Statewide
Counties El Dorado County Monterey County Nevada County Placer County Sacramento County San Benito County San Joaquin County Santa Clara County Santa Cruz County Yolo County Regions Tahoe-Truckee Region
Join Us Sign In
Sacramento Digs Gardening logo
Sacramento Digs Gardening Article
Your resource for Sacramento-area gardening news, tips and events
Articles Recipe Index Keyword Index Calendar Twitter Facebook Instagram About Us Contact Us

Is becoming a master gardener in your future?


Sacramento Digs Gardening logo
Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Kathy Morrison PUBLISHED SEP 9, 2019
UCCE master gardeners answer gardening questions at many events through the year, including Harvest Day, above.
(Photo: Kathy Morrison)
Apply now through Oct. 18 for Sacramento County's next class

If you have ever wanted to join the ranks of the UCCE master gardeners, now's your chance. Applications are being accepted starting today for the Sacramento County master gardeners class of 2020. The deadline for applying is Oct. 18.

According to the UCCE press release announcing the new year of classes, master gardener trainees study a wide range of home horticulture topics, with online and in-class coursework and training on how to properly research and respond to questions from the public. " The mission of master gardeners is to share research-based knowledge and information on home horticulture, pest management and sustainable landscaping practices with the Sacramento community."

Applicants for this class must be residents of Sacramento County. Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, El Dorado, Amador and other counties conduct their own training, and residents of those counties should contact their local groups for information.

The Sacramento training classes will be held each Wednesday from Jan. 15 through May 13, 2020. New master gardeners also must complete 50 hours of volunteer work during their first 12 months. Twenty-five hours a year are required after that.

All classes are taught by UC specialists, horticulture advisers and community experts. Topics include:
basics of soil, irrigation and fertilization; water conservation; identification and control methods for insects, diseases and weeds; proper care of vegetables, fruit and landscape trees; and turfgrass.

Volunteering can take many forms, from conducting workshops, to answering the public's questions on the phone or at the State Fair, to making community presentations. The Sacramento master gardeners also plan, garden and conduct growing experiments at the Fair Oaks Horticulture Center in Fair Oaks.

Comments

0 comments have been posted.
GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:
horticulture UCCE master gardeners gardening Sacramento workshops Fair Oaks Horticulture Center classes training

Newsletter Subscription

Sacramento Digs Gardening to your inbox.

Taste Spring! E-cookbook

Strawberries

Find our spring recipes here!

Local News

Ad for California Local

Thanks to our sponsor!

Summer Strong ad for BeWaterSmart.info

Sites We Like

  1.  UCCE Master Gardeners of Sacramento County
  2. Farmer Fred's GardenBasics.net
  3. UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden
  4. Shepard Garden and Arts Center
  5. Placer County Master Gardeners
  6. El Dorado County Master Gardeners
  7. Yolo County Master Gardeners

Garden Checklist for week of April 21

This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.

* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.

* Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.

* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.

* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.

Taste Summer! E-cookbook

square-tomatoes-plate.jpg

Find our summer recipes here!

Taste Fall! E-cookbook

Muffins and pumpkin

Find our fall recipes here!

Taste Winter! E-cookbook

Lemon coconut pancakes

Find our winter recipes here!