classes

Become a Master Gardener – Apply for the 2024 Program

three women in a shed with vegetables and blueberries harvested from gardenDo you enjoy horticulture and want to expand your knowledge and also help others? Apply for the 2024 UConn Extension Master Gardener program.  Applications are due October 13, 2023 and classes begin on January 8, 2024. Class locations for 2024 are Stamford, Norwich, Torrington, New Haven, and online.

Students enrolled in this program receive training in an extensive range of horticultural and environmental topics, including botany, plant pathology, entomology, integrated pest management (IPM), herbaceous and woody ornamentals, fruits, vegetables, turfgrass, invasive plants, and diagnostic techniques for the home gardener.

“I have to say that the quality of the instruction was exceptional. Many of the topics brought me back to my time at UConn as a plant science major, classes that took a semester condensed to a single class,” said Althea Langer, a program graduate. “My outlook on my own garden and those of others has definitely been impacted by this course. I’m much more aware of nature and that we need to be guardians of it by how we all treat our own small spaces.”

UConn Extension Master Gardeners are willing to share their knowledge, passion and enthusiasm with their communities, providing research-based information to homeowners, students, gardening communities and others. They receive horticultural training from UConn, and then share that knowledge with the public through community volunteering and educational outreach efforts. UConn Master Gardeners help with community and museum gardens, school gardens, backyard projects, houseplant questions and more.

“The program provides the opportunity for beginner, intermediate or experienced gardeners to increase their personal knowledge of the practice of gardening … The program allows you to meet with like-minded people over a common interest – growing plants,” said Ken Sherrick, an Advanced Master Gardener.

The program fee is $495.00 and includes all needed course materials. Partial scholarships may be available, based on demonstrated financial need.

Full UConn Extension Master Gardener program course details and information and the application is available at s.uconn.edu/apply.

Master Your Garden With Our Spring Courses

Upcoming Classes:

common witch hazel leaf
Photo: Wikipedia

Ethnobotany – April 28th in Torrington

Growing Trends at the Garden Barn – May 2nd in Vernon

Boot Camp for Your Senses – May 3rd at Edgerton Park Carriage House

Digital Garden Photography Basics – May 6th at Auerfarm in Bloomfield

Pruning Trees and Shrubs – May 22nd in Bethel

Forest Pests: Emerald Ash Borer and More – May 25th in Vernon

Online registration for all classes is available at http://s.uconn.edu/47o

Garden Master Classes are offered through the UConn Extension Master Gardener Program. For Certified Master Gardeners they provide continuing education as part of the Advanced Master Gardener certification process.

These classes are also open to the general public. Anyone with an interest in gardening and horticulture is welcome!

 

Garden Master Classes Available

FANs gardenGarden Master Classes are offered through the UConn Extension Master Gardener Program. For Certified Master Gardeners they provide continuing education as part of the Advanced Master Gardener certification process.

These classes are also open to the general public. Anyone with an interest in gardening and  horticulture is welcome!

The UConn Extension Master Gardener Program is an Educational Outreach Program that is part of UConn Extension. The program started in 1978 and consists of horticulture training and an outreach component that focus on the community at large. Master Gardeners are enthusiastic, willing to learn and share their knowledge and training with others. What sets them apart from other home gardeners is their special horticultural training. In exchange for this training, Master Gardeners commit time as volunteers working through their local UConn Extension Center and the Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford to provide horticultural-related information to the community.

For more information and a class listing visit: https://mastergardener.uconn.edu/garden-master-classes/.

March Lifelong Learning Classes

CLIR group

CLIR classes for March will be held in Vernon Cottage on the UConn Depot campus, all from 1:15-2:45 p.m. except for Memoirs:

Memoir Club                Thursdays, March 2, 9, 16, 23 – 10:15-11:45 a.m.

Water Systems of Rome through the Ages           Wednesday, March 1

Cahokia:  America’s First City             Wednesday,March 8

Why There Can Be No “Theory of Everything” and Why Your Existence Depends

Upon This             Thursday, March 9

How Big Is Your Water Foortprint?    Wednesday, March 15

A Time Economy:  An Opportunity to Learn Skills and Teach Others         Tuesday, March 21

Strangers and Neighbors:  Multiculturalism, Conflict, and Community in America        Wednesday, March 22