Group of new Master Gardeners in Piscataquis County

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — Recently a group of 11 finished the training in the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Piscataquis County 2013 Master Gardener Volunteer program.

    They include from Piscataquis County Anita Perkins (Atkinson), Helen Griffith and Alyssa Gosselin (Dover-Foxcroft), from Penobscot County Terri Plummer (Bangor) and Sonja Birthisel (Orono), from Aroostook County Jill McIntyre (Presque Isle), Sue Caswell and Jacquie Morse (Houlton), Debra Durkin, and Mary Ellen Marucci (Fort Kent) and from Canada Robert Desrosiers (New Brunswick).
    Certified Master Gardeners Janet Yelch-Weatherbee, Dotty Hadler and Karen Mass shared their time and experiences in the community with the group of new Master Gardeners.
    This year’s program focused on vegetable and fruit production topics presented by Extension educators, Extension specialists, the Maine Board of Pesticide Control trainer, the Penquis Beekeepers Association and Hannah Todd from Brick House Succulents in Etna.
    To finish their Master Gardener certification the participants completed 40 hours of volunteer time helping others learn about sustainable gardening.
    A variety of projects are being developed including a Garden Angel for a gardener in need, growing veggies for the Plant a Row for the Hungry Project, helping friends and neighbors with gardening questions, assisting in maintaining the gardens established at the Dover-Foxcroft town office and Piscataquis Chamber of Commerce Building and assisting at the Piscataquis Valley Fair.
    To learn more about the Master Gardener program contact Ana Bonstedt, home horticulture coordinator, at the Piscataquis County Cooperative Extension Office, 165 East Main Street, or 564-3301, 1-800-287-1491 or ana.bonstedt@maine.edu.