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Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association
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2023 Spring Tomato & Pepper Plant Sale

February 5, 2023 by cmschweikhardt

Place orders NOW and until March 1, 2023.  Pick-up plants on March 21, 2023 between 10:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. at the Washington County Expo Sales Facility in Brenham.
Order Button

 

 

For paper order form, click HERE

All proceeds benefit the AgriLife Extension Horticulture Committee’s Scholarship Fund.

2023 Spring Tomato & Pepper Plant Sale

Filed Under: Plant Sales Tagged With: Vegetables

Annual Plant Sale – April 8, 2023

February 3, 2023 by cmschweikhardt

Bluebonnet 2023 Master Gardener Annual Plant Sale.

In addition to landscape plants for sale, tomato plants will also be available for purchase.  Nine varieties will be offered.  Click HERE for the complete list.

 

Filed Under: Plant Sales Tagged With: Fruit; Trees; CEU, TexasSuperstars, Vegetables

Lunch-N-Learn, Austin County

January 29, 2023 by cmschweikhardt

February 21: Garden Stretches: Stop the Ache before you Rake (Michelle Wright, Austin County, CEA)

March 21: Composting (Mary Karish, Waller County Master Gardener)

April 18: TBA

May 16: Orchids

June – August: No Program

September 19: Plumerias (Faye Beery, Bluebonnet Master Gardener)

October 17: Wonderful World of the Honeybee (Tom Shaughnessy, Local Beekeeper)

Flyer for Austin County Lunch & Learn Series 2023

Tagged With: CEU, Compost, Lunch N Learn, Pollinators, Seminar, Vegetables

2023 Lunch-N-Learn Series, Austin County

January 29, 2023 by cmschweikhardt

Bring your own lunch

Light refreshments: coffee, tea and snacks provided.

Registration:
11:50 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

Program:
12:0 p.m.- 1:00 p.m.

Location:
Austin County AgriLife Office
800 E. Wendt St., Bellville, Tx 77418

Questions: Call 979-865-2072

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: Compost, Lunch N Learn, Pollinators, Seminar, Vegetables

2023 Lunch-N-Learn, Colorado County Texas

January 29, 2023 by cmschweikhardt

Bring your lunch and learn.

Light refreshments: coffee, tea and snacks provided.

Registration:
11:50 a.m.-12:05 p.m.

Program:
12:05 p.m.- 12:55 p.m.
No pre-registration required

Location:
Colorado County Services Building
305 Radio Lane, Columbus, Texas 78934

Questions: Call 979-732-2082

Flier for Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series 2023

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: CEU, Compost, LandscapeDesign, Lunch N Learn, Propagation, Seminar, Vegetables

Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series-Fall Vegetable Gardening

July 21, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Colorado County Services Facility
305 Radio Lane in Columbus

Registration: 11:50 a.m.
Program: 12:05 – 12:55

You are welcome to bring your own lunch.

Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series Flier

Tagged With: CEU, Seminar, Vegetables

Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series

July 21, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Colorado County members of the Bluebonnet Master Gardener Association are pleased to announce the upcoming Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series focused on gardening and horticulture!

Programs will be held on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at the Colorado County Services Facility located at 305 Radio Lane in Columbus. Registration will open at 11:50 am with the program starting promptly at 12:05 pm and ending by 12:55pm. Attendees are asked to bring their own lunch. Light refreshments including coffee, tea and snacks will be provided. No preregistration is required for this free program.

The following is our program line-up:

    • July 20th –  Firewise Landscaping
    • August 17th – Fall Vegetable Gardening
    • September 21st – All About Berries: Blackberries and Blueberries for the Home Gardener
    • October 19th – Tree Care
    • November 16th – Soil Biology and Compost Tea

For more information please contact the Colorado County AgriLife Extension Office at 979-732-2082.

Colorado County Lunch-N-Learn Series Flier

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CEU, Compost, Fruit, Fruit; Trees; CEU, Seminar, Vegetables

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

Preservation Tips Herbs & Vegetables Lunch N Learn Austin County

March 8, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Registration:  11:50 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Program: 12:00 noon -1:00 p.m.

Tagged With: CEU, Herbs, Seminar, Vegetables

Lunch N Learn Series – Austin County

March 8, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CEU, Herbs, RainwaterHarvesting, Seminar, Vegetables

Small Farms & Vegetable Conference – 2022

January 20, 2022 by cmschweikhardt

Tagged With: CEU, Lawns, Pests, Pollinators, Seminar, Vegetables

Pete & Paula’s Pollinator Patch

August 18, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Photo of Pete & Paula's Patch

Photo of Pete & Paula’s Patch

Pete & Paula’s Pollinator Patch is a section of the Bluebonnet Master Gardener’s Sens Center Demonstration Garden in Austin County, Texas.  The garden overall is dedicated to demonstrating sound techniques for growing vegetable and other food crops.  However, this year, Master Gardeners Pete Smith and Paula Trahan started the “Pete & Paula’s Pollinator Patch” to demonstrate the use of plants which attract pollinators to the garden to pollinate the vegetables in the garden. As many fruit and vegetable plants require a pollinator to set fruit, attracting pollinators to the garden is necessary.

Photo of lantana

Lantana

After about four months, Pete and Paula are pleased with how quickly our pollinator garden has progressed. “We truly got a late start, but everything has grown by leaps and bounds. Every plant was a pass along or freebie from the garden center.” Ms. Trahan explained.  Pete & Paul’s next step is to include a small solar water feature in the center to attract more butterflies, bees and birds. Included in the garden are lantana, standing cypress, Asian purple basil, echinacea, porterweed, rock rose mallow.

Filed Under: BMGA Gardens, Other Tagged With: Pollinators, Vegetables

Fort Bend Regional Vegetable Conference – Summer Session Scheduled

July 12, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

The Fort Bend Regional Vegetable Conference is a celebration of vegetable production along the upper Gulf Coast region. Counties of Waller, Wharton, Harris, Galveston, Brazoria, Colorado, and Austin join with Fort Bend to put on this event focusing on teaching sustainable practices to help producers maximize efficiencies and profitability. Although we were not able to host our annual Vegetable Conference in February, we have put together a short virtual summer session with topics centered around sustainable and organic production, disease and insect management, and variety selection. Partnering sponsors have allowed us to offer this program at a great price. The cost to attend is $10.  We will offer three (3) continuing education credits in the General category for Texas Department of Agriculture Pesticide Applicator license holders.

Come join us virtually at the Fort Bend Regional Vegetable Conference – Summer Session on Thursday, July 29, 2021.  The conference will begin at 9:00 am and end at 12:00 pm.

To register, please go to https://tinyurl.com/t86xftbh.  There will be no in office registrations.  For general questions, please contact Brandy Rader at 281-633-7029.

 

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: CEU, Disease, Pests, Vegetables

2021 Fall Horticulture Seminar

July 8, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Please join Texas A&M Agrilfe Extension Service August 27, 2021 for the Fall Horticulature Seminar, hosted by Texas A&M Agrilfe Extension Service for Austin County.  Topics, which will be presented by AgriLife Extentions Agent Robert “Skip” Richter and Specialists Tim Hartmann, Ph.D and Monte Nesbitt, Ph.D  include:

Planting Fall Vegetables
Fruit Tree Care and Maintenance
Citrus Tree Care and Maintance
Prepping Plants for Freezes

RSVP HERE by August 25, 2021  or call 979-865-2072.

Filed Under: Other Tagged With: CEU, Citrus, Earth-Kind, Fruit, Seminar, 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

2021 Texas Master Gardener Virtual Conference- DAY 1

March 17, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

The 2021 Texas Master Gardener State Conference will be held virtually this year on May 18-19, 2021. The leadership workshop will be on May 17, 2021.

Join us as we walk through Texas gardens! We have an amazing line-up of inspirational speakers ready to share with you their favorite topics in horticulture. We will also travel across the state through virtual tours to see the diverse gardens of Texas.

The conference offers continuing education hours for Master Gardeners including three keynote presentations, twenty-four breakout sessions, and four virtual tours.

The conference is also time to celebrate the Search for Excellence Awards and the incredible achievements our volunteers are accomplishing in education across the state.

Cost:  $50 includes both Day 1 & Day 2!

 

Register Button

Tagged With: CEU, Earth-Kind, Fruit, LandscapeDesign, TexasSuperstars, Trees, Vegetables

Online Event: The Unexpected Health Benefits of Gardening

March 6, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Unexpected Health Benefits Flyer

Planting flowers and vegetables can result in beautiful bouquets and bountiful harvests for your meals. But did you know that gardening offers many health benefits as well? Join Jennifer Shukaitis, MPH, FCHS Educator, Rutgers Cooperative Extension from the State Office to learn how gardening may benefit the well-being of you and your family members.  See registration link below:

When: March 31, 2021 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Central Time

BMGA CEU: 1 hour

Register for the Event Here

Presenter: Jennifer Shukaitis, Family & Community Health Sciences Educator III (Eqv. to Asst. Professor), Dept. of Family and Community Health Sciences

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: CEU, Vegetables

BMGA Chapter Meeting – Sealy

March 5, 2021 by bluebonnet

BMGA Chapter Meeting at the American Legion Hall in Sealy.

Time:  8:30 – 10:00 Board Meeting
10:00 – 10:30 Social/Team Time
10:30 – 11:30 Presenter
11:30 – 12:00 General Chapter Business

Place:   Austin County /Sealy     American Legion Hall, 1630 Meyer Street, Sealy, TX 77474

Presenter:  Jay White – Texas Gardener Magazine

Presentation:   Texas Gardener’s Grow Great Vegetables

Masks and social distancing required.
All snacks must be individually wrapped food items.

Tagged With: CEU, Vegetables

Aggie Horticulture – Vegetables at The Gardens

March 1, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Don’t forget to tune in every Wednesday and Friday @ 1:00PM to hear what  Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Agents & Specialists have to share. Aggie Horticulture Facebook Live.

Facebook Live Calendar

Tagged With: CEU, Vegetables

Aggie Horticulture – Eggshells & Banana Peels for the Veggie Garden

March 1, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Don’t forget to tune in every Wednesday and Friday @ 1:00PM to hear what  Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Agents & Specialists have to share. Aggie Horticulture Facebook Live.

Facebook Live Calendar

Tagged With: CEU, Compost, Vegetables

Aggie Horticulture: Onion Freeze Protection

March 1, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Don’t forget to tune in every Wednesday and Friday @ 1:00PM to hear what  Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Agents & Specialists have to share. Aggie Horticulture Facebook Live.

Facebook Live Calendar

Tagged With: CEU, Vegetables

Aggie Horticulture -March Checklist Live with Larry Stein

March 1, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Don’t forget to tune in every Wednesday and Friday @ 1:00PM to hear what  Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Agents & Specialists have to share. Aggie Horticulture Facebook Live.

 

Facebook Live Calendar

 

Tagged With: CEU, Pests, Vegetables

Cultivate! Earth Friendly Gardening & Landscaping

February 28, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

Bexar County Master Gardeners will host CULTIVATE!, its semi-annual educational seminar with 7 different gardening topics offered free and online. Each workshop is an hour long and full of great gardening information.  Join them for one or all seven! For workshop descriptions, and all the details go to  https://bexarmg.org/cultivate-sessions/

Our workshops this spring:

Succulents with MG Stephanie Jones

Texas Native Ornamental Shrubs for Your Landscape with MG Lynn Cox

Growing Vegetables in Bexar County with David Rodriguez Bexar County Extension Agent-Horticulture

After the Big Freeze…What to do in your Garden (Special session with David Rodriguez)

Gardening Begins with the Soil with MG Bill Swantner

Spring into Texas Superstar Annuals with MG Lynn Cox

Shady Characters in the Garden with MG Lynn Cox

Tagged With: LandscapeDesign, Seminar, Vegetables

Plant Picturepages by Aggie Horticulture

February 28, 2021 by cmschweikhardt

LogoSometimes, the answer is just knowing where to look;  and someitimes, a picutre is just what you need to answer the question.   With the help of many collaborators, Aggie Horticulture assembled a few theme-oriented searchable databases for use in their classes and for the public to use and enjoy.  If you have not checked out Aggie Horticulture’s Plant Picturepages, the link is below.  Find the information you need in pictures or just enjoy the many horticulature related sites and photos.

Plant Picturepages

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Fruit, Greenhouses, LandscapeDesign, Pollinators, Vegetables, Wildflowers

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