Gallatin County

Gallatin County, located between the Bridger Mountains and the Spanish Peaks, is home to Montana State University. It has become one of the most rapidly growing counties in Montana, with the population skyrocketing to approximately 128,000 residents and more than 58,500 living within the Bozeman city limits. Gallatin County attracts people from all over to enjoy winter sports, summer recreation activities, MSU sporting events and community hospitality. As part of Montana State University and with support from the Gallatin County Government, the Gallatin County MSU Extension office is dedicated to meeting the needs of their ever-changing community by providing unbiased, research-based resources in the areas of agriculture, natural resources, horticulture, and 4-H youth development.

 

Keeping school gardens going during summer break

School gardens have been shown to provide numerous benefits, including improving eating habits, increasing physical activity and connecting children to nature and their food system. However, in Montana, most of the growing season happens while students are on summer break, so it can be difficult to maintain school gardens. Gallatin County MSU Extension partnered with Gallatin Valley Farm to School with a grant from the Gallatin Gardeners Club to create a new program and help solve the problem. The project helps empower schools and their families to maintain gardens during the summer.

MSU Extension agent Elizabeth D’Imperio developed and led two one-hour family-friendly gardening classes for each school. Classes were interactive, with hands-on activities that covered plant physiology, soil nutrition, garden planning and plant care. The seeds and plants that each school was interested in growing were provided through the program. D’Imperio helped on planting days and with an end-of-season cleanup day pizza party. Each school was paired with a Master Gardener to answer questions and support participating families throughout the summer.

The first year included collaboration with two schools that already had established school gardens. Participation varied between schools, but more than 10 families attended at least one class and helped with workdays. Most importantly, the gardens thrived through the summer months, producing a range of vegetables, including carrots, tomatoes, peas and squash, which the children were able to harvest and learn about. 

Caption: Irving School Garden –Garden Boxes at the end of August 

Credit: Elizabeth D'Imperio, Gallatin County MSU Extension Agent

Ag News and Brews Comes to Gallatin County

The Ag News and Brews program has found success in Gallatin County in reinvigorating agriculture education. MSU Extension partnered with the Gallatin Conservation District and with three local businesses, including a brewery, restaurant and distillery, to host events.

Topics covered regenerative agriculture, financial resources for producers, and invasive weed identification and management for approximately 55 participants. MSU Extension also provided pesticide education credits for nearly 30 individuals at the invasive weed presentation by MSU Extension agent Elizabeth D’Imperio and Gallatin County Weed District assistant coordinator Danielle Jones.

These events delivered educational opportunities for the local agricultural community and provided time to network and support local businesses.

Caption: Ag News and Brews Weed ID and Management Presentation

Credit: Sydney Lyons, Gallatin Conservation District

Always Growing

The 2023-2024 Gallatin County 4-H Year was one for the books. Gallatin County 4-H served 576 youth (ages 5-18), and 135 certified adult volunteers led more than 40 skill-based projects and 14 Community Clubs. The year began with two New 4-H Family Info Nights, with more than 150 people attending to learn about joining 4-H.

Our growing community is catching wind of what our program can provide for youth to develop new skills. New and invigorating project options were added, including bringing back the Robotics Project with a new spin. This gave youth the opportunity to learn about the basics of coding, 3D printing, and designing and building microcontrollers. We added a Cat Project, led by a local small animal veterinarian, which gave youth with household pets the opportunity to participate in an animal project. We even had a Cat Show at the 2024 Fair.

The Teen Leadership program was revamped, and 22 new teens joined to develop their leadership skills and serve the local program in a larger capacity. Teen Leaders engaged in planning and teaching Animal Quality Assurance, stations at Winter and Spring youth workshops, and various project and/or Club Meetings to share their experiences and knowledge with younger members.

Gallatin County teens had a strong presence at every Montana 4-H State event this year, including Fall Leadership Training, Rec Lab, Pre-Congress and State 4-H Congress. Our enthusiastic group of 25 teen 4-H Camp Counselors hosted our largest county 4-H Summer Camp yet, with 85 campers in attendance. Attendees engaged in a hands-on sea creature dissection, map-making, creating their own message in a bottle and a pirate jeopardy game. 

Caption: 2024 Gallatin County 4-H Camp Attendees

Credit: Yellowstone Alliance Adventure Staff

Connecting to our Community

In 4-H, we strive to provide opportunities for adult volunteers to grow and develop their skills. MSU Extension 4-H Agent, Molly Yurdana and 4-H Program Manager Colyn Wiening tackled a lengthy to-do list to improve program function, procedures, training opportunities and project offerings.

With new community partnerships, Gallatin 4-H addressed some high-priority program needs in 2023-2024. The Gallatin County 4-H Leaders Council believes CPR is a valuable life skill and is especially beneficial to 4-H personnel as they all work closely with youth. Gallatin 4-H teamed with Central Valley Fire District (CVFD) and Manhattan Fire Department on two occasions to offer CPR certification to 4-H volunteers and 4-H teen Camp Counselors. Over the last year, 17 volunteers and 24 camp counselors have been certified.

4-H offers opportunities and experiences that shape youth into their full, authentic selves, enabling them with skills for the future. This year, 4-H youth showcased those skills in Gallatin County communities through partnerships with various local businesses and organizations.

Under new leadership, the Photography Project partnered with a local cafe to debut its first Community Photo Show, which showcased over 70 youth photos during the month of June. Youth members of the Cat Project partnered with Heart of the Valley to hand-make toys for shelter cats, and youth in the Knitting/Crochet project spent time once a month at The Springs assisted living facility in Bozeman to teach senior residents how to knit and crochet. The Manhattan Clever Clovers and Dry Creek Teens Clubs adopted a portion of road for a highway cleanup project, and youth in the Poultry Project donated extra market birds through the Montana Veterans Meat Locker to benefit and feed local veterans. Gallatin County 4-H is thankful to have a community that is so supportive and generous to 4-H and for youth to be able to return the favor and learn the impact of serving others.

Caption: Gallatin 4-H volunteers at CPR training with Central Valley Fire Distrcit

Credit: Kelly Pavlik, 4-H Volunteer

Contact

903 N. Black Ave
Bozeman, MT 59715
406-582-3280
https://www.montana.edu/extension/gallatin/