Here is a great gift for that special person that wants to learn more about gardening on the North Oregon Coast: the Tillamook Master Gardener classes. I heard from the incoming President Cammy Hickman that there is a deadline for applying this year of December 16, 2022, so I wanted to feature that today.
The Tillamook County Master Gardener Association is back to holding in-person (or online) training starting on January 5, 2023 and running weekly until April 2nd. The location will be the OSU Extension Office at 4506 Third Street in Tillamook and will include just about everything you need to know to become a better gardener. When the class finishes, you (or your giftee) will be asked to volunteer for 40 hours to help others in the community. I know that sounds like a lot, but you have a year to accomplish it and it goes by faster than you think.You can volunteer at the Learning Garden, the farmers’ markets, community gardens and many other TCMGA activities. Its also a great way to meet new people with like interests; I know that from experience.
The Master Gardeners have lined up an impressive list of instructors for this year's training classes. This is a university-taught class and students will be given the opportunity to learn basic botany and entomology as well as plant diseases and sustainable gardening. Vegetables, perennial plants, natives, ornamentals, trees, lawns, you name it - the Master Gardeners will teach you about it. You will learn about soil conditions and how to amend them, plant propagation, and plant nutrition as well. I am even teaching the Coastal Gardening class this year.
Cost is $150 which includes the Sustainable Gardening Handbook. There are also several scholarships available. (Contact Sarah Ostermiller at sarahostermiller@oregonstate.edu for more information on those.) You can also visit www.tillamookmastergardeners.com for full descriptions and a schedule of classes. There is an online application at https://beav.es/5Ao, or you can register your giftee in person at the Extension Office. By the way, this is a great gift for yourself, too. But don’t forget that deadline.
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