Saturday’s 15th Annual Sherburne County Master Gardeners symposium was great for shopping - for inside and outside things.
But the real treat for visitors was to get to class and learn about the many wonderful things outside.
The master gardeners, who are a growing organization of about 50, put on a dozen imaginative and informative classes on all things plants - and they went on all day at BLHS.
Building rock gardens with Alpine plants was one of the offerings; Gardening in the shade was another. Still others were Creating a garden, start to finish, Growing orchids, Herb gardening, Growing vegetables, Flowers for your spring table and Lawn problems.
Linda Sizer, former Big Lake Twp. resident now living in Buffalo and originator of the symposium, says the Rock gardening classes, taught by Betty Ann Addison of Rice Creek Gardens, was one of the most popular sessions.
Shade gardens was another popular class, as was Birth of a garden.
The master gardeners even had a doctor in the house. Dr. Americo Fabioni of Princeton attended to conduct a class on staying healthy - tips for in the garden.
Another very popular class, taught by Sue Nelson of Big Lake, was making driftwood wind chimes. And Ross Hella, the orchid guy from Deerwood, gave a potted seed to each of his class attendees to take home with them.
Recipes from various herbs was also an offering.
“The attendance?” asked Sizer. “I think it was good. We had 130-plus attending the classes. And there were 20 vendors (up front.)”
All told, there were 32 master gardeners on scene Saturday.
The classes went on in four different sessions, stretching from 8:45 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Most of the attendees were women, but some men showed up.
Sizer said class choices this year were modeled toward the interests of men and that vegetables and lawns were among their choices to attend.
More Things Coming
The master gardeners have put together a cookbook, available to the public. For a $10 donation, they can pick up a boo at any of the upcoming Farmers Markets.
They have a Junior Master Gardener program in May to July at the county fairgrounds in Elk River. The weekly programs will teach about preparing garden beds and growing their own flowers.
Pollinators, a butterfly garden, patio plants, herbs and hanging baskets, birds, fruits and nuts ware subjects of other classes.
Classes are for first graders and up, with $10 per youth for the entire program.
Persons can contact Marv Zimner at 612-382-0093 for information.
Small Farms Night, for livestock owners with limited acreage, will be held April 3 from 5:30 to 8:30 at Big Lake Lions Park.
Sherburne SWCD personnel were there to talk about trees. They also have a list of certified arborists and tree care companies to do business with the public.
Finally, their annual plant sale will be held May 19 from 9 to 11 a.m. at the fairgrounds in Elk River.
Sherburne County Master Gardeners can be contacted at 763-765-3080 or at sherburnecountymastergardeners.org.
