Grimes County Master Gardeners

Welcome

The Master Gardeners of Grimes County

is a non-profit educational and charitable association working with the AgriLife Extension to improve gardening skills throughout the community. Program objectives are implemented through the training of local volunteers known as Master Gardeners. We collaborate with AgriLife Extension to conduct youth and community education; establish and maintain demonstration gardens; and provide a speakers bureau. We work with special audiences in the community (4-H horticultural clubs, Junior Master Gardener groups, schools, and others) for youth and community outreach of a horticultural nature. We recruit and educate new Master Gardener candidates for effective volunteering.

What is a Master Gardener?

Master Gardeners are local volunteers in your community who work with the AgriLIFE Extension to increase the availability of horticultural information and improve your communities quality of life through various horticultural projects.

Timely Tips’n Tasks

Even in these 100+ temperatures of August, many people are asking what they can plant at this time of year. Fall vegetable gardens are often more productive than those planted in spring because there are are fewer problems with insects, diseases, etc. It is important to choose varieties that are appropriate for your USDA Hardiness Zone map (Grimes Co. is 8b) and require fewer days to maturity. Its almost time to plant leafy and root vegetables for your fall garden: carrots, beets, radishes, chard, turnips, collards, lettuce, spinach, etc. Our September newsletter will have a list of crops and planting dates for our area.

Calendar

Thu, Sep 9 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm: GCMG Field Trip/meeting
(Colony Cellars Winery) [More Information]
Tour vineyards, sample a little product! There is a small fee. Donna will send details about time and place to meet for car pooling, etc.
Sat, Sep 18 8:30 am – 12:30 pm: GCMG Fall Planting Seminar
(Lions Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Presentations on Fruit Trees and soft fruits for Grimes Co., Wildflowers & Natives, and Integrated Pest Management (I.P.M.) with 3 CEUs for Private Pest Applicator License offered. Vendors, Information Booths and Demonstrations, Door Prizes, and lots of fun! Ten dollars admission to the public.
Tue, Oct 12 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm: GCMG Evening meeting/social
(Cosgrove residence) [More Information]
Potluck – bring a dish to share – guests welcome! BYOB, arrange to carpool with other members and come prepared to have a good time. Directions and further details will be sent out closer to the date.
Nominating Committee to present slate of officer candidates for 2011.
Tue, Nov 16 9:00 am – 11:00 am: GCMG Regular Monthly Meeting
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Business Meeting – elect Officers for 2011.
Program Greenhouse Gardening (tentative)
Fri, Dec 3 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm: GCMG Xmas Party-meeting
(Go Texan Building, GC Fairgrounds) [More Information]
Main dish will be provided. A sign up sheet will be provided at a future date. Ornament exchange.
Sat, Dec 4: TMGA Directors’ Meeting
(Forest Sci-Hort Building, TAMU, by parking lot 74, College Station ) [More Information]
Quarterly meeting – vote on officers for 2011
Tue, Jan 11 9:00 am – 11:30 am: GCMG Regular Monthly Meeting
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Business meeting
Program TBA
Tue, Jan 18 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Jan 25 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Feb 1 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Feb 8 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Feb 15 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Feb 22 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Mar 1 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.
Tue, Mar 8 9:30 am – 1:30 pm: GCMG 2011 Training Class
(Go Texan Building, Grimes Co. Expo (Fairgrounds), Navasota) [More Information]
Covering all topics related to gardening – soil prep, insect and disease identification and management, landscaping, lawn & turf care, propagation, rainwater harvesting, vegetables, fruit & fruit trees, herbs and much, much more! More info from Master Gardener members or County AgriLife Extension office at 936-873-3907.

Who are Texas Master Gardeners?

Texas Master Gardeners is a volunteer program designed to grow horticultural information throughout the state, town by town. To become a Texas Master Gardener, a participant attends 50 hours of instruction, conducted by the local Extension county agent, then shares this knowledge by donating 50 hours of volunteer service back to the community.

The touch of Texas Master Gardeners’ green thumbs can be found across the state -- in school garden projects, horticultural therapy projects, community gardens and demonstration gardens; by volunteers who also conduct gardening programs and answer gardening questions. Anything anyone wants to know about gardening, a Master Gardener can help. That includes young wannabe gardeners too – Master Gardeners help set up 4-H gardening clubs and Junior Master Gardener groups.

In fact, when it comes to green and growing things, Master Gardeners dig into their service in all kinds of ways: teaching, giving presentations, writing newsletters and articles, providing clerical help, and designing and maintaining Web pages.

Want to Know More?

In 2008, more than 6,400 volunteers were Texas Master Gardeners, according to the organization’s annual report.

Volunteers contributed 454,036 hours to horticulture-based educational projects in 2008, a benefit to the state that was worth $9 million.

That year Texas Master Gardeners gave 2,200 presentations for a combined audience of 68,087 of their neighbors, and provided research-based horticulture information to 18,000 others.