Poison, deer prevention projects earn kudos for local Master Gardeners

Penn State Extension’s Westmoreland County contingent of Master Gardeners is planting more than just flower and vegetable seeds.

For many years, the group also has instilled in local schoolchildren awareness to steer clear of pesticides and other poisonous household products. It’s an effort that now has earned them plaudits from the Extension organization.

At this year’s Master Gardeners State Convention in Erie, the Westmoreland County volunteers collected two David Gibby Search for Excellence Awards — named for the man credited with starting the first Master Gardener program, in 1972 in Washington state. Each award came with a $250 cash prize to help support the work of the Master Gardeners.

They won in the Youth Programs category for their Poison Prevention Program, which they presented in February and March to nearly 2,200 first graders among 37 schools in the county.

They also were recognized in the Community Service category, for installing fencing to keep deer out of a daylily garden. The daylily plantings are part of a series of demonstration gardens open to the public next to Hempfield’s Donohoe Center.

For the first-grade presentations, 15 Master Gardeners split into teams of at least two members to complete school visits. They expanded their outreach by about a third from the previous academic year, adding 11 more schools to the schedule.

“We have one of the most robust Poison Prevention Programs,” said Deb Christopher, one of the Master Gardeners who has participated in the presentations.

For the adults whom their message reaches, the volunteers touch on alternative ways to deal with pests. “You don’t always need to use chemicals,” Christopher said.

Focusing on their main audience of young elementary students, the Master Gardeners teach ways to recognize containers of pesticides and other hazardous substances. The children are sent home with warning stickers featuring the green Mr. Yuk character that they’re encouraged to place on such items, with the help of a parent or guardian.

The poison presentations are a cooperative effort with the Extension’s Pesticide Education Program.

Shane Williams, a state coordinator with that program, said, “They go around the house and put Mr. Yuk stickers on things that could be dangerous and that they shouldn’t touch.”

The presentation draws attention to “signal” words — like Danger, Caution or Warning – that indicate a product should get a Mr. Yuk sticker, Williams said.

“You’ll find those words on laundry detergent, perfume and cologne – something that’s not for consumption,” he said.

Based on calls to poison control centers, Williams noted, about half of poisonings usually affect children age 7 or younger. “That’s why we target getting into the classrooms when they’re that age,” he said.

The Mr. Yuk character was created a little more than 50 years ago by Lawrenceville native Dr. Richard Moriarty, who was asked to start a local poison center.

Last year, the Master Gardeners used fishing line to erect a fence around the daylilies. “The deer would make a beeline for that garden,” said Christopher.

The line was strung at three heights around the 200-square-foot plot, topping out at 4 feet, according to fellow Master Gardener Mary Niezelski.

“Deer have poor visual acuity and will most likely not see the fishing line,” Niezelski wrote when nominating the fence project for an award. “They back away from the line when they bump into it because they can’t see it. They will not jump something that they can’t see, so nothing was hung from the fishing line.”

The fence had the desired effect, allowing the daylilies to thrive once more and reach their peak bloom last July. They rejoined 15 other variously themed gardens at the site.