Master gardener class seeks outreach

When the Southern Maine Garden Club (SMGC) resumed their meetings after a brief winter hiatus, they met on  March 20 and the speaker was Susan Tkacik, a Master Gardener Volunteer (MGV) employed with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension (shortened to UMaine Extension) as a Volunteer Coordinator.

 UMaine Extension receives funding from Federal, State (through the University) and County.   That combination provides the resources, offices, and personnel that can offer the MGV training.  Presently, there are over 150 active Master Gardener Volunteers in York County.   The program’s mission is to 'extend' the research-based information from the University to the community through a variety of projects. The Master Gardener Class runs from January into late May/early June (depending on number of snow days).  Classes meet a week for 3 1/2 hours. At the end of the course, students agree to give back 40 hours by year end in volunteer time in order to be certified as a MGV.  Continuing MGVs need to volunteer 20 hours/year in order to stay active.  FMI you can send an e-mail to Susan at susan.tkacik@maine.edu.

 SMGC meets throughout the year at the Springvale Library on the third Wednesday of every month beginning at 6:45 pm (unless otherwise noted).  The public is invited to attend to sample our meetings to see if you would like to join us. The next meeting will be on Wednesday, April 17, and the presenter will be Booker Nevus from Wentworth Gardens in Rollinsford, NH; and the topic will be on “Plants for Ponds and Pools”. FMI about future meetings, please contact in ME – Sheryl Rothstein at 207-490-7147 or in NH – Donna Claveau at 603-332-4860.