We would like to announce that the both the Spanish and English Versions of Landscaping Tips to Help Defend your Home from Wildfire Poster, Tip Sheet and Resources Sheet are available on the Statewide Master Gardener Website under Volunteer Resources/ Poster Project. 

The English versions have been updated and the Spanish versions are brand new.  We would like to give special thanks to MG Coordinator Andrew Kramer, Amador County and Myriam Grajales-Hall, Program Manager for News & Information Outreach in Spanish for the translations. 

These outreach posters were funded by a grant from the Elvenia J. Slosson Endowment for Environmental Horticulture.

 

The Volunteer Management System 2.0, built by our Dave Krause of the Web Action Team, is being introduced today at the Volunteer Management Institute as we speak.  We hope to have all users on board with VMS 2.0 this summer.  Please let us know in the statewide office what date would be best for you to have your MG volunteers transferred over to VMS 2.0.  It will be done automatically so you will not have to do any manual entry other than entering any new volunteers.  We can arrange to do one-on-one training on the new VMS with you or people you designate to help you manage your volunteers using the Adobe Connect on line conferencing system by appointment. Please call or email Pam to arrange a time.  We think your will love this new system!

 

New Years isn't just about a big party and fireworks at midnight.  It is also a time that many industries bring out the new models and the vegetable industry isn't exempt from this practice....thanks goodness.  This year there are bunch of new vegetables to try in your garden.  Many of you may have already tried this as part of growing them in your demonstrations gardens.  For more on what's new for 2008 from the National Gardening Association, go to http://www.garden.org/ediblelandscaping/?page=20-great-edibles

 

Do you wonder how long you must keep all those documents that you have for each of your master gardener volunteers?  It was a question one of the MG Coordinators asked and we didn’t have an immediate answer.  We asked the same question of the Office of Contracts and Business Services and after a bit of research, they came back with this answer based on UC Policy. 

            Keep all of the current records for the year that the Master Gardener is certified.  When they are recertified, then the old records must be destroyed and the new ones filed and retained for the current year.  The exception might be their original master gardener application.  Do not keep any records that have personal information like social security numbers.  Do not keep any records on the individual’s background investigation.  Usually, coordinators do not have access to those records—only the county director does, but this may not be true in all cases. 

            Once a master gardener becomes inactive, then the records must be retained for three years.  After the third year, the records again must be destroyed.