DATE: December 04, 2007

CONTACT: Tim Davis, (803) 730-7956
tdvs@clemson.edu

WRITER: Bobbie Bryson, (843) 705-3820
imgaparess@gmail.com

Lowcountry Master Gardeners spruce up Heyward House landscape

BLUFFTON – The Lowcountry Master Gardeners have been applying their knowledge of Southern coastal gardening by sprucing up Bluffton’s Heyward House Historic Center, a home that dates back to the 1840s.

Once a month these volunteers bring their own tools to prune, plant, rake and hoe the nearly one acre property. 

As the official welcome center for the town of Bluffton, the works of these master gardener volunteers ensures that area visitors are presented with a well-kept landscape befitting one of only eight antebellum homes still remaining in Bluffton’s National Register Historic District.

Other recent projects have included: planting gardens at the Boys and Girls Club of Hilton Head, rejuvenating the gardens at Hilton Head High School and landscaping for Habitat for Humanity in Beaufort. They also assist the Clemson Extension Service at the plant clinic on Hilton Head Island from 9:30 a.m. to noon every Wednesday.

The Master Gardener Program is a volunteer training program administered by the Clemson Extension Service.  Participants receive 40 hours of intensive horticulture training. 

After successfully completing the classroom portion, which includes passing a final exam, participants receive the title of master gardener. They are then required to donate 40 hours of service in the Clemson extension office or in the county by doing volunteer activities, which are coordinated through the local extension office.  Many exceed the expected 40 hours of service.

For more information about the Lowcountry Master Gardener Association, visit their website at: www.lowcountrymga.org. For more information about other master gardener programs in the state, contact Tim Davis at (803) 730-7956.

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