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Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association
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Summer Celebration in The Gardens at A&M-You’re Invited

June 2, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Invitation to Celebration

The Gardens at Texas A&M
Summer Celebration

Saturday, June 11, 2022
9:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Leach Teaching Gardens

Free parking available in lot 97.

Join us at our annual community Summer Celebration for food and fun for the family, including children’s educational activities, story time with Chance The Librarian, JJ’s snow cones, and more. You won’t want to miss this fun-filled morning! 

Learn More About The Gardens!

Gardens Logo

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Earth-Kind, Herbs, Irrigation, LandscapeDesign, Lawns, RainwaterHarvesting, Trees, Vegetables

Twenty Years and….Counting! (& the Keyhole Garden)

June 4, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

By Faye Beery, Bluebonnet Master Gardener Assocaiton

That is how long the Master Gardener program has been going in our 4 county region.  On May 25, 2021 the Bluebonnet Master Gardeners celebrated our 20th anniversary of the demonstration garden in Austin County. While the weather was not the best, everyone enjoyed the program given by Dr. Shackelford, good food and seeing the Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association’s demonstration garden located at the Sens Acitvity Center in Bellville, Texas. Vegetables were available, most gave a voluntary donation to the garden,  as well as some produce was avaialbe to pick in the garden.

Pete Smith standing the in the “keyhole” of the keyhole garden

A big attraction in the garden was the keyhole garden. The keyhole concept was first introduced into arid African regions by the U.K. organization Send a Cow. The idea was to help poor families grow their own food despite the poor soil and drought conditions. The keyhole concept is a raised circular bed with a wedge shaped cutout on one side which allows persons easy access to the whole bed. When seen from above, it resembles a lock and keyhole. In the center is a wire cage for compost which decomposes and provides nutrients to the bed.  This form is less labor intensive and more affordable for people who want to grow their own food. And you don’t have to bend over.

The outer structure can be any sturdy material, cinder blocks, bricks, rocks are a good choice. They are placed in a round design with a wedge on one side so that individuals can reach the middle as well as the outsides allowing for easy planting and harvesting. The wire cage in the center makes it easily accessible to place the compost materials.

Building the keyhole

Keyhole garden constuction

building the keyhole garden

Keyhole garden under construction

 

Rainwater system & keyhole garden

Rainwater system & keyhole garden

A strong advocate of the keyhole concept is Deb Tolman, PhD, from Clifton, Texas. She is an environmental scientist and landscape designer and co-founder of the Silo Project a non-profit organization, which is centered on sustainability. Due to her outreach and workshops, there are more than 70 keyhole gardens in Clifton, which is in arid North Texas.  She recommends a 3:1 ratio of brown and green material which forms the core garden. Decomposition rapidly generates heat and breaks down the material to feed plants. Brown material includes brown grass/leaves; paper and wood, straw, sawdust, lint from the dryer or vacuum, and lots of cardboard, which is the first layer in the bottom of the bed. It should be thoroughly wet to begin decomposition. Green materials include kitchen scraps, manure, green grass/leaves, or plants. Her website provides instructions on how to construct a keyhole garden.  Follow the link to her  Field Guide PDF .

There is also a new addition to the garden which is currently under construction this week. It is Pete and Paula’s pollinator patch. They plan to include plants which attract pollinators to the garden to pollinate the vegetables that grow there. We’ll have more on this when they begin planting.

I know everyone is happy to get back to our regular meetings. See you at the next one!

Filed Under: BMGA Gardens Tagged With: Compost, Irrigation, Pollinators, RainwaterHarvesting, Vegetables

Ask an Expert is now Ask Extension

February 27, 2021 by bluebonnet

Question Mark image

Ask an Expert is now Ask Extension.  This service offers one-to-one expert answers from Cooperative Extension/University staff and volunteers within participating Land-Grant institutions from across the United States.  Before posting a new question, you may also search previously answered questions in the Knowledgebase catalogue.

DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION FOR EXTENSION EXPERTS?

Ask A Question

Search the Knowledgebase

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Compost, Disease, Fruit, Irrigation, Lawns, Pests, Trees, Vegetables

Aggie Horticulture Live Facebook Events!

May 20, 2020 by cmschweikhardt

LogoJoin Aggie Horticulture on Wednesdays & Fridays at 1 p.m. Central time on the Aggie Horticulture Facebook Page to watch Facebook Live events!

Aggie Horticulture Live Facebook Events

Upcoming Events:

  • 5/22/2020 – Friday 1:00 pm – From Garden to Glass DIY Mocktails/Cocktails
  • 5/27/2020 – Wednesday 1:00 pm – “Some Like it Hot” – Growing Vegetables in Summer
  • 5/29/2020 – Friday 1:00 pm – TBD
  • 6/3/2020 – Wednesday 1:00 pm – Check your crape (and other plants) for scale

Qualifies for Master Gardener CEU Credits.

Prior Live Event Videos Available on Aggie Horticulture’s  Facebook page:

  • Raised Garden Beds, Location, Soil Mixtures and more!
  • Starting vegetable seeds at home 
  • Planting vegetable transplants or direct seed into your garden!
  • Home Fruit Production – Tips for Success!
  • Small fruits for the backyard
  • Floral Designs from your backyard – Growing, Cutting, Using your flowers and shrubs!
  • Growing Herbs: Basil Bounty
  • Backyard Grapes/Vineyards
  • Pecan Grafting
  • How to Prune Your Trees
  • Lawn Care & Fertilization
  • Drip Irrigation Essentials
  • Grapevine Planting & Training Demo
  • Tidying up your Irrigation System
  • Keys to Successful Peach Production
  • Indoor Gardening
  • Growing Blueberries in Containers

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Advanced Training, CEU, Fruit, Irrigation, LandscapeDesign, Lawns, Seminar, Trees, Vegetables

Canceled – Lunch-N-Learn Series Fayette County-Irrigation for Pots/Containers

January 29, 2020 by bluebonnet

Irrigation for Pots/Containers by Carol Daniels

All educational programs begin with
Registration at 11:50-12:05
Program from 12:05 – 12:50
Bring your own lunch and drink

All programs are free to the public!

Lunch N Learn Schedule Lunch N Learn flier

Tagged With: CEU, Irrigation

2020 Master Gardener Open Houses

January 3, 2020 by cmschweikhardt

The Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association is hosting three Open House events in January, 2020.  If you are interested in learning more about the Master Gardener Program in Texas or want to sign-up for the intensive 5o- hour certficiation training class, please be our guest at one of these three events:

La Grange Open House
January 8, 2020
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Fayette County AgriLife Meeting Room
255 Svoboda Ln, Rm 134
La Grange, TX 78945

Brenham Open House
January 9, 2020
11:30 a.m.– 1:00 p.m.
Washington County Fairgrounds Sales Facility (Entrance on Independence St across from Sherriff’s Office)
1305 East Blue Bell Road
Brenham, TX  77833

Bellville Open House
January 9, 2020
10:00 a.m. 12:00 noon
AgriLife Extension Office – Austin County
800 E. Wendt St.
Bellville, TX 77418

The Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association 2020 Training Class will be held in Brenham.  Space is limited.  For more information and to apply online visit our Application Page.

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CertificationClass, Compost, Disease, Earth-Kind, Fruit, Herbs, Irrigation, LandscapeDesign, Lawns, Propagation, Trees, Vegetables

2020 Training Class

July 26, 2019 by bluebonnet

Our  2020 Master Gardener Certification Training Class is scheduled each Thursday from January 16th – April 23rd with the final graduation class on Tuesday, April 28, 2020.  Participants from Austin, Colorado, Fayette & Washington Counties are welcome. The 64 hours of classes will be held at the Washington County Extension Sales Facility at 1305 East Bell Road, Brenham, Texas 77833 (use the Independence Rd entrance) , plus some field trips to be announced in class.  The updated training manual compiled by the Texas Master Gardener Association, is included in the $175 registration fee.  You may register online below or contact the Washington County Extension office at (979) 277-6262 for more information.

 

Bluebonnet Master Gardener Volunteer Program Application

 

2020 Training Class Flyer

Map to Open House & Class Location

2020 Training Class Flyer

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CertificationClass, Disease, Earth-Kind, Herbs, Irrigation, LandscapeDesign, Lawns, Pests, Propagation, RainwaterHarvesting, Trees, Vegetables

T. Saunders to Speak at Washington County Lunch & Learn about Irrigation

February 24, 2018 by bluebonnet

T. Saunders of ATS Irrigation in Brenham will present the March Lunch-N-Learn program in Brenham about irrigation. As both experienced and novice gardeners know, whether growing vegetables, flowers, lawns, fruit trees or landscape plants, proper watering in our area can be challenge.  We seem to get too much rain or not enough.  Setting up an irrigation system can seem like a daunting task so this program will help you understand the basics of home irrigation systems and how to properly design them to get the best results in your garden.

2018 WashCo BMG Lunch Learn Flyer

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CEU, Irrigation, Seminar

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