Success Story The Master Gardener Program completes its 2019 Class and keeps giving back



The Master Gardener Program completes its 2019 Class and keeps giving back

Author: Stephen Lewis

Planning Unit: Jefferson County CES

Major Program: Master Gardener

Plan of Work: Promoting Sustainable Agriculture, Natural Resources and Urban Forestry

Outcome: Intermediate Outcome

The Master Gardener Program was created by extension to help answer horticulture questions from home gardeners but it has blossomed into a vital resource for urban garden communities. The 2019 Master Gardener class lasted 14 weeks and covered several topics from organic gardening to entomology taught by university professors, industry specialists, and master gardeners. The class of 41 completed their final exam and graduated to the level of interns where they must complete 40 volunteer hours to earn the status of a master gardener. This is the sixth consecutive year Jefferson County has produced a master gardener class with each class having more students than previously. There is always a lot of interest in the Master Gardener program each year as more and more people consider home gardening as an alternative to store-bought foods. Research on the Master Gardener Program shows that the majority of people join the program to receive horticultural knowledge. However, it turns out that volunteers receive even more in return. Studies show that volunteering has a positive effect on a person’s perceived wellbeing, life satisfaction and self-esteem (Migura and Zajicek 1997).  Gardening and being in touch with nature is also known to enhance mental health and reduce stress. Therefore, it’s no wonder why we get such an outpouring of volunteerism from the Jefferson County Master Gardener Association. From July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019, Master Gardeners from Jefferson County gave 2,845 volunteer hours to Jefferson County. When we view their numbers by zip code, master gardeners were most impactful in the 40213 area code where they gave 758 volunteer hours and made 588 contacts and 245.25 hours of service with 969 contacts in the 40209 area code. With only 51 active volunteers master gardener averaged 56 volunteer hours per person; that’s a 7 day 8 hour work week!






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