WSU Extension Stevens County Newsletter

Ready or Not… Spring is Springing

Picture of a grouping of snowdrop flowers emerging from the ground and starting to open.

In This Issue

Master Gardeners

Answer/Plant Clinic – opens March 12th!
“From the Ground Up” Gardening Workshop – April 11th, Registration is OPEN!!

Agriculture

Conservation District Tree Sale, 50th Anniversary! – Mar 27-28

Forestry

Loggers Workshop – March 30th, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Other Events & Resources

Master Gardener Answer/Plant Clinic OPENS March 12th!

Search our Helpful References

Weeds to Watch Out For
Insects to Watch Out For
Beneficial Insects (like the ladybug below)

Photo collage of adult ladybug and a ladybug larva — Ladybug adult eating aphids on a flower bud and ladybug larva on a leaf.

Bring your Questions! Plant or Insect Identification, Plant Diagnosis

What’s that creepy-looking bug?!

What’s eating my apple tree?!

Why does my lawn have dead spots?!

Why are my tomato plants “warped”?!

Ask a Master Gardener

We LOVE researching and identifying things! The Master Gardeners will answer emails, phone calls, and in-person questions twice a week starting Thursday, March 12th.

Mondays, 9:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Thursdays, 1:00 – 3:00 pm

Help us to help you faster! => fill out one of the forms on the Ask a Master Gardener webpage.

REGISTRATION OPEN! April 11th “From the Ground Up” Gardening Workshop

We have an incredible array of presenters and topics for the 2026 “From the Ground Up” Gardening Workshop! You won’t want to miss this day of learning and information.

What You’ll Learn

Fruit Trees and Pruning
Basic Biochar
Compost & Vegetable Garden Maintenance
Eating Between the Rows
Firewise Landscaping
Go Native! The Why, What, and How of our Native Plants
Growing Mushrooms at Home
Growing Veggies Year-round in NE WA
How Fungi Help Your Garden
Hydroponics for Beginners
More Trees, Please: The Miyawaki Method
Pollinators and Pesticides
Raisin’ Cane: Grape Care in NE WA
Strategies for Control of Noxious Weeds
Waterwise Gardening

Stevens County Extension Master Gardeners Present: "From the Ground Up" Gardening Workshop

FULL Schedule and Speaker Details

For more information about Master Gardener programs offered by WSU Extension in Stevens County, visit our website: Gardening | Stevens County, email: Linda Teller or call 509-684-2588

Stevens County Conservation District Annual Tree Sale – 50th Anniversary!

Workshop Details

When: Friday and Saturday, March 27 & 28, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (both days)
Where: Stevens County Conservation District office: 232 Williams Lake Rd, Colville, WA
Cost: Attendance is FREE!
Contact: 509-684-7579 or sccd@stevenscd.org

Workshop Schedule – Friday and Saturday

10 AM – Tree Pruning and Tool Care
11 AM – Planting: How-to for plugs and bare roots
01 PM – Soil Blocking: Facts and Demo
02 PM – Choosing the right plant for the right place

Thanks to our donors, we’ll have mulch and compost available to participants on a first-come, first-served basis to support your planting projects!

Please bring your own bags and/or 5-gallon buckets!

For information about our Agriculture program, visit our website: Agriculture | Stevens County or contact Kathryn Hoogheem, 509-684-2588

38th Loggers Workshop

The Loggers Workshop promotes professionalism and lifelong learning to ensure our forests remain healthy, productive, safe, and sustainable for future generations. The course runs from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the NE WA Ag and Trade Center in Colville. The fee is $20 per person and includes lunch. Participants can earn 8 Accredited Logger and Society of American Foresters continuing education credits. The agenda covers forest management, certification, riparian forest management, workforce development, big game populations and health, and updates on the DNR online forest practice application, Good Neighbor Authority, and Sustainable Forestry Initiative. Registration is available via Eventbrite and mail.

For registration, please contact Linda Teller at the WSU Stevens County Extension office located at 986 South Main, Ste. D, Colville, WA 99114, or call 509-684-2588.

Date: Monday, March 30th
Time: 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (doors open at 7:15 a.m.)
Where: Ag & Trade Center, NE WA Fairgrounds
Address: 317 W Astor Ave, Colville
Cost: $20 per person (includes lunch)

Log crane next to a pile of cut timber logs stacked against a snowy hillside

Picture of a logged and cleared road through a forest on a snowy hillside.

Time	Description
8:00—8:15	Welcome & Value of Demonstration Forests
8:15—9:45	State of the Forest: What's Happening Around the Woods
9:45—10:15	BREAK
10:15—11:15	State of the Forest: What's Happening Around the Woods (continued)
11:15—12:00	Workforce Development
12:00—1:00	Lunch & Public Issues Presentation
1:00—1:30	Online Forest Practices Application
1:30—2:30	Big Game Populations and Health
2:30—2:45	BREAK
2:45—3:15	Good Neighbor Authority
3:15—4:15	Sustainable Forestry Initiative® and Washington State SFI Implementation Committee Update
4:15—4:30	Questions/Comments/Adjourn