CMGA General Info

Fall painted lady butterfly 2024.
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, December 21, 2020

A Note from Belle Star From the Rocky Mt. Seed Alliance

 

The Walking Wall

  The Walking Wall is a dry-stacked rock wall conceived by British artist, Andy Goldsworthy, and the Kansas City community in which it was created. The wall was originally 1500 feet, traversing various Kansas City sites, including a road where authorities blocked off traffic, and ending at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art where part of it would eventually reside. New sections of the wall were constructed from rocks pulled from the end of the installation as that section was dismantled. One local paper reported that what made the project exciting was the process "...on the way to experiencing, if not always understanding, what Goldsworthy was up to.”

   We have experienced some of our own surprise and curiosity watching the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance (RMSA) evolve from its strong foundations, and redefining the ways it serves its mission. It has been a sobering process at times transforming past experiences into the building blocks of the future. 

   What an honor to be part of RMSA’s group of deep thinkers, spiritual seekers, and committed seed lovers. RMSA is an amazing expression of community, hard work, and dedication in the same
way as the Walking Wall. We didn’t always know how we would overcome our challenges, but we had faith in our organization and its supporters. And look where we are now! I am so proud and thankful to you all.

   RMSA not only stewards precious seeds but the resources needed to do the work. People who have supported RMSA know that we have always done a lot with a little. Please do what you can to assure this profound work continues. 

   I have walked this path with RMSA from the beginning in 2014 and am proud to be one of the co-founders along with John Caccia and my husband, Director Bill McDorman. Now it is time for me to step aside and pass the baton. I am taking my leave as of December 31st knowing that RMSA is in great hands (and hearts). I have so much gratitude to everyone who has helped along the way. 

   It will be humbling to watch and observe what RMSA “may be up to” in its next iteration and I will be happily watching from the sidelines. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Love to you all,

Belle

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