The Master Gardener program began in the 1970's in response to the many gardening questions that resulted from the rapidly increasing level of interest in home gardening. The idea was to train knowledgeable gardener volunteers to help University Extension staff deliver home gardening information to the public.

Our local Master Gardeners are able to build on their interests and acquire greater expertise through the resources available through the Extension Service and the University of Missouri.

University of Missouri Extension provides equal opportunity to all participants in extension programs and activities, and for all employees and applicants for employment on the basis of their demonstrated ability and competence without discrimination on the basis of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability or status as a protected veteran.

Hickory County Master Gardeners recommend contacting your local Extension Service for more complete plant and growing information and how to become a Master Gardener.

Meetings are reserved for Master Gardener members, but community programs hosted by the Master Gardeners are public events and will be announced in the local newspaper.

As of 12/31/2014, this blog will no longer post new articles. It will remain active as an archive. Please use the tools available in the right column to search for information and source links provided in previous articles.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: http://extension.missouri.edu/ and http://mg.missouri.edu/.


Summer Garden Tour

Celebrate Summer Garden Tour 2014

What better way to celebrate the first day of summer than to spend the day on  a Garden Tour?  A full day of education was put on by The Masters Gardeners of the Ozarks from Taney and Stone Counties in SW Missouri.  This year was a "go on your own" tour that covered three stops beginning in Kimberling City, then a private garden in Blue Eye, lunch and tour at Persimmon Hill Berry Farm, Big Cedar Lodge and ending at College of the Ozarks. 

Registration was at the Senior Center in Kimberling City where we got our packet and map.  We had registered online previously and paid the fee of $22 each so we were ready to go after after some early morning refreshments provided at 8:00 a.m. after check-in and information packets provided. We walked around the building and saw the Master Gardener approved gardens that the chapter designed and maintained. There were 23 perennials/shrubs/trees and eight annuals around the Senior Center.  Lovely!
KAL Children's Garden
The next stop on our tour was a short distance to the Library where there was a KAL Children's Garden.  The Mission of the KAL Garden is to provide a garden environment in which plant based and reading activities generates interest and appreciation of reading and horticulture that lead to a lifelong pursuit of these beneficial activities.  The plant list is extensive.   There are eight trees/shrubs, 23 flowers in the ABC Garden, and 28 other annuals and perennials.  Volunteers for the library installed irrigation and the garden is currently funded with grants from the Master Gardeners of the Ozarks and the Kimberling City Area Library Association.  


The last stop in Kimberling City was at the Kimberling City Center - a shopping mall with about two dozen businesses.  One was the Table Rock Art Gallery www.tablerockartguild.com where there was an Art Walk on this day.   This day was also the dedication and demonstration of a new Storm Water Management Project.  The previously paved parking lot was redesigned.  This 3-acre lot will now capture an estimated 8 pounds of nitrogen, 1.5 pounds of phosphorus, 4 pounds of metals (iron, copper, lead) and 125 pounds of soil and minerals per year off cars and trucks.

While the nutrients, nitrogen, and phosphorus do not sound like a lot of pollution, keep in mind that it only takes one pound of phosphorus to enable the growth of 700 pounds of algae in the water!  Metals such as lead can also concentrate in fish which is a bad thing for people that like to eat what they catch. Table Rock Lake is within view of this shopping center and is known as one of the best for bass fishing.


Linda Redford's farm in Blue Eye

Linda Redford and her century-old restored farmhouse in Blue Eye
Crossing the bridge over Table Rock Lake, we drive to Blue Eye.  Linda Redford currently has what many people said is the most beautiful garden in the area.  Her house is more than a century old and she promised her family she would not sell.  She has restored the house and revived the gardens she grew up with.  Her father was also a fishing guide in the area and Linda is a member of Women's Professional Bass Tours and travels for tournaments all over the country.  Gardening and fishing are her life!
Grading freshly-picked blueberries at Persimmon Hill Farm
Time now for lunch!  Persimmon Hill Farm is a real berry, fruit and mushroom farm that began several decades ago.  The current owners started in 1982 turning two acres into blueberry fields with hives of honeybees for pollination.  They added fields of blackberries, raspberries, gooseberries, plums and more.  Their goal was to provide top quality berries and an enjoyable family experience where Branson Area tourists could pick their own fruit.  The addition of log-grown shiitake mushrooms began a new gourmet product line.  Other products developed and available for sale include barbecue sauces, jams/jellies and mushroom sauces, with a total of 30 gourmet food products.  They ship gourmet food items and baskets all over the world.  www.persimmonhill.com

View of Table Rock Lake from Big Cedar Lodge

Oak Leaf Hydrangea in full bloom!

Beautiful rock work in landscaping at Big Cedar Lodge
Big Cedar Lodge is proud of their environmental efforts that enhance the natural beauty that surrounds the area.  Their motto is "Take care of the soil, don't worry about the plants."  To create and nurture rich soil in which they grow their gardens, they compost with their vast supply of horse manure, any plant/grass clippings and a plentiful supply of vegetable and fruit waste from the kitchens.  They also fertilize with organic fertilizer in the spring and fall.   They provided a small booklet of Gardening Tips from Big Cedar along with descriptions/photos of many of their plants in the landscape.  www.bigcedar.com

"Your sacred plants, if here below,
Only among the plants will grow.
Society is all but rude,
To this delicious solitude."  
~ Andrew Marvell

"Remember, we all live downstream."
Edwards Mill at College of the Ozarks
Master Gardeners greet tour participants by the mill and greenhouses/gardens at College of the Ozarks
College of the Ozarks is a college where no tuition is charged because all students work on campus; debt is openly discouraged.  This "Hard Work U" has long been supported by the Master Gardeners of the Ozarks with a portion of the proceeds from this tour to be awarded as a full scholarship to a College of the Ozarks student whose study is plant-based.  A CD is provided for a walking/driving tour of the campus.  The annual flower beds, greenhouses and 32 fruit/vegetable plots are of most interest.  There is also a working mill.  These gardens supply produce for the on site Farmer's Market that began in 2013, Dobson Dining Room in the Keeter Center and for the Pearl Rogers Student Dining Room.  There is also a dairy that produces and sells unpasteurized milk.  Other products include meats, bedding plants, hanging baskets, Edward's Mill products, Fruitcake and Jelly Kitchen items, stained glass and goodies for the student's Keeter Center.  Most of the campus is self-sustaining which includes producing their own water, sewer treatment plant, steam heat, water cooling systems and more.  www.cofo.edu






Greenhouses


Hydrophonic system to grow vegetables


Water-cooling system


Orchid Greenhouse


Vegetable Gardens 
Garden Tour information is made available to all Master Gardeners through the various chapters around the state each year.  There are many opportunities that qualify for continued education and also for advanced training.  Yearly continuing education is required to maintain an active status as Master Gardener in addition to 20 hours of volunteer service (30 hours for the first year).  This tour qualifies for the required six hours of continued education.  What a fun opportunity to learn!


Source:  Beti Pearson, Master Gardener and Master Naturalist

 Posted: 7/18/2014


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