CMGA General Info

Roadrunner: Although typically desert dwellers, roadrunners may also thrive in cold climates by fluffing feathers for insulation and by exposing their black back feathers to the sun.
Photo by Cindy Murray.

Welcome to the Coconino County Master Gardeners Association blog. The mission of the Master Gardener Program is to create a corps of well-informed volunteers, and to deliver quality horticultural education programs adapted to our regional high elevation environment. The purpose of the association is to provide support for those volunteers and Master Gardener graduates, continuing education, and opportunities to participate in community programs that increase the visibility and participation in the Master Gardener Program.
The Coconino Master Gardener Association (2009) began in 2009. This blog contains information on:
-How to become a member
-Volunteer and Education hours reporting
-Calendar of Events
-General gardening information articles
-Master Gardener Association Documents and forms
-References and Resources
-Interesting Websites and Blogs
-Old Gardening Etcetera columns
-Recipes
-Book Reviews
-How to contact Board or Committee Members
Meetings are held monthly on the 2nd Thursday from 600pm - 8;30pm. We meet at the Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church at 1601 N. San Francisco. This includes continuing education and a business meeting.

Reporting Master Gardener Hours

All master gardener trainees and certified master gardeners need to report their hours.
Beginning in 2010 certified master gardeners need to have 6 Education hours and 12 Volunteer hours in order to maintain certification.The on line reporting system allows you to report Education or Volunteer hours. You can sign in to record hours in the right hand column under Recording Volunteer and Education Hours. Just click on the U. of A.
If you have any questions or concerns about the new reporting system, please contact Brenda Smith (A - M) or Sue Madden (N - Z). Their contacts are listed at the bottom of the blog under
Contacts.



Ideas for hours------
--Attend monthly meetings
--Work on an association committee
--Work at an informational booth for the Master Gardeners
--Be a speaker about gardening topics at a variety of venues

--Host a garden tour
--Work at a fundraising event (Plant Sale - Garden Tour).
--Work at a MG site (Olivia White Hospice, the Arboretum, Riordan Mansion, or school gardens (many others)). Check out the Assoc. Doc. & Forms under Volunteer Sites.
--Work in the Extension office
--Write an article for the newspaper column -Gardening Etcetera
-Volunteer with the Seed Library
Be creative! There are many ways to fulfill your hours. Just remember for volunteering it needs to be a non-profit endeavor or an approved for profit site.

Change in Contact Information

Have you moved or changed your e-mail address, but would still like to be contacted about high elevation gardening information from the Extension? The Coconino County Extension Master Gardener Program has a site that will let you change your information on-line.

Click here to change your contact information!

Event Calendar

Monday, February 20, 2012

Gardens for Humanity Spring Planting Festival

Our Fourth Annual Spring Planting Festival will take place from March 24 with our Opening Concert, Guitars and Beyond, and run until the Finale, April 1, featuring the ever popular Backyard Gardeners Expo.

The theme our 2012 Festival is "Greening Your Life," and will focus on what each one can do on the scale of the individual, home and community to promote food security, a resilient, quality lifestyle and connection to the environment.
For the new gardener there will be hands-on workshops on getting a garden going, including building soil fertility with composting and vermiculture, exploring crop diversity, and learning about irrigation.

For the more experienced gardener there will be workshops on backyard beekeeping, rainwater harvesting, seed saving and permaculture design.

For those striving to experience the nurturing and healing forces of nature we offer workshops in herbal preparations, aromatherapy, extracting essential oils from native plants, and several artistic workshops and performances that explore the Sacred in nature.

For those who love to explore the delicacies of local foods we offer a workshop on cooking with native and local foods. In addition, five outstanding Sedona restaurants will feature a Spring Planting Festival locavore menu, with each weeknight featuring a different restaurant.

For those seeking to become better neighbors to the environment we call home, we have native plant walks and a presentation on how to develop an environment free of toxic chemicals.

For those who are interested in energy independence and advocating local food security and choice we have two forums, "Greening your Home" and Local Food: The Human Connection.

To explore all the events, workshops, and locavore menus and to register online, use this link to our calendar: http://www.gardensforhumanity.org/events/spring-festival-2012.html

There are a wide variety of events to enjoy with your friends. We look forward to seeing you at this year's Spring Planting Festival!

President, Gardens for Humanity

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