Program Impacts
Master Gardener Program
- December 2025 – 8 Master Gardener Interns received their certification.
- January 2024 – 9 new Master Gardener Interns entered the program.
- Total number of Master Gardeners (certified and interns): 27
- Estimated: 828.50 Volunteer Hours
- Estimated: 382.75 Continuing Education Hours
Heritage Park Garden Question & Answer Sessions - Program runs from May through October of each year. UNR Extension Master Gardener Program has partnered with Main Street Gardnerville Heritage Park Garden volunteers to bring a 1-hour long educational program each week during the growing season about horticulture. Also provide technical support to the Main Street Gardnerville Heritage Park Gardens committee on plant selections, placement and maintenance.
- 110 participants
- 15 classes
Dangberg Historic Home Ranch Garden Talks – From April through October, educational signs regularly placed in garden and weekly maintenance of Gertrude’s Garden.
- Gertrude’s Garden Talks: 15 participants
- Fall Harvest Festival – 4-H & Master Gardener Collaboration
- 125 participants
- Three 4-H youth programs presented live demonstrations in sheep shearing, goat milking, and lasagna gardening
- All 4-H clubs attended with additional booths sharing club information, a petting zoo, and information on shooting sports.
- Local producers attended to encourage public to purchase local food and show what’s available. Also provided opportunities for engagement and included the Extension mobile meat harvesting trailer.
Seed Swap - The fourth annual Douglas County Seed Swap was hosted on January 25, 2025.
- 131 participants
- 100 + fact sheets provided
- Millions of seeds supplied
Educational Outreach – UNR Extension Master Gardeners hosted two educational outreach events for the Douglas County community with 22 participants each.
- Winter sowing class demonstrated how to grow seeds in small milk jug greenhouses.
- Participated in the Douglas County Historical Society Heritage Ag Days with a booth promoting the Master Gardener program.
Native Plant Sale – May 17, 2025. UNR Extension Master Gardeners provided a Native/Adaptive Native Plant Sale at The Nature Conservancy – River Fork Ranch. Plants were sourced from The Washoe Tree Nursery & Nevada’s Own, as there isn’t a plant nursery in the area. In preparation for this sale, a 3-part virtual education series was offered for community members to learn more about each plant.
- Estimated 250 in attendance
- 1500 plants sold
- 100 fact sheets were provided
Master Gardener Newsletter – UNR Extension Master Gardeners of Douglas County put out quarterly newsletters to the public for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Each quarter had a common theme, for example, water conservation. The average reach of these newsletters was 203 community members.
Junior Master Gardener Program – This program provides hands-on learning experiences that promote a love of gardening, develop an appreciation for the environment and cultivate the mind. Located at Heritage Park Garden Children’s Garden.
Horticulture
Monthly Email – Jessica Gardner, UNR Extension Horticulture Outreach Coordinator, organizes a monthly email for the public to share horticulture programming and resources to the community with an average reach of 203 community members.
Vegetable Gardening Talk – Douglas County Public Library – Jessica Gardner, Horticulture Outreach Coordinator, provided an educational hour on vegetable gardening that included topics such as seed-saving, vegetable gardening and seed starting.
Agricultural Programs
Apiculture (Beekeeping) Program
- Community Club for European Honey Beekeepers of Carson Valley
- 29 active members
- 4 hives managed for educational purposes
- Pollinator Week – 4TH annual Pollinator Week celebration.
- 11 youth entered the Pollinator Logo contest
- 325 tickets sold to the first annual Pollinator Garden Tour, with follow-up survey results stating:
- 85% of respondents said they increased their knowledge of pollinator protection
- 96% of respondents said they intend to plant additional pollinator plants in their yards
- 82% of respondents said they intend to use less pesticides in their yards
- Doubled the overall number of pollinator gardens
- Hosted a Pollinator Movie Night at Douglas County Public Library
- Bee and Garden Conference – March 2025 – UNR Extension Risk Management Grant hosted a Bee & Garden Conference in Douglas County at the Carson Valley Inn
- Participants - 106
- Douglas County Presenters:
- Jessica Gardner, Horticulture Outreach Coordinator
- Suzanne Miladen – UNR Extension Master Gardener of Douglas County
Beginning Farmers & Ranchers – program offers beginning farmers and ranchers increased knowledge in business planning, production, and farm management that can lead to continued pursuit of certification to launch operations. Participants also learn about Nevada water law, meat quality & processing, plant & soil health, value-added products, and partner development & funding.
- June 7th tour of Douglas County Small Producers - 3 attendees from Douglas County
Natural Resources
Living With Fire
The Living With Fire Program (LWF) bridges the gap between science and action, we convene communities and stakeholders to address the challenges of wildfire. Through trusted partnerships, we created science-based education and outreach programs that equitably address emerging social and ecological needs.
Between July 2024 and June 2025, Living With Fire advanced wildfire preparedness and education across Douglas County through a range of outreach and partnership efforts. Staff supported youth education by meeting with Whittell High School about developing a fire science program, presenting at the Nevada Association of CTE Annual Conference, and engaging with Nevada agriculture science teachers. Living With Fire also connected with residents at the Sheridan Volunteer Fire Department fundraiser, partnered with Douglas County Extension and CERT to distribute preparedness resources, and engaged community members at the Douglas County Fall Festival.
To further raise awareness, Living With Fire coordinated a community highlight video featuring East Fork Fire volunteers and, in May 2025, presented at a Saratoga Springs community meeting.
Altogether, LWF participated in seven community events reaching 130 direct contacts in Douglas County.
Washoe Intentional Fire Training - From September 30 to October 4, 2024, Living With Fire partnered with the Washoe Tribe of California and Nevada to plan and host the inaugural Washoe Intentional Fire Training at the UNR 4-H Camp in Lake Tahoe. This training strengthened the workforce, expanded land stewardship opportunities within the Tribe’s homelands, and laid the groundwork for reintroducing cultural fire and participating in future prescribed burns. Combining NWCG basic firefighting skills with eco-cultural teachings rooted in Washoe traditions, the event brought together 22 participants, primarily Washoe Tribe members, for hands-on exercises, cultural learning, and partnership-building.
4-H Youth Development
By coupling positive adult relationships with real-world learning experiences and leadership opportunities, 4-H Youth Development allows youth to explore new worlds and gain knowledge while also growing their confidence, civic engagement, leadership skills, and sense of responsibility.
Douglas County 4-H has continued to grow existing 4-H Clubs, while offering new 4-H learning opportunities by delivering Short Term Special Interest (SPIN) Clubs throughout the year and over summer. Douglas County Quilters Guild and the Kiwanis Club of Carson Valley benefited five 4-H youth by assisting with camp scholarships to the Northern Area 4-H Camp at Lake Tahoe.
Douglas County Parks and Recreation greatly supported our 4-H members and their families by providing event venues for National Junior Honor Society official weigh-ins, Equestrian and Livestock club meetings, and Shooting club safety trainings free of charge.
We would like to highlight the partnership with the Douglas County Community Center for letting our baking clubs use their kitchen and their ceramics room for our sewing clubs. We would also like to thank them for their allowance to let us hold our annual 4-H Information Night and our annual Awards Night.
Our club offerings, youth numbers and overall interest in participating in 4-H increased by 3.4% from last year.
2024-2025 4-H Enrollment and Participation Numbers
Youth Members: 184
Adult and Teen Volunteers: 26
4-H Clubs Offered
Advanced Baking
Cloverbuds
Food Preservation SPIN Club
Home Means Nevada Club
Horse/Horseless Club
International Cooking Club
Junior Master Gardeners
Kitchen Science SPIN Club
Livestock Club (Swine, Poultry, Sheep)
Rabbit Club
Robotics SPIN Club
Sewing Club
Shooting Sports Club
Speaking with Confidence
Yarn Arts SPIN Club
January is the officially recognized Radon Action Month by the University of Nevada, Reno Extension’s Radon Program, though that also extends into February. Radon is an odorless, tasteless, and colorless radioactive gas that, at high levels, raises the risk of lung cancer. A large portion of Douglas County has an elevated risk of radon, so it’s important to test homes, which is the first step in preventing radon-caused illnesses. Free test kits were provided during the months of January and February. Test kits and educational materials are available to the public in the Douglas County office year-round.
The Nevada Economic Assessment Project (NEAP) is a statewide program with the mission to develop and maintain an extensive data archive with timely, meaningful, and consistent characteristics and a set of analytical tools used to provide Nevada’s communities with research and analysis of emerging issues through outreach and engagement.
The full catalog of surveys and reports can be found here.
