GET GREEN AND GROWING THIS FALL

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service offers advice, training

GEORGETOWN –– Eastern Williamson County’s soil runs deep compared to its neighbors in the urbanized core just west of Interstate 35. The Blackland Prairie routinely attracts transplants who yearn to dig deep and grow roots.

The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service offers educational programs including pop-ups, student programs and yearlong volunteer training for residents yearning to “branch out.”

There are options for adults and students, too.

“I saw an artichoke plant on Instagram and thought, that looks fun,” Spencer Ford said. “Six months later, I have a 7-foot-tall tomato jungle strung across a 20-foot trellis. The garden has assumed control.”

Texas AgriLife offers instruction to help turn wishful thinking into green thumbs.

“I merely work here,” Ford added, describing his Taylor vegetable garden.

The extension office is at 100 Wilco Way, Suite AG201.

According to its website, AgriLife is “the largest comprehensive agriculture program nationally. Texas A&M AgriLife brings together a college and four state agencies focused on agriculture and life sciences within the Texas A&M University System.”

In addition, the university says the service provides “scientific advances in agricultural and life sciences (to) improve the well-being of Texas people, lands and businesses in meaningful and impactful ways.”

TEXASMASTERGARDENERS

Texas Master Gardeners is a volunteer educational program conducted by Texas AgriLife. Each certified volunteer is an enthusiastic gardener who takes an active interest in lawns, trees, shrubs, flowers and gardens.

After their multiweek training in horticulture and fulfilling community service hours, each Master Gardener volunteers in the community, sharing their expertise and passion for gardening. They work in demonstration gardens, run a Help Desk and host pop-ups and outreach programs.

According to Pam Lovelace, the administrative assistant for the Williamson County Extension Office, the horticulture agent position is currently vacant.

The Williamson County Master Gardeners are filling in the gaps.

The gardeners manage a Demonstration Garden at 3151 S.E. Inner Loop Road.

In this space, volunteers use scientific, research-based horticulture solutions and share their knowledge with locals.

To become a certified Texas Master Gardener, participants begin a one-year process with a minimum of 50 hours of specialized classroom instruction. Master Gardener interns finish out their certifications by contributing a minimum of 50 service hours and 15 continuing education hours by the year’s end.

The Williamson County Master Gardener Fall class already is full, so check for future sessions and openings.

Visit https://txmg.org/williamson/ for upcoming events and classes.

Master Gardeners run an in-person Help Desk on Mondays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Residents can call 512-943-3300 and speak to a Master Gardener or visit the office at 100 Wilco Way. They also answer questions via email at [email protected].

The Master Gardeners give presentations to classes, garden clubs and other groups. The Speaker’s Bureau is available via https://txmg.org/williamson/ speakers-bureau/.

TEXASMASTERNATURALISTS

The mission of the Texas Master Naturalist Program is to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the state.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the AgriLife Extension Service jointly manage the program.

Similar to the Texas Master Gardeners, participants undergo a multiweek training process, followed by volunteer service. Recertification is also required each year.

According to the organization, volunteers implement youth education programs and operate parks, nature centers and natural areas. They provide leadership in local natural resource conservation efforts.

In fact, a short supply of dedicated and well-informed volunteers is often cited as a limiting factor for community-based conservation efforts.

“The naturalist training is like taking a college class where you learn only the interesting stuff,” said Stacy Olsen, a certified Texas Master Naturalist, Good Water Chapter.

In Williamson County, the Good Water Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists starts its next training 6-9 p.m. Sept. 2 and continues weekly until Dec. 16.

For more and to sign up, visit https:// txmn.org/goodwater/good-water-trainingclass/.

EASTWILCO AGRILIFEPOP-UPS

Weeds aren’t the only things that pop up. Texas A&M AgriLife programming does, too.

— SPENCER FORD, TAYLOR

According to Hayley Blundell, Heritage Square Farmers Market manager in Taylor, the Master Gardeners return this fall to the Second Saturday markets starting Sept. 13.

They set up an “Ask the Gardener” booth to answer community questions.

Before federal budget cuts, AgriLife also planned to provide local seminars including “Fight Food Waste.” The sessions would have helped participants learn about quick and easy techniques to reduce waste, including hands-on activities and cooking demonstrations.

Green Thumbs Up is an hourlong free Gardening Series held monthly at four libraries in Williamson County. Topics include tree care, lawn maintenance, irrigation, rain harvesting, beneficial insects and how to start a vegetable garden.

The next Green Thumbs Up is scheduled for 2-3 p.m. Aug. 20 at the Hutto Public Library, 500 W. Live Oak St. inside the Hutto City Hall.

The discussion covers growing a fourseason garden.

YOUTHPROGRAMMING FORTHESCHOOLYEAR

School starts in August, kicking off several youth groups in September. For students who love the outdoors, several programs are available.

4-H:

The Extension Service hosts 4-H in Williamson County, a youth-development program for students in grades three to 12. Younger children in kindergarten to second grade are eligible for the Clover Kids program.

“The 4-H program offers a wide range of projects and activities youth can participate in from the local level to the state level and beyond,” said Brittany Allen, county extension agent for 4-H and youth development. “These include projects like livestock, natural resources, fashion and interior design, food and nutrition, (science, technology, engineering and math), leadership and more.”

The 4-H clubs are divided by town and special interest. Taylor, Hutto, Granger and Thrall all have clubs that meet weekly.

For youth interested in horses, the Hoofpicks 4-H meets monthly.

The Shooting Sports club gathers once a quarter.

The 2025-26 4-H year begins in September, with Open House Aug. 27. For more, on Williamson County 4-H clubs, events and projects, visit https:// williamson.agrilife.org/4-h/.

JUNIOR MASTER NATURALIST PROGRAM:

There is a program just for the kids who love bugs sponsored by The Good Water Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalists, open to elementary, middle and high school students beginning in September.

The program combines classroom activities with field trips and covers topics such as caves, dinosaurs and worms. Younger kids visit sites including the Texas Science & Natural History Museum in Austin and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Older students continue their education with a wild cave tour. Then, students visit an active dig with a trip to the Gault Archaeological Site in Florence.

For more or to register, visit https:// txmn.org/goodwater/gwmn-juniormaster-

naturalist-program/.

AGRILIFE LEARN:

For those who need up-to-date science-backed information at their fingertips, AgriLife Learn is the answer. It is the home for the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension’s educational resources.

Its repository of information seems endless, and much of it is free. Topics range from one-sheeters on the New World screwworm to Texas property law and Texas wine grapes.

To browse its offerings, visit https://agrilifelearn.tamu.edu for free downloadable information.

Texas AgriLife also publishes books and periodicals, and those are also available for purchase on its site.

“I saw an artichoke plant on Instagram and thought, that looks fun.”