The UCCE Stanislaus County Master Gardener Program offered a timely online class on how to save water in your garden and home. It included science-based information climate change, where our fresh water comes from and how we can be more sustainable in our water use.

You can watch the class on our YouTube channel, http://ucanr.edu/youtube/ucmgstanislaus and follow along using a handout from our Classes and Workshops page https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Classes/.

One of our volunteers, Denise Godbout-Avant, filmed a short video showing how much of our earth's water is fresh, and how much is available for people to use. This is a fascinating and eye-opening example you will not want to miss. Watch it here:

Every year, Pollinator Partnership celebrates National Pollinator Week, which helps spread the word about pollinators and how to protect them. Our local UCCE Stanislaus County Master Gardeners have given quite a few classes on this subject, including how to identify pollinators, what native bee pollinators to look for in your garden, butterfly pollinators, and which plants pollinators prefer.

Native (Bee) Pollinators 

Take a quiz on your knowledge of native bee pollinators, learn about the three types of pollinator nesting, and see examples of what types of plants pollinators prefer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOGDSNJJoh8&t=6s 

Planting for Pollinators

Learn about the local native bee pollinators and hummingbirds you might see in your backyard, and what kind of plants they prefer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naL3BM5aP-s&t=5s

Butterflies in Your Garden

Find out how to have more butterflies in your garden, by learning which plants are required for butterflies to complete their lifecycle. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHXSdtxicII&t=6s 

Follow Along

Download the handouts from any of our classes by visiting our Classes and Workshops web page at https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Classes/ 

 

Amid all the COVID-19 restrictions, the UCCE Master Gardeners of Stanislaus County have been hard at work bringing our ‘Learning Landscape' to life at the Stanislaus County Agricultural Center, located at 3800 Cornucopia Way in Modesto. This project is underway thanks to in-kind donations from Modesto Junior College, Grover Landscaping, and Hunter Industries. It's also thanks to community donations and the hard work of our Master Gardener volunteers.

The goal is to create a place to invite the community to visit and observe different types of gardens, learn from hands-on classes and workshops, or to simply come out to enjoy a beautiful space. We also envision school children coming to see examples of pollinator plants, vegetable gardens, and fruit trees, too.

The Learning Landscape can also be a place where Master Gardeners are trained. In May, a small group of us gathered for the first outdoor class by former Horticulture Advisor Ed Perry. He demonstrated how to properly stake a tree. We learned a lot more seeing a demonstration than we did learning from a PowerPoint presentation! This class was a success and will be followed by others in the future. 

We hope you will consider helping us expand our demonstration garden project. Big Dig Day is Friday, June 4 but you can join us Thursday night at midnight to begin donating. All donations will benefit our project. Click this link to donate to our campaign: https://ucanr.edu/sites/BigDig/ Navigate to Stanislaus County, and then choose "Master Gardener Fund" from the drop down menu.

Or, you can send a check made out to "UC Regents" to 3800 Cornucopia Way, Ste A, Modesto, CA 95358.

 

Big Dig Day is almost here! It's a day to show support for your local Master Gardener Program.

The UCCE Stanislaus County Master Gardener Program started in late 2018, and since then we've taught in-person and now online classes on topics like water conservation, growing herbs or vegetables, pollinator gardening, composting with worms, and many others. We hope these classes inspired you to save water, use plants to attract pollinators, and grow healthy food.

As of July, our program has taught 55 people how to become volunteers! Perhaps you've met one of our Master Gardeners at a local farmers market, the Stanislaus County fair, or other outdoor event. You may have spoken to them when you called, emailed, or visited our help desk with a question. We strive to answer your gardening and pest management questions with University research-based solutions in a timely and friendly manner.

Has our program helped you solve a pest management problem, provided you with information on helpful topics through classes, or answered your gardening questions through email or a phone conversation?

If so, we hope you will consider donating on Big Dig Day on June 5, 2020. Your donation goes directly to support our local program.

To donate, visit https://ucanr.blackbaud-sites.com/MasterGardener and scroll to the bottom of the page to select the Stanislaus County Master Gardener Program. You can donate anytime. The campaign ends June 5 at midnight. 

We thank you in advance for your support!