Master Gardener Program

The Master Gardener program was created by Extension to meet an enormous increase in requests from home gardeners for horticultural information. This increase derives primarily from the urban and transient nature of modern American life. Fifty years ago, an Extension agent dealt with the questions of a few hundred farm families. In many regions, however, land that once constitued a single farm now encompasses several subdivisions, increasing the number of families an Extension office must serve by the hundreds. In addition, many of these new families are recent arrivals, and are unfamiliar with the grasses, shrubs, trees, diseases, etc. which comprise the microenvironment of their new urban or suburban home. They will often call their local Extension office for advice on what to plant and how to care for it.

Consequently, the Master Gardener Program was created in 1972 in the state of Washington. Since then, it has spread to over 45 states. Master Gardeners have become a vital part of Extension's ability to provide consumers with up-to-date, reliable knowledge so they can enjoy and protect the value of horticulture around their homes. Master Gardening has also become a fun and useful volunteer activity which has given its participants a sense of community spirit, accomplishment, and intellectual stimulation.

For more information or to find out when the next class is available, contact Kourtney at 580-327-2786.

Eight Woods County citizens just completed a Master Gardener Course on December 12, 2007. They are pictured below with their completion certificates.