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Projects: Demonstration, Education and Research
Through our demonstration gardens, education programs, and research projects, we hope to
enlighten ourselves and our community with knowledge that will improve horticulture practices in
Santa Clara County.
Demonstration Gardens and Research
Nine Palms Ranch - The Master Gardener program has a two acre site in San
Jose that has been established for
research and demonstration use. Research projects include Mediterranean peppers, berry trials,
new vegetable varieties, tomato trials, year-round cut flowers, carrot comparison and many others.
This MG research site is open to the public by invitation only.
Research project reports:
carrots |
melons |
potatoes |
cut flowers |
cole crops |
beneficials
Gamble Garden (www.gamblegarden.org) - The Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden Center has an auxiliary Master
Gardener office which includes a hotline office operated on Friday afternoons and a monthly plant
clinic. Previous garden projects include a salad green tapestry garden, attracting birds,
butterflies and beneficial insects, sweet peppers, native American vegetables and heirloom
vegetables. The Hotline number is (650)329-1356 and operates Fridays from 1 to 4 pm. On the
second Saturday of the month bring yours plants for diagnosis directly to the Master Gardeners at
Gamble Garden. The address is 1431 Waverly Street in Palo Alto.
McClellan Ranch Project - Master Gardeners conduct vegetable trials to help the public
learn about growing tasty alternatives to the standard vegetable varieties sold in supermarkets.
Located at the community garden in McClellan Ranch Park, 22221 McClellan Road, Cupertino.
Research reports:
asian vegetables |
beans |
carrots |
cucumbers |
melons |
nematodes |
peppers |
potatoes |
tomatoes |
summer squash |
winter squash
View the year in pictures
Palo Alto Demonstration Garden
(Map) - The Master Gardeners have a established two demonstration gardens in
Eleanor Pardee Community Gardens located on
Center Road near Martin Street in Palo Alto. The first garden, the edible
garden, displays innovative approaches to edible landscaping, with seasonally appropriate vegetable and
fruit selections. Presenting a set of horticultural "best practices" for home gardens,
the beds illustrates the use of proper soil preparation, trellising, staking, and the efficient irrigation
practices. This garden serves as a showcase for new garden varieties, cover
crops, rare fruits, and flowering plants that attract beneficial insects.
Open Monday mornings and the first Saturday of the month from 10 am to 1 pm.
The second garden demonstrates how native California and
Mediterranean climate plants can be used to create a water-wise natural garden.
The plants in this garden require little or no supplemental summer water and provide
food and shelter for beneficial insects, butterflies, and birds.
This garden is always open.
Project summaries: 1st year | 2nd year |
3rd year | 4th year
Presentation Center Retreat Demonstration Garden
- In 2004, the
Master Gardeners established a new demonstration garden at
Presentation Center, an international retreat and educational gathering place. Nestled
in the woody foothills of Los Gatos, an organic sustainable garden providing produce for the
Center's dining hall has been established on the site of an abandoned tennis court.
Prusch Farm Park -
The park is located at 647 South King Road, San Jose, near the intersection of Highways 101
and 680. Master Gardeners monitor four projects at the park including a High Density Fruit Orchard,
Drought Tolerant Children's Garden, Perennial Color Wheel and Rare Fruit Orchard. FFA and other
youth organizations keep farm animals at the park.
A Drought Tolerant Demonstration Garden has a unique drip irrigation system installed with the
planting of many selected varieties of plants, trees, and ground covers. The Perennial Color Wheel
is the center piece of Prusch Park when you first enter through the front gate. The Rare Fruit
Orchard is a large cooperative project with the California Rare Fruit Growers, consisting of over
125 rare and exotic fruit trees including bananas, citrus, and other sub-tropicals.
A Compost Demonstration Site was set up by Master Composter volunteers. This site has become an
important part of the educational needs of the community in the area of home composting and
includes several commercial composting bins including a homemade worm box. Free classes in
composting are held throughout the County including Prusch Park. The class schedule is available
by clicking the Home Composting link at
www.ReduceWaste.org
Sunnyvale Teaching and Demonstration Garden - The garden within Sunnyvale's Charles Street
Community Garden holds monthly public classes on organic, sustainable gardening and demonstrates such
techniques and principals by using them in the MG demonstration garden. Emphasizes use of recycled,
recyclable or salvaged materials in garden construction and demonstrates organic and sustainable
growing techniques.
Project summary: 1st year
Education Programs
Through our educational projects, we take our research-based knowledge and present it to the
public. These projects center around schools and adult education programs. Teachers are always
needed and special tutoring is available.
Teaching Garden - This Santa Clara Adult Education Program class is taught at the Adult
Community Education Center, 1830 Benton Street, Santa Clara. The site has a 2-acre fenced plot and
includes a small storage shed and compost bins.
Generation Connection Mountain View - a program created in the Santa Clara "Teaching
Garden". Grade school children and adult volunteers, including Master Gardeners, explore the
garden and its inhabitants in the spring and fall at the Mountain View Senior Center Garden. The
Generation Connection
is a joint project with the Mountain View - Los Altos Adult Education Program.
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