More than 160 Master Gardener volunteers from the region converged on the Suffolk National Guard Armory on Friday for training.

Volunteers are required to take at least eight hours of continuing education a year. Friday’s event, hosted by the Suffolk Master Gardeners, gave them a range of information on topics such as container gardens, outdoor rooms and gardening during winter.

“We had a good turnout,” said Suffolk Master Gardener President Wanda Gerard.

Rita Randolph spoke to the gathering on container gardening and outdoor rooms.

“The front yard is for everyone else,” she said about outdoor rooms. “The back yard is for you.”

For container gardening, she encouraged the volunteers to get foliage first in their containers, then add flowers. But when it comes to picking the pot or flowers first, it doesn’t matter, she said.

“It’s a different way of looking at flowers,” she said. “If it doesn’t look great, put it down.”

Publicity chair Sandy Muller said Lancaster Farms and Bennett’s Creek Nursery donated plants to be raffled, which helped the group raise money for its projects. Smithfield Gardens also made a donation.

In upcoming news for the Master Gardeners, the group has a semi-annual plant sale coming up at the armory on May 4. For more information, visit www.suffolkmastergardener.org.