David, that's crazy. People are pretty braisen that's for sure. When I first moved in this place several years ago, I had a berry garden, full of strawberries and raspberries. One day I came home from work to find an elderly couple that I never met - in my berry garden picking everything clean. They waived and smiled at me and continued to do their picking. They had to come inside my yard, climb up stairs and open a gate to get in the yard...not like they were accessible from over the property line. I was just stunned....I stood there dumbfounded for a minute and then decided to talk to them about it. They didn't think I was going to use them. I politely explained that I fully intended to use them and it's always best to ask before assuming. I think they were so used to getting their way...because they were so charming :)

I was reading this entire post last night and went to bed a little upset about a few things. While lying in bed I thought about it some more and decided to respond. First off, YES, absolutely there are Master Gardeners that think they know everything, we have them in our group. I have been one since 2007. I can not, nor will not, defend their actions.....they drive me crazy. However, what was bothering me the most was the numerous people that refuse to let others know that they ARE a Master Gardener. Why not? I know, you get the "Oh, you are one of those that know it all huh?" I get that. I actually work at a wholesale nursery and the Owner, Office Manager and my immediate supervisor have more combined time in horticulture than I have been alive! (I am 46) They tease me all the time about the know it all MG. Do they know more than me, ABSOLUTELY!! Do they come to me and ask my opinion? YES! Have they been stumped about something and I came up with the answer...YES! I am also a certified professional nurseryman here in South Carolina. Does that make me better than an average MG, maybe, do I let that go to my head? HELL NO! I am FOREVER researching, whether it be in new books, online, or picking other peoples brains. It is all the person's personality to begin with. For all you out there that want to become an MG or are afraid to admit that you are one, here is some advice. Become an absolute expert in a single category. Here, I am known as 'The Citrus Guy". Do I know everything about Citrus? No! Does one of the local horticulture teachers out at the technical college call me when there is a Citrus problem? Yes. Same thing with most of the other garden centers, hort agents and MG's. I feel good when they come to me, I don't rub it in or anything like that....WE are ALL on the same team here folks!! Teaching!!! This is how I LOVE screwing with the "know it alls". At events when they start to show their butt, I start asking them about a Citrus problem that I KNOW they have no clue about. They get flustered and walk away. Is it mean of mean to do this? Probably. Does it teach them a little humility? Hopefully. I say this all to reinforce my point. Be proud of being a MG. You had the guts to go through a 13 (+/-) week course. Most people today can barely sit through a 2 hour TV show! You may not know it all, and you never will, but you have the knowledge to know where to look for an answer. I ask this question all the time about the program: Why hasn't Google put us out of business? Because the average person does not know what to ask or where to look. We, as MG's have probably come across their problem in one of our classes, known somebody else that has had it, or have had it ourselves. Another case in point: I have received numerous calls about an odd color on clients oranges, (the fruit). Nobody around knew what it was, they called me. I had it diagnosed in a matter of seconds, Citrus Rust Mites. I ONLY knew that because I had just recently seen it in one of my books. I am NOT trying to brag! People think that because I know a lot about Citrus that I know other things, to a small degree I do, BUT, if somebody asks me about Turf Grass....I tell them to call Mike (Our turf guy), if it is Roses, call Orlando (Our Rosarian) and so on. They do the same for me. And of course there are others on different subjects. The client has even asked me why I don't know the answer right there, I explain to them that nobody knows it all and that is just not my expertise. Many times they appreciate that. I also tell them I would rather tell you I DON'T know then to give you bad advice that could kill your turf. If it something simple, I will answer it. Something like: "Why is my grass turning Yellow?" "When was the last time you fed it?" "I have never fed it?" "It's hungry, feed it according to the lawn fertilizer directions" Easy enough So, all I am saying is, find your niche and learn as much as possible. Even to this day, I do many lectures a year on Citrus, I go back and reread some of my books on the subject, occasionally I will say something like "oh yea, I forgot about that". Okay, now to address the folks that are apprehensive about the phones or other ways to get their hours each year. One of my favorite ways is to write. You will need to check with your local extension agent, but mine loves my articles. I write a blog. Before you start thinking that it is one of those, "today I planted beans and my cat watched me" kind of blogs, mine is actually more like a magazine article. In case the link below does not work, you can see it here: http://www.thecitrusguy.blogspot.com/ I do in depth research and write what I think is useful information. I do many other activities and events, but this is a great way to teach people and add even more hours to my total. So, just to recap. Be proud of your MG status. Don't let the bad apples ruin your fun and ability to help others. Learn a niche. Take the course then expand upon it by reading everything you can get your hands on. Questions? Comments? Complaints? Let me know. Darren

I disagree. We do not need a forum that is full of rants and complaints. What a bad vibe that would be. We've all had bad neighbor experiences. It's best to let them go and move on. Gardeners are supposed to be positive, not whiney.

Well, I am obviously the only one in the entire mid-Atlantic annoyed by this. :) That's okay, I will just chronicle here and wait for response. I have not been watering my grass and there is now just swaths of dust interspersed with wilting wild violet leaves. That's right, the things that won't die (wild violets) are showing quite the stress. I watered my flower garden twice this weekend after not watering all week long and just today lugged the super long hose out to water the fence garden. Each plant got watered 3x as it had been a while. Everything is still hanging in there although the Shasta daisies were starting to look a bit thin in the leaves but not yet wilted. The forecast has rain all week. I'm hoping that is true. In fact, I watered in the hopes the the rain, such as it might be, could be absorbed by already damp soil. Now that I think of it, maybe I should have pulled out the sprinkler for the lawn. But, last time it was supposed to rain all week, it rained one day and it was a gentle shower. See my rant above for my take on that. Fingers crossed as I am worried about the trees.