Three newly trained Master Gardeners are putting their new knowledge to work in helping to restore Higbie Gardens in Albert Lea.

Les Schroader, Audrey Shepard and Marge Murtaugh, all members of the Shades of Jade Regional Garden Club, completed the classwork provided by the Iowa Master Gardener Program this spring. They’re now putting in their required 50 hours of community service on Higbie Gardens, a project of the garden club.

Shepard said the Master Gardener program was something she’s always been interested in. Murtaugh said she’s always had a love of flowers, and was excited about the possibility of expanding on that. And Schroader said he’s always looking for new opportunities to learn.

&uot;Any time you can learn something new, you should go for it,&uot; Schroader said. &uot;You never know too much; there’s always more to learn.&uot;

There were 48 hours of classwork involved with the program, where the three learned about trees, shrubs, landscaping, insects and plant diseases. While they traveled to Mason City for their classes, they were connected to 17 or 18 other sites via satellite.

There was also a whole day of lab work at Iowa State University, which focused on entomology, plant pathology, diseased leaves and stems and soil testing, and included a tour of the arboretum and a lecture on trees.

&uot;It was really very interesting,&uot; Murtaugh said.

Perhaps most importantly, the gardeners learned where to find sources of information, since Master Gardeners traditionally make themselves available to answer other gardeners’ questions. They received a manual filled with lots of information, as well as a list of references and Web sites which can help.

The Master Gardeners are also required to get an additional 10 hours of study in each year, they said.

Master Gardeners’ projects should promote volunteerism and beautification, the trio said.

&uot;I think we fit into that with Higbie Gardens,&uot; Shepard said.

Higbie Gardens is undergoing what Schroader calls &uot;reinvention.&uot; The ground was so low there that the tulips rotted and the irises deteriorated. So the Shades of Jade Regional Garden Club, which has undertaken restoring the gardens as a three-year project, decided to create some raised berms to prevent more rotting, Schroader said.

&uot;We’re trying for a lot of color on the berms,&uot; he added.

In addition, the whole garden was designed with the shrubs that were already there, but in many cases, they were moved to another location so the garden, as people pass it from Highway 13, is low in the front and high in the back.

The city parks department dug up the front of the grounds for the club, whose members are planting the area in geometric shapes. Volunteers from the Albert Lea Lions Club also helped spread wood chips in the garden. The sign has been framed with shrubs, and a triangular bed of hosta has been planted under the trees.

Another raised bed has been created as a children’s garden in memory of garden club member Mary Ann Hopper. Children from the St. John’s site of the Albert Lea Community Child Care Center helped to plant dahlias there last week.

Other plants in the children’s garden include asters, lamb’s ear, varieties known to attract butterflies and things that feel good and smell good, Schroader said.