Master Gardeners from throughout Texas get ‘Superstar’ training

SAN ANTONIO – Forty-two Master Gardeners representing more than 20 Texas counties recently attended the three-day State Master Gardener Texas Superstar Training held at the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service facility in San Antonio.

It was the first-ever statewide Master Gardener specialist training focused on the Texas Superstar program, said David Rodriguez, AgriLife Extension agent for horticulture in Bexar County who coordinated the training.

The Texas Superstar program is a collaboration of AgriLife Extension, Texas A&M AgriLife Research and the state’s commercial nursery industry, Rodriguez explained.

“This training was offered to and provided for Master Gardener volunteer horticulture program volunteers throughout Texas,” Rodriguez said. “It was designed to help provide them with knowledge and skills required to effectively support our statewide horticulture efforts.”

Instruction was provided by experts from AgriLife Extension and AgriLife Research, both agencies of the Texas A&M University System, along with experts on water conservation and the commercial nursery industry.

“To get the Texas Superstar designation, plants and trees undergo several years of extensive field trials and must be proven to be both beautiful and Texas-tough,” Rodriguez explained.

For the program, a variety of Texas Superstar program “classics” were set out for viewing, including fire bush, plumbago, John Fanick phlox, New Gold lantana, Pride of Barbados and hibiscus, along with Green Magic broccoli. Newer offerings included mandarin and satsuma citrus plants crossed with a more cold-hardy species for better additional performance in far North Texas.

“This is one of the most interesting and best presented Master Gardener programs I’ve ever been to,” said Janet Schaffer, a nine-year Master Gardener from McLennan County. “We’ve heard from some of the most knowledgeable speakers on the Texas Superstar Program and have gotten a lot of useful information.”

Schaffer, who is also director of the Carleen Bright Arboretum in Woodway, southwest of Waco, said she will apply the information she learned at the training to select new plant materials to expand the current Texas Superstar bed at the arboretum.

“We also do Master Gardener trainings of our own at the arboretum, so I’ll be able to pass along what I’ve learned here to other Master Gardeners, who will pass it along others interested in gardening and landscaping,” she said.

Among the first day’s presenters were Dr. Brent Pemberton, AgriLife Research horticulturist at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Overton and chair of the Texas Superstar Executive Board, Rodriguez and retired AgriLife Extension horticulturist Dr. Jerry Parsons. Other presenters included Mark Peterson, conservation project coordinator for the San Antonio Water System, and Mark Fanick of Fanick’s Garden Center.

“This is a unique opportunity for Master Gardeners from throughout the state to get advanced training on the amount of research and testing that goes into Texas Superstar selections,” Pemberton said. “We have multiple trial sites around the state where we look for plants that perform well and have unique features or qualities we feel will make them desirable to the consumer and successful in Texas landscapes.”

“The Texas Superstar program actually began in San Antonio 38 years ago with the study of   vegetables, then later incorporated ornamental plants and fruit trees,” explained Parsons, who has been involved with the program since its inception.

Parsons. who presented on the colorization of the Texas bluebonnet and on Texas Superstar vegetables, annuals and trees, said one of the best-known Texas Superstar vegetables is the ‘rodeo’ tomato, which is selected annually for sale during the San Antonio Livestock Show and Rodeo.

The second day’s presentations addressed Texas Superstar fruit plants for the landscape and patio, finding Texas Superstar plants, Superstar perennials, roses and water lilies, along with landscape considerations. Presenters included Dr. Larry Stein, AgriLife Extension horticulturist, Uvalde; Greg Grant, Stephen F. Austin State University gardens outreach, Nacogdoches; and Shane Stefek, president, Water Garden Gems, Marion.

Stein presented on Texas Superstar citrus, including the new Orange Frost and Arctic Frost varieties and the Natchez blackberry.

“Orange Frost and Arctic Frost are hardy satsuma hybrids,” he explained. “Orange Frost was the result of crossbreeding a tangerine changsha seed with a mandarin seedling. The Natchez blackberry produces a large, sweet fruit and, in fact, produces so much it needs to be thinned out from time to time. We’re also looking into varieties of pomegranates and pears to see if they too might be suitable for future designation as Texas Superstars.”

On the final day of training, attendees were given a tour of the San Antonio Botanical Garden, conducted by Rodriguez and Bexar County Master Gardener Pete Mendiola. Attendees walked the garden grounds, viewed established Texas Superstar plants and toured the Children’s Vegetable Garden — a collaborative youth gardening program of the botanical garden and AgriLife Extension.

“I have a half-acre yard and an additional 1½-acre property across the street from it,” said Duane Robinson, a six-year Master Gardener from Walker County while on the tour. “With what I’ve learned in this training, I’ll be able to make better decisions about the plants and trees I’ll use for my landscaping. Also, as a Master Gardener, I’m involved in a lot of plant sales for fundraising and this will help me decide what plants would be best to offer for my area.”

For more information about the Texas Superstar program, go to http://texassuperstar.com/.