Plant Selection

Event

Central Sierra: California Native Plants (EDC MG)

Event Date
Sep 20, 2025

Do you love native plants and wonder how you can enjoy them on your patio or in your smaller garden? Join Master Gardener and California Native Plant Society (CNPS) member Dolores Morrison to discover how to evaluate your yard to establish a native landscape, how to select and maintain plants, how to group…
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recently planted vegetable garden
Event

Planting & Caring for Your Vegetable Garden - ONLINE

Event Date
Apr 17, 2025

Ready to start your FIRST vegetable garden? Or IMPROVE upon your previous efforts?  Join us for our . . .  NEW Vegetable Gardening Class Series giving less experienced vegetable growers the informationthey need to succeed. Class 2 - Planting & Caring for Your Vegetable…
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Event

Under the Spell of Succulents

Event Date
Apr 12, 2025

Join us for Under the Spell of Succulents Public Workshop on Sat, April 12 from 10 - 12 noon. Our speaker is Roz Tampone, UC Master Gardener of Fresno County Topics covered will be: How to grow and care for succulents in your garden and containers and more
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photo of plant give and take, tables, volunteers in a parking lot
Event

2025 Grange Spring Plant Give and Take

Event Date
Mar 29, 2025

2025 Spring Plant Give and Take The Plant Give and Take event is a FREE event for all community members to exchange plants and other garden items, presented by the Merced Colony Grange with volunteer help from UC Master Gardener Program of Merced County.
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Article

Raising the “Fancy” Standard for California Trees

September 16, 2025
By Andrew Miller
California’s urban forests deserve nothing less than “Fancy” trees. Jessie Godfrey, UC ANR Environmental Horticulture and Water Resource Management Advisor, is elevating the work of “Team Fancy,” a group of nursery professionals advocating for state-specific tree quality standards. These standards aim to…
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Yellow California native plants stretching to horizon
Article

California Native Plants and Your Garden: a Plant Community Approach

September 12, 2025
By Linda Carloni
 California native plants can add beauty to your garden, reduce your water use and support the native wildlife.  All good!  This blog discusses why native plants are important, the communities in which they naturally grow and how that knowledge can guide your plant selection.  Why…
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A group of seed savers at work. Jennifer Petersen
Article

Saving Summer Vegetable Seeds

September 9, 2025
The abundance from summer vegetable gardens is extended through the winter and beyond by methods of canning, freezing and drying. But you can also give your summer vegetables a longer life span by saving their seeds. It's important to know that the seed from a hybrid plant will not produce a plant exactly…
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Ask Our Helpline

Something in your garden or home bugging you? Do your roses have strange spots? Is something eating your tomatoes? The Merced Master Gardeners are here to help! Contact our Helpline to get answers to your garden challenges and pest problems. Send an email to anrmgmerced@ucanr.edu.
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Houseplants
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Houseplants

Photo: Daria Rem, Pexels If you revel in the array of tones and textures in our garden, you can bring that feeling indoors with a few well-placed houseplants. Houseplants create a sense of colorful coziness, along with the added bonus of purifying the air you breathe.
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Fall Garden Fair Garlic and Shallots

 Garlic and shallots grow beautifully over the winter in Santa Clara County. Plant garlic and long-season shallots in the fall for harvesting in June–July. Be sure to choose a spot where you can withhold water for the last several weeks since the bulbs need to dry out as they mature. Fast growing Dutch…
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