Master Gardeners offer short course

Experienced, or not so experienced, gardeners are invited to a garden and landscape short course presented by Maricopa Master Gardeners Aug. 28-Nov. 20.

The course will run 6:30-9:30 p.m. on Tuesdays at 37860 W. Smith-Enke Road.

“The focus of the Master Gardener program is on education,” said volunteer Becky Purvis. “We learn in class, we put theory into practice in the demonstration garden, and then we share our knowledge with others in our community.

“We love to garden and our goal is to teach people to garden successfully. Meanwhile, we have a lot of fun.”

Cost of the class is $120 per person or $132 per couple if sharing materials. Registration is required.

The Maricopa Master Gardeners are under the supervision and direction of Pinal County Extension Agent Rick Gibson. The Maricopa Agricultural Center supports the Master Gardeners with space for a greenhouse, orchard and demonstration garden staffed by master gardener volunteers.

Purvis said the teachers for the short course are all experts in their field.

“Combining the class with the time we spend working in the garden, orchard and greenhouse offers an extraordinary learning experience,” she said. “The course offers so much information that it’s impossible to absorb it all in one year, so many of the master gardeners take the classes over again each year.”

The group offered it’s first plant sale and open house earlier this year and has offered classes on pruning, propagation and preparing a spring garden.

“This spring we had our first square-foot garden, our first container garden, our first straw bale garden and our first herb garden,” Purvis said. “This coming winter we’ll add a vertical garden and a low-water-use flower garden.”

The volunteers have planted fruit trees and grapevines.

“We've been a busy group,” Purvis said.