Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 16, 1995 TAG: 9511160015
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-8 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: JOE HUNNINGS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Master gardeners are partners with Cooperative Extension and serve as volunteer educators for their communities. They form an important link between Virginia Tech, Virginia State University and the public by instructing others on how to use horticulture to improve the environment. Participants receive 50 hours of intensive horticulture training and in exchange, donate 50 hours to their communities through Cooperative Extension programs.
In the New River Valley, Master gardeners conduct plant clinics. They set up the clinic in an accessible location and invite the public to bring in samples of insects and sick plants for identification. They also establish and staff hot lines in the Extension office to answer questions on topics ranging from lawn care to vegetable production, using the training they received and the Cooperative Extension Pest Management Guides. This support enables the agent to provide other educational programs to the community.
Master gardeners also give lectures and demonstrations on horticultural topics to raise awareness and provide advice on sound environmental practices. They form tree-planting teams to encourage resident participation in the care of newly planted trees as directed by the arborist and report specific street tree problems within their neighborhoods to the arborists.
Master gardeners conduct in-school gardening programs. In several Montgomery County schools, Extension Master gardeners have assisted children in learning about composting. These students are learning how to recycle leftover food from the cafeteria and to use the resulting "black gold" in gardening projects.
In the James City County and Williamsburg area, Master gardeners have been providing horticultural therapy at the Norge NEED Center, a public preschool for handicapped children ages 2 to 5, for more than four years. They built raised beds (including two that were wheelchair accessible), and each child was given a square of earth in which to plant flowers and vegetables. Master gardeners worked with teachers, aides and foster grandparents to teach the children plant, seed and insect identification and gardening techniques.
In Danville, Master gardeners conduct their "Seeds for Kids" program every year. They contact seed companies requesting donations that are then distributed to students throughout the city. The program started with 1,000 packets, grew to 3,500 packets, and now is surpassing 5,000 packets each year. These seeds usually are sent home before spring break, encouraging the children and their parents to plant together, bringing the family unit closer together, and producing the pride of accomplishment that will encourage them to pursue practical education together.
Many Master gardeners work with Habitat for Humanity homeowners on the fundamentals of lawn maintenance and the planting of trees for the improvement and benefit of the environment. Habitat for Humanity is an organization that replaces dilapidated dwellings and unsightly lots with with affordable new housing.
Master gardeners in Arlington provide landscaping assistance to Sullivan House, a shelter for homeless families.
For a second consecutive year, New River Valley Extension Master gardeners is sponsoring a grant program open to teachers in all public and private schools in Montgomery, Giles, Floyd and Pulaski counties. The grant program provides financial support for projects that encourage students in grades K-12 to actively learn through gardening.
The application deadline is Dec. 1. For an application form, contact the Montgomery County Extension Office or Master Gardener Shelia Winett at 951-3237.
For more information on the Virginia Master Gardener Program, contact your local Virginia Cooperative Extension Office. Applications for the New River Valley Program will be accepted until Dec. 1. Classes start in late January.
Joe Hunnings is the Virginia cooperative extension agent for agriculture in the Montgomery County Extension Office in Christiansburg. If you have questions, call him at 382-5790.
by CNB