Public can 'attend' virtual convention Sept. 29-Oct. 1
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Landscape expert and lifetime master gardener Pam Bone talks about root problems during Harvest Day 2019. Bone is one of four still-active members of Sacramento County's first master gardener group. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)
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California always has been a state full of gardeners, but the UCCE Master Gardener Program has been part of California gardening for just the past 40 years. The trained volunteers follow the program's mission to assist and advise the state's many backyard gardeners: "Advice to grow by ... Ask us!"
And here's the local angle: Sacramento County was the first Northern California county to have a program of master gardener volunteers; Riverside County had the first in SoCal.
A few of the hardy souls from those days are still around: Fran Clarke, Marsha Prillwitz, Virginia Feagans and Pam Bone. In 1980, Bone was on the UCCE staff when she became Sacramento County's original master gardener. Later she became a super-busy MG volunteer, often speaking at events and on Farmer Fred Hoffman's radio shows.
Later this month, the California master gardener program, which covers 50 of the state's counties and includes more than 6,000 active volunteers, was due to celebrate its milestone year during a Lake Tahoe convention.
We all know what has happened to plans like that this year, with the threat of coronavirus keeping everyone at home (and in their gardens). But the convention will still take place, although in radically altered form.
The best change: The public is welcome to attend the online event, which will be streamed via the statewide master gardener YouTube channel and Facebook page . It’s free, and doesn’t even require registration.
Mark your calendars now for these events:
Tuesday, Sept. 29
9-10 a.m. -- "Celebrating 40 Years of the UC Master Gardener Program"
Noon- 1 p.m. -- "Gardeners With Heart: Incredible Volunteers Doing Incredible Work"
3-4 p.m. -- "Houseplants: Soil, Water and Such for Sustainable Indoor Growing," with Ernesto Sandoval, director of the Botanical Conservatory at UC Davis
Wednesday, Sept. 30
9-10 a.m. -- "Composting for Soil Health," with Kevin Marini, coordinator, UC MG program, Placer-Nevada County
Noon - 1 p.m. -- Search for Excellence Winner: "Reminiscence Gardening," UC MG program of San Diego County
3-4 p.m. -- Search for Excellence Second Place: "Gardening with Underserved Communities," UC MG program of Contra Costa County
Thursday, Oct. 1
9-10 a.m.: "Fire Safe Landscaping, So. Calif. focus," with Valerie Borel, coordinator, UC MG program of Los Angeles County
Noon- 1p.m.: "Preserving Your Garden Harvest," with Sue Mosbacher, UC Master Food Preserver program, Central Sierra
3-4 p.m.: Search for Excellence Yhird Place: "Lessons in the Garden for Schoolchildren," UC MG program of Santa Clara County
All presentations will be recorded and available for viewing after the event. Additional information about the UC Master Gardeners Mini Conference can be found here .
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Garden Checklist for week of May 12
Get your gardening chores and irrigation done early in the day before temperatures rise.
* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. Time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.
* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.
* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions. This heat will cause leafy greens and onions to flower; pick them before they bolt.
* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.
* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.
* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.
* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.
* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.
* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.
* Got fruit trees? If you haven't already done so, thin orchard fruit such as apples, peaches, pears, pluots and plums before they grow too heavy, breaking branches or even splitting the tree. Leave the largest fruit on the branch, culling the smaller ones, and allow for 5 to 6 inches (or a hand's worth) between each fruit.
* Thin grape bunches, again leaving about 6 inches between them. For the remaining bunches, prune off the "tail" end, about the bottom third of the bunch, so that the plant's energy is concentrated in the fruit closest to the branch.
* As spring-flowering shrubs finish blooming, give them a little pruning to shape them, removing old and dead wood. Lightly trim azaleas, fuchsias and marguerites for bushier plants.
* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.
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