MASTER GARDENER PROGRAM - SUCCESSES AND LESSONS LEARNED FROM TWO DIFFERENT COUNTIES IN OHIO
Horticulture & Turfgrass
Gary Gao
Professor and Extension Specialist
Ohio State University South Centers
Piketon
Abstract
Master gardener program can be a wonderful trained volunteer program. Master gardener interns and certified master gardeners can help extension agents/educators ask many questions from homeowners and gardeners. They can also conduct community outreach programs for the Extension Service. Master gardener volunteers can make us look really good. At the same time, the daily management of this program can consumer a lot of time. Volunteer retention can be a big challenge. I have coordinated master gardener programs in two different counties in Ohio. In Clermont County, I started the program in 1995 and have trained many volunteers over the years. In 2006, I transferred to Delaware County and took over an existing program. Things that worked for me are interviewing master gardener applicants, offering a $50 rebate for master gardeners interns after they compete their 50 hours of training, forming an association, keeping a high profile in the community, injecting new ideas when necessary, and giving master gardeners more ownership of the program. The master gardener program in Delaware County has about 95 members while the program in Clermont County had about 50. How big is big enough? Should the training be offered in evenings or weekends? This session will be more of a sharing session. Hopefully, others will bring good ideas and share lessons learned.
Authors: Gao, G.
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Gao, G. Extension Educator And Associate Professor, Ohio State University Extension, Ohio, 43015