How to become part of the Southside Virginia Master Gardener Association
Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) will be taking applications for the Master Gardener Course for 2018. The Master Gardener Program is a two-part educational effort, in which avid gardeners are provided 50 hours of quality horticulture training, and in return they are expected to "payback" their community through this volunteer Virginia Master Gardener program.
Master Gardeners assist with garden lectures, exhibits, demonstrations, school and community gardening, phone diagnostic services, research & evaluation, and many other projects.
Classes will be held from 9:00 a.m. – 12 noon every Tuesday for sixteen consecutive weeks, starting January 9, 2018. This is a great opportunity for novice or experienced gardeners/landowners to learn more and to give back to their community through shared education.
Applications are available at the VCE office in Halifax or click here. For more information, call the VCE office at 434-476-2147, option 0.
Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners (VCE-MGs) are volunteers with the Extension, dedicated to working with the community to encourage and promote environmentally sound horticulture practices through sustainable landscape management educational programs.
To earn the title Extension Master Gardener, individuals complete 50 hours of training in all aspects of horticulture education and must pass a written exam. As a condition of the training program, within the next year, each participant must contribute 50 hours of volunteer time in horticulture programming to the community.
To maintain the title of Extension Master Gardener in subsequent years, volunteers must contribute a minimum of 20 hours along with eight hours of continuing education each subsequent year.. Activities include:
- answering citizen’s questions on gardening and diagnosis of plant problems
- conducting winter gardening workshops
- staffing information booths at various community events
- maintaining educational gardens, and much more.
Virginia Cooperative Extension as well as the SSMGA offer several great opportunities to gain the required continuing education each year.
Becoming a Master Gardener will provide unlimited opportunity to increase your horticultural knowledge and experience through fun and exciting activities.
Information will be coming to secure your place in our next training class (usually starts the second Tuesday in January).
For more information call Virginia Cooperative Extension-Halifax at (434) 476-2147 option 0
