Compiled by Marsha Mercer, Extension Master Gardener
In 2018, mgnv.org published “Five Things You Didn’t Know . . . About The History of Master Gardeners.” This article is a follow up to answer questions and clear up common misconceptions as Virginia Master Gardeners celebrate their 45th anniversary in 2024.
1. Master Gardeners are not a garden club. They are not paid employees, and they also do not provide free gardening labor. When you see Master Gardeners pulling weeds, they are likely in a demonstration garden aimed at educating the public about the best gardening practices.
2. Master Gardeners are trained volunteer educators who provide research-based horticultural information to home gardeners. Officially called Extension Master Gardeners (EMG), programs around the country are part of the educational outreach of land grant colleges and universities. Virginia Master Gardeners bring the resources of the Virginia Cooperative Extension of Virginia Tech and Virginia State University to local communities.
3. It takes time and money to become a Master Gardener. Virginia Master Gardeners complete a minimum of 50 hours of training and a minimum of 50 hours volunteer service. Exact hour requirements vary by locality. Master Gardeners typically pay for their own training, although scholarships may be available. Arlington and Alexandria residents pay $255 and nonresidents $305 for classroom training that lasts 11 weeks and is followed by 60 hours of volunteer service as an intern. The certification process takes most people about a year. To remain active in Virginia, a Master Gardener gives at least 20 volunteer hours and eight continuing education hours each year.
4. Master Gardeners contribute millions of volunteer hours around the country. Nationally, more than 79,300 EMG volunteers contributed an estimated 4.7 million hours in 2022. Their efforts were conservatively estimated to be worth at least $135.5 million. Participation nationally is down somewhat since the pandemic. A 2018 survey estimated there were 86,076 EMG volunteers throughout the United States who contributed an estimated 5.6 million volunteer hours.
5. In Virginia in 2022, more than 4,500 Extension Master Gardeners contributed an average of 52 volunteer hours each, and their value to the commonwealth was estimated at $9.8 million. You’ll see Master Gardeners answering questions at farmers markets and plant clinics, teaching youth how to grow food, and fighting hunger by contributing vegetables grown in demonstration gardens to food banks, among many other programs. Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia also produce this robust website, mgnv.org, and present free public education classes anyone can access online. To learn more about becoming a Master Gardener, contact your local extension office.
SOURCES:
- About the Extension Master Gardener Program. Virginia Cooperative Extension
https://ext.vt.edu/lawn-garden/master-gardener/about.html - Happy EMG Volunteers & Thriving EMG Units. Virginia Cooperative Extension
https://mastergardener.ext.vt.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Happy-EMGs-8-8.pdf - VCE Historical Timeline. Virginia Cooperative Extension
https://ext.vt.edu/about/timeline.html - Extension Master Gardener National Summary Dashboard – see 2022. Extension Master Gardeners.
https://mastergardener.extension.org/impacts/- Search for Virginia in the upper right hand corner to see the Virginia statistics.
https://usdaars.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/78ebc0a74eb14898abfb0302e0d0f539
- Search for Virginia in the upper right hand corner to see the Virginia statistics.