Everybody: Talk to your local Extension Agent!! It's free!

[Manifestor_of_Light]

My grandparents were County Extension agents with Texas A&M during the Depression.

They had gone to college together at Mississippi A&M and moved to Texas.

Your local agent would have an office in your county seat (where the courthouse is).

They know everything about plants, pastures, weeds,pests. In Texas they have to have a Master's degree to be an Extension Agent. Usually they have an Ag agent and a Home Demonstration Agent. Learn about cooking, canning, home management, sewing, etc.


Look up your state here!
http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/

Look up Texas offices here:
http://county-tx.tamu.edu/

[Blue Gardener]

1. They are a great resource

I took the master gardener course through our extension service.

[bvar22]

2. The County Extension is a good resource. However,....

...they tend to push chemicals (herbicides/pesticides/fertilizers/GM seedstock) that you may not want to use in your organic veggie garden.
They ARE "sponsored" by Big Ag, so take their advice with some healthy skepticism.

They tend to talk down heirloom seeds and bio-diversity in favor of the latest lab/Corpo produced monster hybrids.

I'm not saying "Don't use them", just realize who you are talking to.

[hippywife]

3. I agree, B.

There are very few that are willing to give up the conventional methods. :hi:

[bvar22]

5. Hi.

How ya doin?
The Dogwoods are blooming here, and our first Hummingbird showed up yesterday.

We're working our asses off getting ready for Spring planting.
Tripling the garden size counting the new Blueberry patch.
We're tilling up the lower half of the fenced garden (unused last year) and planting Corn, Okra, and Melons in rows (or "3 sister mounds"). They didn't really work well in the raised boxes...took up too much space.

In general:
Fewer tomatoes.
More leafy greens, herbs, BEANS (lots of beans and black eyed peas :)), eggplant, Okra, squash, and berries (lots of strawberries and blueberries).
Just finished a cool Strawberry Pyramid.

I haven't take any Spring photos yet.
Maybe this week.
:hi:

[hippywife]

7. Well, hi there!

Good to see you. We're way behind. The stuff we planted in the peat pot trays have blasted right on up and it's too cold to plant. I guess we'll get there. I'm just not going to worry about making deadlines coz it's impossible at this point and I'm tired of being so stressed about it.

I really look forward to pix of your garden. :hi:

[Blue Gardener]

4. Not always the case

At least not in my county, and not where the Master Gardener training is concerned. We spent a lot of time discussing organic gardening methods.

[bvar22]

6. My response wasn't meant as a blanket condemnation of County Extensions.

There is good stuff there.
It would be a mistake to overlook them.
We have both attended classes at our county extension, and generally enjoy the people there.
Starkraven is currently enrolled in the County Extension Master Gardiner Class.
We just don't buy everything they sell.