Missoula County Seeks Volunteers for Its Master Gardner Program

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - Want to take your love for gardening and landscaping to the next level? Well, here’s your chance.

Missoula County Extension and Ecology is looking for volunteers to become Master Gardeners, to train volunteers to assist extension agents in providing education to the public.

I spoke to MSU Extension Horticulturist Sarah Holden for details.

Missoula County Offers Courses to Become a Master Gardener

“The Montana Master Gardener program is part of a national certification program of master gardeners, and we offer this training in Missoula County,” began Holden. “It's offered throughout the state.”

Holden said those interested should sign up for the Master Gardener program.

“We train master gardeners to be like an arm of the extension office, and so people sign up,” she said. “It is $250 to take the 10 week course. We offer two course times to meet people where they are. We have a Saturday fall course that's from nine to noon, and we have a spring course that is in the evenings, usually Wednesday nights from six to eight.”

Hold Described What People Will Learn to Become a Master Gardener

Holden described what prospective Master Gardeners will learn.

“During those trainings, we dive really intensively into certain topics around vegetable gardening, ornamentals, turf, and turf alternatives,” she said. “We look at landscape design. We learn basic entomology and we do what's called integrated pest management training, so they learn how to kind of be a diagnostician, if you will.”

The Course Teachers Both Gardening and Basic Entomology

Holden provided the contact information for anyone interested in becoming a Master Gardener.

“The website is Missoula edu place.org and that is like education, but edu, Missoula edu place.org and you can scroll to the take a class tab, and then that will take you to the calendar, and you'll see more,” she said. “The Master Gardener classes start Saturday, September 28, so there's still time to sign up.”

Get more details about the Master Gardener classes here.