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- Author or Editor: Vivian A. Quinn x
- HortScience x
The Master Gardener program in Monmouth County began in 1999. In order to justify the initiation of such a time and resource intensive program for Rutgers Univ., detailed records of participant activities throughout the county were compiled. The educational program consists of several components related to horticultural science. These classroom topics are basic horticulture, environmental factors for plant growth, soils and fertilizers, plant propagation, vegetable gardening, integrated pest management, turfgrass systems and practical horticultural techniques. Since 1999, 145 graduates have passed through the program and contributed a total of 35,274 volunteer hours. The key horticultural program segments that result in direct return on this substantial investment include: 1) horticultural helpline—answering home gardening questions; 2) horticultural help—promoting gardening programs in schools, parks, etc; 3) Community outreach—lectures and demonstrations, hort therapy; 4) horticultural research at university extension and education farms; and 5) laboratory assistance - plant and pest identification, test measurements. The calculated value of such volunteer help at $15.43 per hour leads to a horticultural contribution of $544,277 over 5 years. It is important to realize that many key programs would not have even been initiated without the ability to quickly assemble large numbers of skilled volunteers on a part-time basis. The training program and hands-on experience made these Master Gardeners capable of detailed data collection from ornamental and agricultural plant studies. This impact expands and synergizes the plant science programs of the professional staff on both a county and statewide basis.