The Harris County Master Gardener Association completed three years of activity with the Cylinder Gardening program at the end of 1995. Participation in this project involved more than 20000 children in over 90 schools in Harris County during the 3 year period.
Cylinder Gardening is a method of gardening that uses bottomless containers as small, individual gardens. This works especially well in areas with poor soil, such as Harris County with its heavy gumbo soil, which normally needs soil amendments and lots of work to support an actively producing garden. This method, does not require a great deal of labor works well for demonstration purposes for numerous gardening experiments for students. Cylinder gardening does not require a lot of land and little pre-gardening preparation or experience is required. The program is designed to educate students on plant growth
from seed planting to harvesting.
During 1995, the Harris County Master Gardener Association sponsored two teacher in-service training sessions, one in Hermann Park Garden Center and the other at the Extension Service Center at Bear Creek Park. Over 200 teachers participated in these training events. Materials for the project were furnished as follows: vegetable seeds at a cost of approximately $200 was provided by the Men's Garden Club of Houston; fertilizer at a cost of approximately $400 was furnished by HCMGA; both organizations furnished over 35 volunteer gardeners as resource persons, to help with site selection, examination of the garden, help to obtain supplies and answer questions on gardening. An additional 50 members of these organizations have worked to package seeds and fertilizer, cut plastic buckets into cylinders and assist with the Poster and Best Garden contests. The schools continue to furnish the soilless mix and plastic buckets for this project.
A new activity of the Cylinder Gardening program during 1995 was the construction of two display gardens in Hermann Park Garden Center and the Extension Center at Bear Creek Park. The money to finance these gardens came to the Men's Garden Club from a Panhandle Eastern Corporation grant of approximately $1200.
Cylinder Gardening teaches children where food comes from, how it grows and what's involved in proper nutrition in an easy to follow school enrichment curriculum. By introducing young people to the fun of gardening they can look forward to a lifelong hobby or a possible future career
The Harris County Extension Center is fortunate to have the space for test gardens used to evaluate new and old plant varieties for their adaptability to the climate on the upper Texas coast. The information gained through these tests are used to base Extension recommendations for nurserymen and area gardeners. This allows the Extension Service and Master Gardeners to lead the way for up-to-date local horticultural information.
The Harris County Master Gardener Association supports the test gardens with some of its funding and lots of volunteer labor. Master Gardener volunteers donated over 7000 hours in 1995 working in the annual and perennial gardens, the vegetable garden, the herb garden and the orchard, while also helping to maintain the greenhouse.
Working in the test gardens gives valuable knowledge for those who have never formally studied horticulture, but want to be successful gardeners. By being allowed to participate in variety and new products testing as well as planting and nurturing old standbys, Master Gardeners hone their gardening skills. The two horticulture agents at Harris County direct the gardeners and share their expertise.
Retirees and homemakers make up the bulk of the people who regularly work in the test gardens. Spending their day amending the soil, weeding, planting, collecting data and harvesting are all the more enjoyable when spent beside others who share the same love for gardening. By sharing experiences and working side by side, many friendships have developed. Their knowledge gained is realized when they are able to answer gardening questions from neighbors and friends. The volunteers report that they are swamped with questions as soon as anyone around them finds out they are Master Gardeners.
With the greenhouse and test gardens, Master Gardeners are able to learn about the full life cycle of plants. Most of the plants in the test gardens are started from seeds or cuttings in the greenhouse.
Master Gardeners are able to choose which gardening activity they would like to try. In the greenhouse this can include starting seeds, repotting seedlings to larger containers or propagating plants from cuttings.
All floral and vegetable gardens are constantly changed from season to season. The floral gardeners maintain a display site for the All-American Selections each year. The floral gardens are also used to evaluate new plants for the Texas Association of Nurserymen's Floral Testing program. Master Gardeners working the vegetable garden keep careful records of yield, quality and adaptability to the Houston climate. The herb garden is maintained to demonstrate which herbs can be grown in the Houston area, and is the most popular garden with youth groups that tour the garden. The orchard has grown over the years to include many varieties of pears, peaches, persimmons, pecans, blackberries and citrus as well as many unusual and specialty fruits.
This year plans have been drawn for an antique rose garden. All year a Master Gardener has devoted himself to propagating and planting many varieties of antique roses. Funds raised through the sale of these roses will be used to defray the cost of this newly planned garden.
The Master Gardener program has been successful in Harris County and continues to draw a full course of participants for the new classes twice yearly. The test gardens are there to provide Master Gardeners a hands-on way to use their new and expanded skills and further their education in gardening. Master Gardeners from all over Harris County have worked in the test gardens and then gone home to spread the benefits of their gardening experiences into the community.
In an area as large as Houston - Harris County there are literally hundreds of clubs and organizations that meet on a regular basis. Many of these organized groups have a need for quality, informed speakers in the area of environment, natural sciences and gardening.
The Harris County Master Gardeners have responded to this need by setting up a Speaker's Bureau to help clubs, organizations and youth groups (schools, scouts, summers camps) with informative programs and tours to educate these varied and diverse groups.
In 1995, about 20 dedicated volunteers presented over 50 talks, 12 tours and 10 workshops on subjects relating to the environment and gardening. When program requests fell outside the areas of expertise of the Master Gardener volunteers, Barbara Ownby, Speakers' Bureau Coordinator, networked with various plant societies to fill program requests.
Subjects of talks presented covered a variety of topics including: "Don't Bag IT," Reducing Pesticide Use Around the Home, Native Plants, Composting and many others.
The Harris County Extension Center is a popular location for youth and school tours. The test gardens are used to demonstrate proper cultural techniques to the public.
The volunteers involved with the Speakers Bureau improve their gardening skills while providing a valuable service to the community.
Urban Harvest Community Garden and Orchard network is an everchanging association of small
community groups (low income neighborhoods, the elderly schools, congregations, etc.) dispersed throughout the entire Houston area, with gardens in seven counties: Harris, Fort Bend, Galveston, Brazoria, Montgomery, Austin and Waller. Their yearly census, completed April 1, 1995, recorded 52 community gardens and orchards planted or in construction and efforts to build nine more underway.
Urban Harvest's vision is to facilitate community groups working together to better their community's health, vitality and pride through this educational garden and orchard network. Their mission is to work with any and all community groups to provide hands-on land use education by:
Community gardens are distinguished from other gardens because they are mainly operated to benefit the community in some way. At present, there are approximately ten Master Gardeners actively involved as volunteers for Urban Harvest. They are all committed to gardening techniques which reduce damage to the environment. They can feel good about "making a difference" to their
community, by using the knowldege gained as a Master Gardeners. Some of the volunteers work
in "donation gardens" which give food to the Food Pantry and the needy. Others work in gardens designed to educate the community about wise land use (Stone's Throw Permaculture Garden). One Master Gardeneer coordinates the Casa Esperanza Garden which feeds and provides therapy for children who are victims of abuse or AIDS. Another volunteer started a community garden for the elderly to have an opportunity for exercise as well as producing nutritious food. The Master Gardener
volunteers also help by writing articles for Urban Harvest's newsletter.
Urban Harvest's fledgeling market garden sells produce to subscribers, restaurants and at the Saturday Green Market at A Moveable Feast. By collecting data from a small number of market gardens, others may become interested, affording the community gardens an opportunity to become self-sustaining. Market gardens and small urban farms are considered community gardens because the development of
this 'industry' could potentially increase both income for the poor and quality of locally grown produce in the Houston area.
One of the most valuable services the Master Gardeners provide to the public and the Extension Service is responding to gardening questions received over the telephone from Harris County residents.
The questions are extremely varied but seasonal. During different times of the year the same questions may come up numerous times in a given week.
Because of this repetition, the Master Gardener Association, under the guidance of volunteer Karen Breneman, have published a book of the most common gardening questions received at the Extension Center. This book, "Gardening - The Upper Texas Gulf Coast . . .Answers to your most commonly asked gardening questions and more" is a valuable resource guide to area gardeners.
The book provides gardeners in Harris County and the surrounding counties with factual answers to hundreds of questions in an easy to follow guide. The book is divided into four sections:
Proceeds from the sale of this educational guide go to the Harris County Master Gardener Association, and are used to support the educational programs and community service projects sponsored by the organization. By providing this book, the Harris County Master Gardener Association hopes to further its mission of education and community service while providing a valuable resource book to the
residents of the Upper Texas Gulf Coast. The field of horticultural therapy has gained considerable interest in recent years as part of
the therapeutic treatment of the elderly, individuals with physical and mental handicaps and patients with chronic illnesses. Horticultural therapy has proven to be a valuable tool in improving manual dexterity and mental activity, eye to hand coordination, self worth, as well as increasing moral. Harris County Master Gardeners are presently involved in two community service projects utilizing the principles of horticultural therapy.
Message from the County Extension Agent
Annual Report
KIDS AND GARDENING
LEADING THE WAY
MASTER GARDENERS SPEAK OUT
Master Gardener, John Plotzki, has been volunteering with T.I.R.R. for about a year. During that time he has been able to assist the T.I.R.R. staff and patients in a variety of ways including:
This program is just beginning but the benefits are already being seen among the patients and staff.
Return to IndexIn August, 1995 the Harris County Master Gardener Association, under the guidance of Master Gardener Katherine Curry, began a volunteer program at the R E N (Renal) Dialysis Unit at 7139 North Loop East in Houston. This clinic is a part of the COBE chain and is staffed by University of Texas Medical Center doctors.
This project at the REN center is quite different from our usual volunteer projects inasmuch as we are dealing with patients who are severely handicapped and ill from kidney failure. This is a very crippling disease and a growing problem especially among African Americans.
Volunteers meet with these patients as they wait their treatment on the dialysis machines which is a 3 1/2 to 4 hour session. So it is in this environment that they do lectures, demonstrations, question and answer sessions on plants, including herbs, outdoor gardening and crafts are conducted. The hands-on projects are very limited, maninly due to lack of space and physical handicaps of the patients. Programs are all related back to horticulture in some way.
During the initial visits, there was not much enthusiasm on the part of the patients but volunteers are now greeted warmly with smiles, lots of questions and a healthy interest in the activity for the day. In some cases, the gardeners are invited into the ward while the patients are on the dialysis machines to repeat our demonstrations.
The staff at the REN Dialysis Center greatly appreciates the programs and how much it means to these patients to have the lectures, demonstrations on making potpourri, growing herbs, recipes for herbed vinegars and butters, plant care and forcing bulbs to bloom in winter. "You provide education for these people and very importantly, a social outlet for them which they would not have otherwise," said Ms. Boswell, REN Center Social Worker. Dr. Guntupalli, REN Center Resident Doctor said, "Whatever you can do to provide a positive outlook or uplifting attitude for these patients is so helpful. You are providing a real service for them."
Return to IndexMaster Gardeners work in many capacities at Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens. Contributing to adult and children's educational programs as well as outreach programs. They are an integral part of the greenhouse operation and work closely with the horticulture staff throughout the gardens and plant collections. These energetic volunteers further Mercer's educational mission in the community by answeing plant related questions. The Master Gardeners have given 3158 hours of volunnteer service in 1995 to Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens. The following shows the diversity of the Master Gardeners roles at Mercer.
Master Gardeners answer many plant related questions that come in by phone and from visitors. The questions range from cultural information, to identification and pesticide usage. The Master Gardeners have an extensive library at their disposal and are responsible for filling in a detailed log of each question and answer. Mercer staff are available to answer questions and regularly check the question and answer logs for accuracy.
These trained volunteers are involved in all aspects of greenhouse management. They water, fertilize, sow seed, transplant, propagate from cuttings and air layering. Mercer grows approximately 90000 plants each year from seed. Some Master Gardeners have taken a leadership role in Mercer's annual March Mart plant sale. They have become plant managers and are responsible for selecting the plants that will be available for sale in their designated areas. Once the plant list is made, they decide how many plants will be propagated. Master Gardeners fill out cultural information sheets for each plant that will be available. This information is cataloged and is made available to the public.
Master Gardeners work in the gardens and plant collections with the horticulture staff. They are involved in the daily maintenance of the gardens such as planting, weeding, fertilizing, mulching, etc. They work in leadership roles with other volunteers who may not be as experienced or knowledgeable about gardening.
Mercer offers educational slide programs to area clubs and organizations. The members of the Mercer speakers bureau, including the Master Gardeners, go through a series of training classes covering each slide program offered. Master Gardeners present these programs at various meetings throughout Harris County.
Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens strives to present the most educationally effective and enjoyable tour experience possible for school children in grades Kindergarden through 6th, using a "hands-on" discovery approach designed to actively involve children in the learning process. Master Gardeners serve as trail guides, leading school tours through the natural and cultivated areas of Mercer. The trail guides share their skills in plant identification, botany, and horticulture with numerous inner city children, many of who have never experienced the joys of nature.
Mercer offers interpretive tours of the gardens and plant collections to groups and organizations by reservation. Master Gardeners serve as garden guides leading tours and introducing Mercer to Texas residents, and tourist from around the world.
All the volunteers, including the Master Gardeners add to the overall effectiveness of Mercer Arboretum. By assisting staff and the public, they fulfill their goals as gardeners while providing community service, making Mercer a better place to work, visit and learn.
Return to IndexBeginning in the Spring 1995, Harris County Master Gardeners (MG) have been and are currently involved in the inventory of the plant material at the Houston Zoological Gardens (HZG). This is the first project of its kind for the HZG and comprise the first phase of a larger cataloguing project which is to include all of the plant material found at the Houston Zoological Gardens.
The plant inventory is approximately fifty percent complete thanks to the six Master Gardeners involved with the project. Each MG was assigned a specific area within which they were to survey all plant material excluding those found within the animal exhibits. These areas will be surveyed in future project phases. The survey included the inventory and recording of information such as plant location, species, and quantity (mass groupings were so designated). Once surveys were completed, the information was forwarded to the project leader, who reviewed the data and transcribed it onto base sheets. With the completion of one area, the next area was surveyed accordingly. Work underwent a temporary hiatus during the winter but will continue in the spring.
The goal of the project is to produce a comprehensive and ongoing record of all plant material within the zoo for detailed records of maintenance, propagation and growth. Future plans include the selection of an appropriate computer software program and the consequent entry of all field data gathered during the surveys.
With the realization that the Houston Zoological Gardens maintains its grounds with only a staff of five gardeners, the HZG looks forward to volunteer assistance in all aspects of its grounds maintenance program. With their plant experience and expertise, Master Gardeners are providing an invaluable service for the zoo while meeting new and unusual challenges including public education, practicing organic pest and weed control methods, and maintaining planting groups that resemble natural settings MG volunteers support the work of the staff gardeners by providing year round assistance and support. If interested in volunteering for the zoo, contact Mr. Fred Maier, Superintendent Facilities at the Houston Zoological Gardens.
Return to IndexMaking sure that 2500 butterflies and caterpillars have plenty to eat is a big job for the staff of Houston's Cockrell Butterfly Center, but fortunately they have the help of 25 volunteers Harris County Master Gardeners trained by the Texas Agricultural Extension Service - Harris County.
The Master Gardener volunteers go through the museums' required Docents training, yet their most important job is making sure there is a supply of healthy butterfly cuisine available. Keeping the more than 300 species of plants healthy and finding a way to control pests without jeopardizing the butterflies may be one of the trickiest jobs they tackle.
"I don't know what we would do without them," Eddie Holik, head horticulturist, said, "They do so much with the plants, there's no way we could get it all done with just the staff."
Since last May, volunteers have been assisting in a number of ways at the Center. Master Gardeners clean up the Center and greenhouses by "deadheading" plants, removing debris, planting, watering, fertilizing, cleaning and sterilizing pots, re-potting plants, removing damaging insects and learning all they can about how to help the lacey-winged creatures flourish.
More than 25 volunteers rotate shifts three days a week and one evening a month. They have contributed more than 1000 hours collectively during the first eight months. Master Gardeners work at the Center, 9:00am - 12:00 noon, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 5:30pm - 7:00pm, every second Tuesday of the month.
The Harris County Master Gardener Association is a non-profit association with the Texas Agricultural Extension Service and the Texas A&M University System. The Association was formed to increase knowledge of horticulture to its members and general public and to support and assist the Extension Service by providing community information on good gardening and environmental stewardship.
Return to IndexAn Annual report is a time for retrospection and taking stock of the past twelve months. Since this is the first Annual report for the Harris County Master Gardener's Association (HCMGA), I have the privilege of projecting beyond the end of 1995. The HCMGA was formed in 1985 with about 40 members. We have grown to a membership of over four hundred; with 67% of class participants completing their volunteer work and going on to become members.
In response to this increase in membership several organizational changes have occurred. Revised By-laws addressed two key areas:
Education and community service continue to be the primary goals of the Association. Individuals present programs to elementary school children to senior citizen groups, to garden clubs and neighborhood associations. The Association participates in the Houston Lawn and Garden Show distributing over 2000 pieces of gardening literature. Pepper Mania, '95 (fund raiser) took several HCMGA members to the Mercer Arboretum's annual March Mart; we have been enthusiastically invited to return in 1996.
At the request of the Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Texas A&M University, the HCMGA has begun to write and implement pilot specialist training programs to supplement the basic Master Gardener training. Programs soon will be available to certified Master Gardeners in the areas of Perennial gardening and Vegetable Gardening with Herb care and culture to follow in early summer.
The growth of the Harris County Master Gardening Association is seen in its membership numbers, but more importantly in its involvement in the gardening education and greening of Houston and surrounding cities in Harris County and its commitment of the ideals of the statewide Master Gardening Program.
The Harris County Master Gardener Program is an excellent example of a tax-supported agency partnering with the public to benefit the community, the participants and the Extension Service. The Harris County Extension Service provides an excellent training course for the prospective volunteers. Once the formal class work is completed, these well-trained volunteers provide the residents of Harris County a variety of valuable services.
The Harris County Extension Service began the Master Gardener Program about 10 years ago to train volunteers to respond to the thousands of gardening questions received each year at the Extension Center. Over the years, there has been a tremendous growth in the program allowing the Master Gardeners to extend their knowledge out into the community, responding to a variety of community needs.
This program allows the two Harris County Extension Agents with horticultural responsibility to provide factual, unbiased information to a larger number of Harris County residents. By utilizing volunteers in this way the Extension Service is able to conduct a greater number of educational activities in a wider area with fewer paid staff. With ever shrinking state and county budgets, programs such as this are becoming increasingly important.
In 1995, the Master Gardener volunteers provided the residents of Harris County with over 29104 hours of volunteer service. This is equivalent to 15 full time paid staff members. The services provided by the Master Gardener volunteers relates to a savings of over $290000.00 to the tax payers of Harris County.The partnership between the Harris County office of the Texas Agricultural Extension Service, Texas A&M University System and the Harris County Master Gardener Association allows for the transfer of knowledge available at the university level to the residents through an organized system of volunteers.
