Program Committee - Spring Celebration!

Beth Cody will present on Thursday, April 21, 6:30 p.m. at the Extension Office on Historic Gardens of Iowa. Her book, Iowa Gardens of the Past features more than 250 color and grayscale images of beautiful gardens created by Iowa gardeners from the mid-nineteenth century through the 1970s.

Afterwards at 7:45 p.m. we will host an Awards Presentation to celebrate new Master Gardeners and members who have achieved significant milestones. The evening's activities should conclude around 8:30 p.m. (submit awards nominations! More info is found below)

Dessert Potluck!: The evening will begin with a shared dessert/snack bar. Bring your favorite dessert or snack to enjoy during the presentation and awards ceremony afterwards.

6:00 p.m. - Doors open, dessert potluck and socializing

6:30-7:30 p.m. - Presentation by Beth Cody

7:45-8:30 p.m. - Awards Presentation

Did you miss a program or want to re-watch? View past presentations:

Garden Do's and Don't's with Aaron Steil - View Aaron's handout here

Volunteers are the lifeblood of any organization, and Polk County Master Gardeners are fortunate to have a team of exceptional, dedicated volunteers to carry out the important work of our organization. Each and every volunteer is a vital part of our team, and we applaud the great work you have been doing. We could not be as successful as we are without you. YOU make a difference!

We need YOUR help by nominating volunteers who you believe should be considered candidates for special recognition at the Awards event following the educational program on

April 21. We have so many exceptional volunteers and expect nominations to be very competitive.

Descriptions of the awards are listed below, and a link directs you to the application forms. We realize we are on a tight deadline this year for the launch of this awards program, and we encourage you to help us by nominating colleagues you believe are working at the highest levels of dedication for our Master Gardeners program.

Thank you for everything you do for Polk County Master Gardeners.

1."Splashmaker" award recognizes a relatively new Master Gardener, currently certified, with 2-3 years of service in the Master Gardener program, who has "jumped in with both feet". This individual may be devoted to one project only or work on any number of Master Gardener projects.

2." Jack of All Trades "award highlights a currently certified Master Gardener who is working behind the scenes and making a significant impact for the PCMG program. This Master Gardener is doing tasks that support and promote the efforts of PCMG, but might not be highly visible to a number of other Master Gardeners.

The nomination for these awards can be found here. Submit before April 11th.

We are in need of volunteers to help with garden preparation and day-of activities!

Garden prep volunteers will work closely with the gardeners, doing weeding and other prep helps as needed. Other than benefiting from the extra hours one can expect to gain when compared to just working the day of the event, some gardeners are expertise in various areas that you could potentially gain experience or greater knowledge in.

Workers are those that will be working the day of the event. The event is on Saturday, July 9 from 9 am to 4 pm. There are four morning shifts and four afternoon shifts per garden with a total of 11 gardens.

If interested in volunteering, please provide your name, email and other details to pcmgtour@gmail.com.

We are looking for volunteers to represent the Master Gardener Program at the upcoming Earth Day event at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Gardens! We will be handing out information on native plants, water-friendly gardening practices, and other horticulture topics.

When: Saturday, April 23rd

Timing: 9:30am - 1pm or 1pm-4:30pm

Sign up to volunteer here! or contact Kalsa at kparker@iastate.edu.

We’re back on the road in June 2022! The registration form is attached with complete trip details. Transportation costs have increased significantly and if you’ve traveled with PCMG before, you’ll notice the one-day trip fee is higher than in the past. Registration includes bus transportation, admission fees to all gardens, lunch, and snacks. We have decided to cancel the overnight trip to Minneapolis in July. Hope to see you in June!

Hope all is well and you are feeling a little like spring. With that in mind, anytime we might have a nice warm day, you can go out and do general cleanup at the garden. Please remember that all garden refuse goes on the east side of the Ag Building. There are typically lots of leaves in the garden, especially around the pond area that can be remembered if you have free time and are wanting hours.

General: discoverygardenpcmg@gmail.com

Judy Goshorn

Sign up to attend a tour of the Iowa Arboretum! Mark Schneider from our Program Night presentation will be showing us around the arboretum on May 21st, one of the peak times to visit!

The tour will be from 9:30-11:30am on Saturday, May 21st. Spots are limited. Please use the sign up sheet below to reserve your space. Participants can receive two hours of continuing education.

Sign up here! or email Kalsa at kparker@iastate.edu.

Register for this DIY Worm Bin Workshop with our very own Teena Shineflew! This is a low-cost way to learn about and get started with vermiculture.

When: Saturday, April 9th at 10am

Where: West Des Moines Nature Center at Raccoon River Park

During this class you will not only build a worm composter, but you will learn about the care and feeding of your compost worms. You will go home with worms and a fully functional worm composter and worm castings harvester.

This list is not all-inclusive - you can get continuing education from other reputable sources such as public gardens and other states' Extension services.