Welcome to the Master Gardeners
of Hamilton County website
Despite challenging conditions with soil and climate, gardening is one of the most popular activities. We, as Master Gardeners, through a variety of projects, workshops, and demonstrations, are glad to share our knowledge and experience with you.
“Gardening
is the purest of human pleasures.”
Francis Bacon
Announcements/Coming Events
MGHC Class of 2011 Scholarship Applications Are Now Available
Master Gardener Class scholarships are now available to folks interested in becoming Master Gardeners and have limited financial resources. Applicants must apply by Deadline, November 15th. Please go to this post for full details and requirements.
Mark your Calendars for the 2010 Hamilton County Fair
This time of year you will find the Master Gardeners of Hamilton County busy planning a broad range of educational exhibits for the Hamilton County Fair. This year is no exception, and in the celebration of the UT Extension’s 100 year anniversary, the MGHC exhibits are designed around the Extension’s theme “Helping Tennessee Grow.” We will be featuring a broad range of topics like building rain barrels, raised bed gardening, pest management as well as interactive exhibits on building birdhouses and propagating plants. The County Fair will be held September 25 – 26 at Chester Frost County Park. Watch for more details and upcoming articles.
Join the UT Extension’s Celebration of 100 Years of Helping Tennessee Grow
The Hamilton County Extension office is hosting a Centennial Celebration on Friday, October 8 at the J. Merle Crawley Agricultural Center, 6183 Adamson Circle (just off Bonny Oaks Drive) from 1 to 4 pm. This is the Extension’s 100th birthday of Helping Tennessee Grow and we invite you to come celebrate with us. For more information, go to this post.
Have a Question? Call in or Email New “Master your Garden” Radio Show
Long-time Master Gardeners Mike and Stephanie Payne can be heard each Saturday morning from 8 to 10 on “Master Your Garden” on WPLZ 95.3 FM. Mike is the Tennessee Master Gardener State Advocate for this region and turf expert and Stephanie is a MGHC past President and flower and butterfly garden expert. The Paynes are happy to take your questions on the air at (423) 702-9111 or you can email your questions to masteryourgarden@yahoo.com at any time.
Chattanooga Native Plant and Wildflower Group
Are you interested in plants native to this area or have you always had a soft spot for wildflowers? The newly formed Wildflower and Native Plant Group was designed for you. The meetings are held on the first Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at various destinations. The September meeting will be on Wednesday, September 8 because of the Labor Day holiday falling on the first Monday.
New CAFB Greenhouse and Demonstration Garden Featured
Chuck Denney from the UT Institute of Agriculture produced and narrated a short video on the Chattanooga Area Food Bank Evelyn Davenport Navarre Teaching Garden, a CAFB – Master Gardener of Hamilton County Demonstration Garden. Congratulations to all the Master Gardeners who raised money and put in the sweat equity to bring this project to fruition and continue to volunteer time to tend to the crops!
Chattanooga “Herbies”
The Chattanooga Herbies meets at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of every month at the Chattanooga Area Food Bank. Each month a different herb will be discussed and dishes made with the herb will be shared. Master Gardeners, friends, and anyone interested in herbs are welcome to attend and Master Gardeners can earn continuing education and teaching credits for participating.
Rain Barrel Workshops
Rain Barrel Workshops continue to be held this summer according to the number of barrels our organizers can find for these workshops. These 2-hour workshops are designed to teach you how to build, and then install your own rain barrel to begin collecting rainwater. For more information about these workshops, go to this post. Update: workshops are on hold due to the scarcity of barrels/drums available for conversion into rain barrels. Look for our Rain Barrel exhibit at the Hamilton County Fair in September.
Tennessee Valley Bonsai Society
The Tennessee Valley Bonsai Society is conducting meetings on the second Saturday of the month from 2:00 - 4:00 PM at the Agriculture Center (note the change of location.) Click here for directions.
The objectives of the group are as follows:
- To promote knowledge, interest, education, and the enjoyment of bonsai and other living plant materials.
- To improve members’ collections and exhibitions of bonsai.
- To develop learning opportunities to assist members in the preparation and care of bonsai.
- To raise awareness of bonsai in the community through public service, communications and other activities such as demonstrations for the general public
All are welcome at the meeting. If anyone has questions contact Jim Gumnick at 423-847-1342 or jlgtwo@peoplepc.com.