Sharon Yiesla is a horticulturist with University of Illinois Extension. She provides leadership in horticulture programs for Lake County. Yiesla received a B.S. in horticulture from Purdue University and an M.S. in horticulture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has authored a book entitled Shade Trees for the Central and Northern United States and Canada.

Yiesla joined Extension in Lake County in 1993. Prior to that, she was a horticulture specialist for the Cooperative Extension Service in Missouri.

Master Gardener Program

The Master Gardener Program began in the 1970s as a means of helping Extension offices meet the high volume of requests for information related to home horticulture. Master Gardeners are volunteers who receive training in home horticulture during the winter and early spring (mid-January to early April). When training is completed, the volunteers donate time to the Extension horticulture program area. Master Gardeners are involved in a number of activities, including answering gardening questions for homeowners, giving slide presentations to interested groups, maintaining Extension demonstration gardens, and working with youths and older adults.

Home Horticulture

In an area growing as rapidly as Lake County, there is a great need for horticultural information. Extension offers this information through educational programs and workshops, the bimonthly Home Hort Hints newsletter, a telephone consultation service, and office visits.

Worm Composting

Worms can be used to compost food waste (fruit and vegetable scraps) indoors. This program can be used to teach youth about biology, recycling/waste reduction, and the environment. It's a great hands-on classroom project. Worm composting can be presented as a live demonstration for small groups or as a train-the-trainer slide presentation for larger groups.