Carroll County MSU Extension Service Agent Tracy Robertson says Master Gardeners are a great asset to counties throughout the state.
“Through the program, they are required to give 40 hours back to the community in service,” she said. “We’ll have folks going back into the community and helping others with gardening and landscaping and answering questions. A lot of people give back by improving the looks of parks in their communities.”
The volunteer program is a way to gain horticultural expertise at a low cost, connect with other avid gardeners, share gardening experiences and serve the community.
The Carroll County Extension Office is currently holding Master Gardener classes.
Robertson said seats are available for those interested in participating in the program and gaining Master Gardeners certification.
“It is a wonderful course, and participants gain so much knowledge,” she said.
In exchange for 40 hours of educational training, participants are required to return 40 hours of volunteer service within a year of their training. The service should help county Extension offices with horticulture projects that benefit their local communities.
After the first year, volunteers are required to return 20 hours of volunteer service and to attend 12 hours of educational training to remain certified as Master Gardeners. Robertson said the county has no registered Master Gardeners but hopes that the current program will produce several.
The Carroll County Extension begins hosting classes this week through March 27 from 1 to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The $100 program fee for the course also pays a year’s membership dues to the Mississippi Master Gardener Association, which is a well-respected educational organization consisting of about 800 gardening enthusiasts across the state.
“They get to network with people from around the entire state with the Mississippi Master Gardener Association, and they can attend conferences and other training sessions year-round,” said Robertson.
The fee also includes all workshop materials and a Master Gardener name tag.
Robertson said that the classes consist of subjects that the Extension Office regularly receives inquiries about, such as plant diseases, weed control and honeybee care.
“We get a lot of lawn and gardening questions,” she said. “With this program, they are learning about the answers to questions that they already call and ask us, and they also become teachers in the fields they learn, so that they can go and teach about planting a garden somewhere or answer their neighbors’ questions.”
Robertson said the classes are for gardeners of all skill levels — from beginners to the more advanced.
“Anyone can participate in the program, because they are going to get so much information from these classes,” she said. “Some of the first classes are on botany and basic plant characteristics and reproduction that you learn back in high school but a lot of people forget.”
Robertson said she thinks there are many interesting classes in the program, such as the one on honeybees and fruit trees since both are becoming big in the county.
There’s also classes on ornamentals and vegetables.
“Soils is a very big topic,” she said. “How we treat our soil determines how plants will grow and if you are going to have a healthy plant.”
Robertson said a lot of counties will get their Master Gardeners to come in the office to answer calls about lawn and garden questions.
“Some will do that as a part of their 40-hour service,” she said.
The classes are taught over interactive video by various experts, Extension agents and Mississippi State University professors.
Robertson said that after the program, the Extension plans to have a year-round Master Gardener club.
For more information or to register, call Robertson at the Extension Office at 662-237-6926.
•Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7233 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
