I am so relieved! After almost three months of extensive study, I took the final exam to become a master gardener and made an A. Thankfully the test was open book for it has been many years since I was in college and had that much information to study. By the time the class was over, I had compiled three, three-inch thick binders with material. One binder was my study manual, one was filled with notes from class and one was filled with plant leaf specimens to study for identification by their shape, margins and texture. My book tote must have weighed about 30 pounds by that time and there was a growing hole in the bottom of it from all the weight. I carried around a magnifying lens for closer inspection in the event that I happened upon a bug or plant disease that I needed to identify. I carried a calculator to determine proper fertilization and nutrient treatments for soils after soil testings showed deficiencies. I don’t consider myself an expert by any means but I feel better equipped to help people who may have their own gardening questions.
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