A member of the Utah Gardening Forum on GardenWeb posted some interesting information on the Master Gardener program:
- Posted by songbirdmommy UT4/5 (My Page) on Wed, Jan 17, 07 at 11:38
When I signed up for the program last week, there was a huge line. Thankfully I was determined to get in and went down there at 5 am to stand in line. I was 5th in line, one lady, bless her heart, had been out in the freezing cold since 3:30am. The doors opened at 7 am, and by that time almost 30 people had shown up for the 8 am registration. Thirty is the space limit.Early bird really does catch the worm when it comes to the sign ups. I heard while I was there that the Utah County’s Extention office has one of the best programs in the state… they have a “Master Gardener’s University” which is more intense than the regular master gardener’s program. You may want to call to see if you could still get in…. I know it would totally be worth it….but don’t get your hopes up about still being able to get in, but, you just might get lucky! Never know unless you try!
As far as time commitments. We have class once a week, every week for three hours. This runs from the first week in Feb to the last week in April, and then once a month for three hours during the summer(to give us time off to play in our own gardens) then in the Fall there is the County Fair and a social.
Volunteer hours are also expected. A minium of 40 during the training and summer, graduation is in November and the hours must be done before then. There are lots of fun opportunities for volunteering, variety of things to fit everyone’s interest and talent.
Some of the subjects we will cover will include: Basic plant science, soils, fertilizers, irrigation, weeds, pesticides, insect control, plant diseases, landscaping, composting, turf grasses, trees and shrubs, fruit trees and small fruits,perrinials and annuals, veggies, propagations, volunteering, diagnosing, woody plants, roses, shrubs, herbs, vines, groundcovers.
The classes are taught by horticulture professors from Utah State University. The cost of the program varies from county to county, generally $100 dollars, but some counties are higher, probably to cover the cost of the professor’s travel.
It is a wonderful program not only for the knowlegde, but also for the opportunity to give back to the community through service to community gardens and events.
I will keep posting what I have learned and how it is going on here…. if anyone is interested.
One of these days, I want to go through the program.