Released Aug. 15, 2007
URBANA, Ill. -- When the Macon County Master Gardeners first set out to produce a demonstration gardening segment to air weekly on a local television station, they didn't realize that it was the things that went wrong that would be the biggest hit with viewers.
"In 2004, when we first started the demonstration garden to air on WAND-TV, the soil was exceedingly poor, and some crop problems and full-blown failures were likely due to the extremely sandy soil that lacked much of any organic matter," said Macon County Master Gardener Richard Zerfowski. "Add in a hungry local deer population and the occasional groundhog passing through and it is amazing any of the vegetables were harvested!"
Surprisingly, what some would have considered a poor gardening season, viewers actually loved. "The comment that kept coming back was that people liked to see the failures and problems," said Jennifer Nelson, University of Illinois Extension educator at the Macon County Unit. "It was reassuring to them that even 'Master' gardeners had problems in their garden. More often than not, viewers had experienced the same problem at some point, so they found it helpful to tune in and see how we remedied the problem."
The next year went better. The demonstration garden more than doubled in size in 2005, and two separate garden areas were created. The larger area is approximately 2000 square feet that is used as a vegetable garden. "The other garden is planted around a weather station as a small 'lasagna' garden, since there are underground cables in the area which prevent us from tilling the soil. This section is planted mainly with flowers, but we have also added some vegetables to show that vegetables and flowers can be mixed in a small garden," said Nelson.
The Master Gardeners and local Horticulture Educator present a live television segment each week broadcast directly from the garden (weather permitting). All stages of the garden year are covered, from planning and preparing the garden for planting, to putting the garden to bed for the year by sowing winter rye as a cover crop.
"We demonstrated construction of the lasagna garden live on the air using newspaper, leaves, and locally made compost," said Zerfowski. "We also show different methods of fertilizing and improving the soil. We have shown how to use commercial fertilizer as well as how to use leaves, egg shells, banana peels, pine needles, coffee grounds, grass clippings and other organic materials to improve the soil."
Zerfowski said that using shredded leaves to improve the soil was of particular interest to viewers. "Leaves are a hot topic in the city of Decatur, since homeowners are not allowed to burn leaves or other yard waste according to an ordinance passed in 2000," he said. "Being able to use the leaves in the garden means less yard waste to put out in bags on the curb."
The vegetables harvested from the garden are donated to a local community group that serves a complete balanced meal to about 400 people seven days per week. "Last year the WAND garden produced over 1,200 pounds of food that we were able to donate," said Zerfowski.
In its third year, 2007, the WAND Master Gardener demonstration garden received an International Master Gardener Search for Excellence award, which is only awarded every other year to seven projects worldwide.
Approximately 700 people across the state of Illinois are certified as Master Gardeners every year, including about 60 in the online course. "It's a knowledge-based horticulture program," said Monica David, University of Illinois Extension coordinator for the Master Gardener program. The program begins taking applications in the fall and classes meet weekly from January to April. Certified Master Gardeners are also required to volunteer 30 hours per year after completing the course.
The WAND Demonstration Garden is one example of how some Master Gardeners in Macon County fulfilled their volunteer hours. Master Gardeners in other counties around the state may work with schools, scouting or civic groups, and give presentations at libraries. "The programs themselves are developed based on funding, volunteer interests and the needs in the county," said David.
For more information about the Master Gardener program in Macon County, contact Jennifer Nelson (217-877-6042;jaschult@uiuc.edu). For general information on the Illinois Master Gardener Program including how to apply, contact your nearest Extension office or visit www.extension.uiuc.edu/mg, or contact Monica David (217-265-5256; modavid@uiuc.edu).
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http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/news/stories/news4102.html
Contacts: Monica David, (217) 265-5256, modavid@uiuc.edu
Debra Levey Larson, (217) 244-2880, dlarson@uiuc.edu
