Do you want to dig a little deeper in your knowledge of gardening? Do you want to pass along that information and encourage others to garden too? If you answered yes, the Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Program might be just for you.
Master Gardener Volunteers love to learn and enjoy being around people with the same plant passion.
There are two components to the Master Gardener Volunteer program – an educational part that consists of 50 hours of training on a variety of subjects that are plant based. For basic botany, soils, insects and plant pathology; to trees, shrubs, fruits and vegetables; this program has engaged seasoned gardeners (those that have been around plants for a long time) to what we call sprouts (newer gardeners).
The second portion of the program includes a volunteer commitment to share the knowledge with others in their community including: helping others with questions that they have related to plants, encourage others to enjoy horticulture at local parks and their own backyard, teach classes, be involved with citizen science projects in the community, assist with demonstration gardens, serve on tree commissions in our own community, and more.
The program will be a combination on online learning, fun and hands-on labs, and small group activities as allowed and participants feel comfortable with in light of our current situation.
Volunteers will need to complete a background check as part of the application process. To learn more about the program and download an application, check out the OSU Extension website in Lucas County at: https://lucas.osu.edu/program-areas/master-gardener-volunteers or at https://lucas.osu.edu and click on Master Gardener Volunteers on the left-side of the screen.
There is a cost of $235 to cover the educational materials, handouts, and training. If you have additional questions, or would like to talk to someone about the program, you can reach out to Amy Stone at stone.91@osu.edu or 419.574.0986.
The deadline for applications on Friday, January 8 and classes will begin in February 2021.