Many people love to be involved with some aspect of horticulture. Some people like to specialize in roses, some love to grow vegetables, while other people like to grow woody ornamentals. You have some people that love everything associated with plants in general and see horticulture as a great hobby. The UGA Master Gardener Program is an advanced opportunity for people who not only like working with plants, but would like to share their horticulture knowledge with other people.

In extension, we have many “Master” type opportunities that come around from time to time in our area. We plan on hosting a Master Cattlemen series in fall of 2012 while our 4-H’ers are always trying to earn “Master” status in their project work. The Master Gardener program is basically like taking a college level class specializing in horticulture. Potential participants complete an application and then if accepted into the program, will begin a journey into Master Gardener January 2012.

Classes will be day classes that start around 9 am and conclude around 3 pm. Classes this year will be Wednesday events starting January 4th and will conclude with the final exam on March 21, 2012.

Bartow County Extension will serve as the host county with Gordon participating along with Cherokee, Cobb and Paulding Counties. You probably noticed the word final exam. Don’t let that scare you if interested. Participants will take a mid-term and final for the class, but speakers and managers of the class do a fine job of preparing students. Master Gardener participants are also assigned mentors that will be a resource for participants for the January through March class. Cost of the class is $140 and will include the Master Gardener handbook and other supplemental material.

Why should a person become a Master Gardener? Master Gardener is designed for people who like to learn about all aspects of horticulture and then be willing to share that knowledge. After completion of the series, participants will be official Master Gardeners when they complete 50 hours of volunteer work in the area of horticulture the first year after taking the class. Then to stay current and active, Master Gardener complete 25 hours annually. These valuable hours are where participants can share what they obtain during the three month program. Participants also have the opportunity to become involved on our local Gordon County Master Gardner Club too. This group meets monthly and conduct many valuable volunteer programs for our community.

How do you become considered for the upcoming class? You can either stop by the Gordon County Extension Office to pick up an application or call us at 706-629-8685 and we will mail you an application. You can also email gbowman@uga.edu and I can send you the information. Space is limited and applying does not guarantee a spot in the class. Make sure you fill out the application completely and return to our office by Tuesday, October 4th between regular office hours.

Finally, remember that fall is a great time to soil sample. For $9, you can basically take out the guess work for liming and fertilization recommendations for lawns, flower beds, vegetable gardens, etc. Our office mails out sample to our UGA Lab weekly and results come back in a timely fashion.