The Master Gardeners of Camden County are on call for your questions from 9 a.m.-noon weekdays on gardening issues, plant identifications, insect identifications and remedies. Through the Master Gardeners program, administered by Rutgers University, residents who want to become Master Gardeners are trained in classes and then give back to the community by answering residents’ questions in clinics, online and by phone during those weekday hours. There is no fee for this service designed to promote healthy gardens.  Call: 856-216-7130 or email.

Everything you've wanted to know about those pesky insects in your garden and how to keep them from getting to your tasty vegetables before you do will be explained in a workshop presented by Camden County Master Gardeners as part of their Homeowners Series of Workshops on Thursday, April 11th at 7 p.m. at the Camden County Environmental Center. You will learn how to identify the most common insects found on vegetables and how to control them organically. The speaker, Sabrina Tirpak, is the Principal Laboratory Technician at the Plant Diagnostic Laboratory at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.  She is also an instructor at Rutgers and a frequent lecturer on insect pest problems in structures, landscapes and gardens.   Advanced registration is requested. For more information, call 856-216-7130 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Ladybugs, symbols of good luck from medieval Europe to Chinese lore, are beneficial bugs all gardeners should consider welcoming into their yards and garden plots. Bart Conrad, a master gardener in Camden County, says ladybugs are “a friend to gardeners” because they eat bugs that eat plants.

St. Martins is a close-knit community. Not too long ago a group of passionate community members got together as a group that they called the St. Martins Area Communiteers. Watch two of the group's prominent figures, Fern and Kathi, and a few community residents tell us about the impact one of the Communiteers' projects, called "Incredible Edible", had on the village. It’s brought people closer, connected generations and beautified the village, all while promoting healthy living. The magic of a community that's empowered to affect change for the better is that the project stemmed into multiple other initiatives, and brought a huge sense of pride to all those in the village. Wellness lives where we can communities - and generations - come together. Wellness Lives Here.

What would an economy look like if it prioritized boosting community wealth, rebuilding community life, upholding social justice and harmonizing with environment over pursuit of profit? Today, many cities fully embrace redevelopment as a strategy to revitalize whole districts, as we are witnessing in old manufacturing centers such as Detroit, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. Even smaller cities such as Lawrence, Massachusetts, and Eau Claire, Wisconsin, are getting in on the action. Instead of greenfields, brownfields and their classic, historic architecture, their raw industrial grit, are back in vogue. Redevelopment, renewal and adaptive reuse are no longer buzzwords, but well-established strategies with an impressive track record. https://www.greenbiz.com/article/4-techniques-catalyze-sustainable-small-town-redevelopment

Incredible Edible Community Gardens are a non-profit in the Upland and Ontario area focused on the founding and sustaining of community gardens. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3StAuG5E98

Incredible Edible (IE) Merchantville was created by a handful of residents to initiate a conversation around a new green project intended to grow Merchantville beyond our community garden and farmers market by creating a supportive culture of understanding, learning and action towards environmental stewardship and a sustainable future. Using the Pam Warhurst Incredible Edible Network - eat our landscapes - model as a staring point we will galvanize the community by growing herbs and veges in public spaces and celebrating local food, bringing sustainable edible living to life through local school education, and supporting our local food economy through restaurants and businesses. http://incredibleediblenetwork.org.uk/

Sonia Kendrick isn't afraid to get her hands dirty and has become a great example to veterans suffering from PTSD. Sonia lives in a two-bedroom apartment in downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa. And while she farms a total of 25 acres, it's sprinkled across the city in everything from quarter-acre patches to eight-acre parcels.With the help of American Legion FW Grigg Post 68 we hope to partner with local vets to heal food insecurity and promote their emotional and physical well-being. https://www.womansday.com/life/inspirational-stories/a22118919/veteran-feed-iowa-first/