With a new cohort of Master Gardener Volunteers beginning to serve their community, we’d like to introduce them (AND YOU!) to the group of MGVs who have sustained this program for the last several years. Meet Nancy Alessi, who hosted the MGVs for a garden tour in mid June of last year. Enjoy the photos from that inspiring visit!
What is your background and how did you become a gardener?
You might call me a ‘late bloomer’ since I didn’t begin to garden until my mid-twenties. Growing up in Philadelphia, I didn’t have the opportunity to garden, though I did have the great fortune to live across from Pennypack Park, an amazing sanctuary of towering mature forests, wildlife and wetlands in the midst of the city. A fascination with nature nurtured from a young age propelled me to study biology in college. I focused on zoology, not having yet discovered my passion for botany.
As newlyweds my late husband and I yearned to escape the city and find a refuge. Four decades ago, we purchased 50 woodland acres and an abandoned, ‘rustic’ log cabin way back in the woods in Russell, NY. With enthusiasm we set about growing our own food, raising goats to produce milk, and training 2 bull calves to become draft animals. Our enthusiasm was only exceeded by our lack of experience! And so began my gardening life in earnest. We scoured books and quizzed new friends and neighbors with our many questions. No internet back then, and there were as many different answers as there were questions, so we learned to observe and experiment on our own and seek counsel from experienced gardeners. Only once did I make the mistake of planting a massive bed of zucchini!
What benefits do you reap from gardening?
For me, gardening has been tremendously rewarding— my flower garden is a thoroughly relaxing and absorbing artistic outlet, some might say obsession! My bountiful vegetable garden and large blueberry patch provide both me and my friends with healthy, delicious food. Not much can beat the pleasure of those first sunny days of spring when the sun actually warms my back, the quiet of winter gives way to bird song and everything is possible.
In what ways to you connect with community members around gardening?
As a Master Gardener Volunteer, I enjoy encouraging new gardeners to experiment and helping them decipher the overwhelming avalanche of sometimes contradictory information on the internet. I’ve answered inquiries via the Cornell Cooperative Extension “Growline” and respond to many questions from friends and neighbors. I find home visits to consult with homeowners on gardening issues and choices especially rewarding. 
A quilt garden composed of annual flowers, envisioned by a fellow master gardener, was a fun project to help plant and nurture. Last spring I was delighted to be a part of establishing a new pollinator garden at the Extension Learning Farm to use as a demonstration garden for teaching children and adults. I love sharing my abundant flower garden and was able to supply many of the plants for the new garden from my own backyard. I’ve been delving into the 2023 seed catalogs and dreaming of the coming growing season.
To contact our county’s Growline anytime, email SLCgrowline@gmail.com or call 315-379-9192 x239 and a Master Gardener Volunteer will be happy to help you.