Who are Extension Master Gardeners?

Extension Master Gardeners are trained volunteer educators. They work within their local communities to encourage and promote environmentally sound horticulture practices through sustainable landscape management education and training.

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As an educational outreach component of Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Master Gardener program brings the resources of Virginia’s land-grant universities – Virginia Tech and Virginia State University – to the people of the commonwealth.

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All volunteers are trained and have at least 50 hours of horticultural classes and return at least 50 hours of volunteer community service through their local Extension office their first year.  In subsequent years, master gardeners provide a minimum of 20 hours volunteering. Additionally, they participate in a minimum of 8 hours of continuing education every year in order to stay current and expand their knowledge base.

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Core Values:

• Respect - The environment, each other, and those we serve

• Accountability - Wise stewardship of resources. To our organization, our community, and each other

• Collaboration - Willing to work with a diverse group to reach a common goal. Actively seeking out partners

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