Master Gardeners Offer Area Residents Gardening Resources and Information at Annual Show & Sale

UT Extension and the Sevier County Area Master Gardeners Association will present their fourth annual Flower & Garden Show & Sale on Saturday, April 25, 2009 from 9am till 4 pm. The show will be held at the Sevier County Fairgrounds at 754 Old Knoxville Highway, Sevierville in the exhibit buildings.  This show will provide home gardeners in the area useful information with Master Gardeners available at the “Ask A Master Gardener” booth throughout the show.  There will be three educational programs.  At 10am, Jim Rouhan, Sevierville city landscape specialist will talk about “Having Fun in Your Landscape.”  At 11am, Ken Oakes of Oakes Daylilies will present “Top Daylilies for Tennessee Gardens.”  At 1pm staff from the Dollywood landscape department will present “Making Dollywood Beautiful in Four Seasons.”   Representatives from several organizations will have information to share at their booths on topics including bonsai, orchids, herbs, trees and other garden related subjects. 

Vendors will be available to provide gardeners with plants, shrubs, trees, yard art, garden equipment & tools along with information and suggestions for planting, growing, and landscaping.

Live musical entertainment will be provided by the Grace Noters dulcimer group.  Snacks and refreshments will be provided by the 4H members to raise money for 4H camp scholarships.  At 3 pm there will be a live auction of garden related items.

Admission to the show is $3 with children under 12 admitted free.  There will be a children’s craft area where Master Gardeners will help them make garden related items.

The proceeds from the garden show all go back into the community for the many projects done by the Master Gardeners during the year.  The SCAMGA projects include presenting a Home Gardeners school in the spring for community area gardeners, assisting in beautification projects at area schools, libraries, & community centers, assisting the schools with the “On My Own” program and the kindergarten tomato planting project., assistance in establishing outdoor classroom areas, birdfeeder stations, and gardening areas at schools, helping the National Park in the native grass restoration project and the Monarch Watch butterfly tagging project, manning the Gardener’s hotline at the Extension office, sponsoring the regional Master Gardener Day, working in the UT Gardens, helping the Habitat HUG program, and offering information at the Sevier County Fair and other community events.

Since the beginning of the Master Gardener program in 2005, nearly 100 area residents have become involved with the program.  During this past year, the group has logged 5,953 volunteer hours valued at $136,653.89 contributed to the good of the community.  The total dollar equivalent impact to the area since the 2005 beginning of the program stands at $273,827. Over 7,500 personal contacts with community members were made at educational events this year.  In addition to the time spent volunteering for projects, the master gardeners have increased their knowledge and skills in gardening by doing an additional 1,039 hours of continuing education units during the past year.

Each year the Sevier County UT Extension office offers the Master Gardener class.  This consists of approximately 40 hours of class instruction.  If anyone is interested in becoming a Master Gardener, you are encouraged to contact Alan Bruhin, UT Sevier County Extension Agent, at 453-3695 for an application or more information. 

The Sevier County Area Master Gardeners Association meets on the third Monday of each month at the new UT Ag Extension office at the Sevier County Fairgrounds.  Programs on many topics are presented at the meetings along with the business meeting.

The Sevier County Area Master Gardeners Association web site is www.scamga.org