zones). Whether it's about identifying a strange crop from client photos or how to deal with pests in productive ways, researching these subjects to provide practical real-time answers is always interesting and fun, because gardens and gardening are ultimately about sharing food, flowers, information, and experiences. The MG helpline is a strong hub of researched information and resource gathering which helps us to grow our program, because we communicate with so many clients from all the surrounding regions and Sunset Growing Zones consistently, Monday through Friday of every week. I really enjoy being a part of the MG Helpline Team and serving as a San Bernardino Master Gardener since 2017. I think my fellow Master Gardeners would agree that working the MG Helpline has made us strong, more informed representatives for the Master Gardener Program in the field at events and working on community projects, and I look forward to learning more.”
Master Gardener Helpline volunteer Loleta adds: “The Helpline is one of the world's best-kept secrets. It's a place where people can get answers they can trust. Our answers are based in science and research, and they're specific to our western climate zones.” So, if you know about the helpline or have been using it be sure to pass the information on to friends and family so that everyone knows we are a free gardening hotline here to help you out every step of the way!! ….and don't forget that the only silly question is the one that you don't ask, so don't be shy…send us an email or give us a call today! We are looking forward to hearing from you and taking the mysteries out of gardening!
So how do you use this resource? It's free and available to you 24/7! Just send us an email or give us a call (contact information at end of blog) and leave a message and we will get back to you within a day or two and get to solving your challenges! It's great when you can send us photos of your troubled plants as well, and that is a big help in having us figure out what's going on in the garden.
Typically, a phone call to the helpline will go like this: you will call and leave a message with your question and contact information and then we will research the topic and get back to you. We often will get back to you with some follow up questions to help focus in on specific details so we can give you the best answer possible and follow up with an email if possible. Email questions are great since you can send photos! We respond to your emails in a timely way that often includes follow-up questions to clarify your issue/problem. Besides finding an immediate solution, our goal is to provide resources for you to use in the future that help you find solutions as problems occur, and mostly, to prevent the problems from occurring in the first place! As another one of our Helpline volunteers, Cindy, (who is also the Helpline committee lead, helping to organize Master Gardener volunteers and manage the Helpline infrastructure) says “I can tell that many of the people who use the Helpline have really come to depend on it in a personal way and that (we) are dedicated to helping them no matter how hard or mysterious the questions are. It's like being the detectives of the gardening world.” So let us help you with your garden mysteries!!
Many members of the public use this resource regularly and we are so happy to see that they know we are here for them to help with their gardening journey's and adventures, but still there are people out there who don't know about it!
Helpline Contact information for all areas of San Bernardino County:
Phone number: 909-387-2182
Email: mgsanbern@ucanr.edu
- Author: Gretchen Heimlich-Villalta
Integrated Pest Management: Building on the Basics
This month, I'd like to continue building on the basics of integrated pest management. If you recall, there are five main components to a successful IPM program1:
- Pest identification
- Field monitoring and population assessment
- Control action guidelines
- Preventing pest problems
- Integrating biological, chemical, cultural, and physical/mechanical management tools
Preventing Pest Problems
A large percentage of pest problems can be traced back to issues with cultural practices—that is, meeting basic plant needs through good water management, healthy soil, proper nutrients, and appropriate site and plant selection. A pathogen (a microorganism that causes disease) can only cause disease when three elements are present: a susceptible host, the pathogen itself, and a favorable environment. This relationship can be visualized in the disease triangle, with each element represented by a side of the triangle.
Preventive practices eliminate one or more of the elements of the disease triangle. The care you take as the manager of your landscape can improve your plant's ability to protect itself, giving it the best chance of enduring the things we can't prevent—like pathogens, pests, drought, weather extremes, and other stressors. Preventive practices can also make it more difficult for pests and pathogens to thrive. This will reduce the need for pesticides and other management strategies.
Starting with Soil
Plants are autotrophs, which means they can produce their own energy through photosynthesis. However, they rely heavily on the soil for elements crucial to their survival, like water, stability, and nutrients. Because the soil is so vital to plant health, caring for the soil must be central to any IPM program.
Soil Composition
Oxford languages defines soil as “the upper layer of earth in which plants grow.” It is made up of inorganic minerals, organic matter, soil organisms and microorganisms, gases, and water. From a physical standpoint, there are a few key soil terms and concepts you should understand. Let's go through them quicklySoil inorganic minerals come from the weathering of rock, and are grouped by size; soil texture refers to the percentage of these groups—sand, silt, and clay—in a soil and is represented in the soil textural triangle below. Loam refers to a mix of these three groups. Soil texture largely determines a soil's nutrient- and water-holding capacity. Plant roots need both water and air, so good soil should have a balance of drainage and water-holding capacity. Soil with ideal moisture content will have 25% air and 25% water. Because of its larger particles, sandy soil tends to drain well, but doesn't hold water or nutrients well. On the other hand, finer-textured soils (clay and silt) hold more water and nutrients, but often don't drain well. However, adding soil organic matter to sandy soil will help it hold water, and adding it to fine-textured soils will help it hold nutrients.
Soil organic matter (SOM) is any soil material produced originally by living organisms that is returned to the soil and decomposed. This includes the soil organisms themselves (bacteria, fungi, plants, insects, animals, etc.), plus their waste and other byproducts. SOM is vital to soil function in many ways, so I'll go into more detail about it later.
Soil Structure
Soil structure refers to how soil particles and organic matter are arranged into aggregates, or groups of bound particles. Aggregate stability is the ability of aggregates to withstand breakdown by outside forces, like water. It's important for preventing erosion. Pores are the spaces between and within aggregates that allow movement of water and air into the soil—and the growth of plant roots! Adding organic matter to both sandy and fine (silt and clay) soil will encourage soil aggregation.
Compaction happens when soil aggregates and pores are broken down through activities like heavy traffic and tillage. It impedes root growth and the movement of air and water in the soil. Bulk density is an indicator of soil compaction calculated as the dry weight of soil divided by its volume.
Soil Nutrients
The 15 essential soil nutrients are the more well-known elements of soil. The macronutrients are needed in larger amounts by plants, and consist of: 1) primary nutrients nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), which are most often deficient in soils, and 2) secondary nutrients calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and sulfur (S), which tend to be deficient in soils less often. The nine remaining nutrients are micronutrients, which the plant requires in very small quantities. These are boron (B), chlorine (Cl), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), and zinc (Zn). In California, the most common deficiencies are nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, and iron. Boron, chloride, and sodium, on the other hand, are more commonly present at toxic levels.
Soil pH
Another important physical component of soil is pH. pH is a measure of how acidic or basic soil is. It ranges from 0 to 14: 0 is most acidic, 14 is most basic, and 7 is neutral. Most crops prefer a slightly acidic to neutral pH of 5.5 to 7.5. Acidity is a measurement of how many hydrogen ions are in the soil, and pH can impact soil chemistry in numerous ways. pH extremes may increase the solubility of toxic mineral elements like aluminum and manganese, or increase the concentration of soluble salts, all of which are detrimental to the plant. pH also impacts which organisms can survive in the soil, which will also impact your plant. Of chief concern to the landscape manager is that plant nutrients become insoluble in water, and unavailable to plants, if the pH is too low or too high. The table below illustrates this fact.
Soil Quality vs. Soil Health
If the information I've presented here feels overwhelming, don't worry. Many have shared your experience, including me. If you've made it this far, though, you've shown admirable perseverance and curiosity. And this information isn't going anywhere. Bookmark this page and come back to it periodically; it will start to make more sense over time. Understanding the physical attributes of soil, or soil quality, is not only important in its own right, but it's also foundational to what I'd call the more exciting stuff—soil health.
Soil health moves beyond the physical attributes of soil to include the whole soil ecosystem—all the life in the soil, great and small—not just plants. It is “the capacity of soil to function as a vital living system, within ecosystem and land-use boundaries, to sustain plant and animal productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and promote plant and animal health”[i]. Soil health is critical not only to integrated pest management, but also to human health and the health of our planet. So check out my next blog to hear more!
Author info:
Gretchen Heimlich-Villalta is an ISA™ certified arborist who has been a San Bernardino County Master Gardener since 2014. She received her AS in Integrated Pest Management from Mt. San Antonio College, where she has helped teach IPM since 2020. She received BA degrees in Creative Writing and Photography, and is currently working on her Ph.D. in Plant Pathology at the University of California, Riverside, where she is researching citrus root and soil health; she also helps manage the Strub Avenue Community Garden in Whittier.
[i] Doran and Zeiss, 2000.
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