Master Gardeners - How to Be One or Get Help From One
By Lisa Graff
I’ve loved gardening for a long time but never had enough time for it until I retired. A couple years ago I discovered the Master Gardener (™) program run by the Oregon State University Extension service. I knew very little about it and what I discovered amazed me. Did you know that for any plant, garden, weed or pest problem you have, you can call, email, or visit the OSU Master Gardeners and get expert, research based advice? I have over an acre of English gardens, filled with roses, hydrangeas, delphiniums, dahlias, NW natives and oh so many more. My garden is one of the things I love best about living on Skyline - the space to grow.
A year ago, I took the Master Gardener course. This involves seven weeks of in person training one day per week, about 20 hours of online coursework, four hours of hands-on workshops and 56 hours of volunteer service your first year and 20 hours volunteer work per year afterwards (plus at least 10 hours of continuing education units). That is what the Master Gardener program is all about - volunteering. It was started in the 1970’s at the Washington State University Extension Service. They were focused on helping commercial agriculture and farms but were getting high demand from residential gardeners that wanted help, too. A program was put together to train volunteers who loved gardening and were interested in learning more, taking classes, and using their newfound knowledge to help residential gardeners. Today the Master Gardener program is across the United States and in Oregon alone there are about 3000 active Master Gardeners.
After several months of training and over 100 hours of volunteering so far, I don’t know that I really feel I am a “Master” gardener - still so much to learn. However, I learned an incredible amount over a diverse set of topics from truly talented instructors. Those who teach the Master Gardener courses include OSU horticulture professors, industry experts, and gardeners with decades of experience. The course material is very well done and a great resource after the class. Most of all, I learned where and how to find answers to my own and other’s garden questions from research-based sources that provide a variety of solutions including those with least impact to the environment and are sustainable gardening practices.
Whether you are interested in becoming a Master Gardener or simply want to make use of this great free resource to help you grow more successfully in your own garden, I hope you give it a try and visit or call an OSU Master Gardener education center. I belong to the Washington County Master Gardener Association and each county has their own group which staffs the phone clinic, booths in farmers markets, a booth at the zoo, and many others. We also teach gardening classes on topics including veggie gardens, perennials for pollinators, pruning, soil health, NW native plants, diagnosing pest problems and many more at area Education Gardens.
Come meet some Master Gardeners and get a sneak peek at the all new Education Garden going in at PCC Rock Creek Campus. The grand opening is later this spring but get an advance look on April 27 between 8am-2pm at the Washington County Master Gardener Gardenfest Plant Sale. We’ll have 1000’s of plants expertly selected for the Pacific Northwest for sale. There will be tours of the new Education Garden, garden classes, books and tools for sale, activities for kids, and a Master Gardener booth for questions.
For more information on our plant sale or all things Washington County Master Gardener check out the website at www.washingtoncountymastergardener.org. You can also explore what Multnomah and Clackamas County have to offer, with their classes, plant sales, and volunteer activities at their websites: www.multnomahmastergardeners.org and clackamascountymastergardener.org.
(RR 04/19)
I’ve loved gardening for a long time but never had enough time for it until I retired. A couple years ago I discovered the Master Gardener (™) program run by the Oregon State University Extension service. I knew very little about it and what I discovered amazed me. Did you know that for any plant, garden, weed or pest problem you have, you can call, email, or visit the OSU Master Gardeners and get expert, research based advice? I have over an acre of English gardens, filled with roses, hydrangeas, delphiniums, dahlias, NW natives and oh so many more. My garden is one of the things I love best about living on Skyline - the space to grow.
A year ago, I took the Master Gardener course. This involves seven weeks of in person training one day per week, about 20 hours of online coursework, four hours of hands-on workshops and 56 hours of volunteer service your first year and 20 hours volunteer work per year afterwards (plus at least 10 hours of continuing education units). That is what the Master Gardener program is all about - volunteering. It was started in the 1970’s at the Washington State University Extension Service. They were focused on helping commercial agriculture and farms but were getting high demand from residential gardeners that wanted help, too. A program was put together to train volunteers who loved gardening and were interested in learning more, taking classes, and using their newfound knowledge to help residential gardeners. Today the Master Gardener program is across the United States and in Oregon alone there are about 3000 active Master Gardeners.
After several months of training and over 100 hours of volunteering so far, I don’t know that I really feel I am a “Master” gardener - still so much to learn. However, I learned an incredible amount over a diverse set of topics from truly talented instructors. Those who teach the Master Gardener courses include OSU horticulture professors, industry experts, and gardeners with decades of experience. The course material is very well done and a great resource after the class. Most of all, I learned where and how to find answers to my own and other’s garden questions from research-based sources that provide a variety of solutions including those with least impact to the environment and are sustainable gardening practices.
Whether you are interested in becoming a Master Gardener or simply want to make use of this great free resource to help you grow more successfully in your own garden, I hope you give it a try and visit or call an OSU Master Gardener education center. I belong to the Washington County Master Gardener Association and each county has their own group which staffs the phone clinic, booths in farmers markets, a booth at the zoo, and many others. We also teach gardening classes on topics including veggie gardens, perennials for pollinators, pruning, soil health, NW native plants, diagnosing pest problems and many more at area Education Gardens.
Come meet some Master Gardeners and get a sneak peek at the all new Education Garden going in at PCC Rock Creek Campus. The grand opening is later this spring but get an advance look on April 27 between 8am-2pm at the Washington County Master Gardener Gardenfest Plant Sale. We’ll have 1000’s of plants expertly selected for the Pacific Northwest for sale. There will be tours of the new Education Garden, garden classes, books and tools for sale, activities for kids, and a Master Gardener booth for questions.
For more information on our plant sale or all things Washington County Master Gardener check out the website at www.washingtoncountymastergardener.org. You can also explore what Multnomah and Clackamas County have to offer, with their classes, plant sales, and volunteer activities at their websites: www.multnomahmastergardeners.org and clackamascountymastergardener.org.
(RR 04/19)