   Master Gardening in Yavapai County - November 15, 2017 Jeff Schalau, Agent, Agriculture & Natural Resources University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, Yavapai County Many people have heard of Master Gardeners, but they may not know exactly what they do or how to become one. I will answer both questions here. Master Gardeners are knowledgeable volunteers that have completed a comprehensive horticultural training course and extend that information to others through volunteer service in their communities. The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension sponsors and supports the Arizona Master Gardener Program and Yavapai County has a very active and vibrant group. In Yavapai County, Master Gardeners must complete 50 hours of volunteer service within a year of taking the course to become “Certified”. Master Gardeners maintain certification by volunteering at least 25 hours and completing 6 hours of continuing education each subsequent year. Volunteer opportunities are numerous. Master Gardeners provide service by answering horticultural questions from the public on our two office hotlines. Some other volunteer activities include: staffing booths at fairs and community events; assisting with school and community gardens; special educational projects; organizing educational events; and providing educational presentations to diverse public groups. Of course, they do all these activities without compensation and do not use their Master Gardener title for personal gain. About 170 Master Gardeners are currently active in Yavapai County. Some of our 2016 highlights were providing technical assistance to seven community gardens, twenty-one programs were presented by our Speaker’s Bureau, a horticultural conference at Yavapai College in Clarkdale, and mentoring Associate Master Gardeners to help them become certified. Another ongoing project is the on-line Yavapai County Native and Naturalized Plant database that has photos and descriptions of 786 trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, and forbs. See it at: https://cals.arizona.edu/yavapaiplants/. As the Cooperative Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, I have many diverse responsibilities and rely heavily on Master Gardeners to assist the public with insect/weed identification and management, diagnosis of plant diseases, garden and orchard care, landscape questions, and general horticultural information. In 2016, Yavapai County Master Gardeners documented 13,892 hours of service. This service reached 3,097 county residents through face-to-face community interactions and 1,740 residents by office visits, phone calls, and e-mail contacts. As you can see, Master Gardeners are an important horticultural resource to Yavapai County communities. There are also monthly Master Gardener Association (MGA) meetings where guest speakers share knowledge and expertise, activities are planned and business conducted. The meeting locations rotate each month between the Verde Valley and Prescott. Each meeting is typically attended by 40-50 Master Gardeners and provide opportunities for continuing education. The back issues of Yavapai Gardens and more information about the Yavapai County Master Gardener Program are available on our website: https://extension.arizona.edu/yavapai-master-gardeners (click on publications). If you are interested in becoming a Yavapai County Master Gardener, applications are being accepted until December 1, 2017. The 2018 class will be held at the Camp Verde Community Library weekly from 9 am to 12:30 pm between February 6 and May 22, 2018. Thirty participants will be accepted. Applications for the 2018 Master Gardener Training Course, a syllabus and additional information are available now on our website at: https://extension.arizona.edu/yavapai-county-master-gardener-volunteer-training-application. So, if you have gardening questions, talk to a Master Gardener. Our help desks are in the two University of Arizona Cooperative Extension offices. The Camp Verde office is located at 2830 N Commonwealth Dr, Suite 103 near the Camp Verde Justice Facility and the Prescott office is on the Prescott Rodeo Grounds (840 Rodeo Dr. Bldg. C). Master Gardeners are available to serve you Monday through Friday between 9 am and 4 pm (we are closed during the noon hour at both offices). If you would like to become a Yavapai County Master Gardener, complete and submit an application by December 1! Follow the Backyard Gardener on Twitter – use the link on the BYG website. If you have other gardening questions, call the Master Gardener help line in the Camp Verde office at 928-554-8992 or e-mail us at verdevalleymg@gmail.com and be sure to include your name, address and phone number. Find past Backyard Gardener columns or provide feedback at the Backyard Gardener web site: http://cals.arizona.edu/yavapai/anr/hort/byg/. 
Yavapai County Master Gardeners providing information and service to their community at an outreach event. |