What IS a "Master Gardener"???

It was years ago when I first heard the modern term: Master Carpenter.  It was on a public broadcasting show and I didn't give it much thought since the person they were describing was the only expert they consulted for carpentry advice. Master, Schmaster - as long as the advice works, who cares?

Fast forward to the 21st Century and here I am,  a Master Gardener. Who knew, back in 1978, that I'd be considered a Master of anything! Certainly not me, the jack (or jill, actually) of all trades who's never been the master of anything.

Then I heard about the Master Gardener program, begun in 1973 in the Seattle area. Horticulture agents working in the Cooperative Extension Service offices set up by land-grant universities, were finding their time being filled with questions from homeowners in addition to the farmers they were intended to help. It was a surprising phenomenon since gardening had always been a small hobby for homeowners who just needed to keep their properties looking good. Suddenly, it seemed, everyone wanted to grow vegetables to eat, flowers for bouquets, herbs for more creative cooking, and shade trees to cool their homes in summer.

The Horticulture Agents across the country were overwhelmed! People wanted their expertise and, being horticulture experts, they wanted to help everyone who asked. But how?

Brilliant answer: train volunteers who love gardening and make them available for free to answer the needs of the gardening public. Ta-Dah! The Master Gardener Program was begun.

There are now approximately 95,000 Master Gardeners in the US and Canada, providing 5 million volunteer hours to their communities every year. Amazing, huh?


We're not all the same, of course. The training is done locally with a variety of educators. Here in Central Oregon, our program uses many Oregon State University professors to teach new Master Gardeners the bare bones of Entomology, Sustainable Gardening, Integrated Pest Management, Soils, Pest and Plant I.D., Weeds, Wildlife, Trees, and more. Since the program is only 60 hours of classes, we barely skim the surface of Horticulture but we learn how to find the answers to most questions, even if it takes a few hours or days of research.

Did I say it's free?  The program is supported by OSU which, of course, is tax supported. Everyone who calls, visits or emails the Extension Service with a question or problem gets their answer without any hassle or expense. How cool is that?

Sometimes you may hear that the Master Gardeners are asking for donations - that's usually when we need to pay for materials for plants we've grown or for classes we've taught.  We hope to cover our costs of educating the public without using the Extension Service's limited budget. Our mission statement is Teach Support Promote (and have some fun doing it).

If you're interested in joining the program, the OSU Extension website has all the details: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/mg/.