Process for applying to the Penn State Master Gardener Program
Master Gardeners instructing at Youth Ag Day program
Penn State Extension in Fulton County will hold a Basic Training course for new Master Gardeners beginning in October of 2024. We will host informational sessions and begin accepting applications in the summer of 2024.
The Basic Training course is designed to provide experienced home gardeners with information and skills necessary to share their experience and knowledge with others in the community.
A Master Gardener trainee must complete a thirteen-week course with lessons lead by Penn State Agricultural Educators, Program Assistants, and Master Gardeners. Topics include: botany, plant propagation, insects and diseases, plant identification, diagnostics, and much more. In exchange for over 40 hours of instruction, the Master Gardener trainees agree to devote 50 hours of volunteer time to the Master Gardener program throughout the following year. To maintain Master Gardener status, an additional 20 hours and 10 hours of approved advanced education is required in ensuing years.
Volunteer activities include educational booths at local festivals and events, delivering presentations on various gardening topics for local schools, groups and organizations, and assisting with programming sponsored by the Master Gardeners, such as composting, pollinator gardens, perennial plant sale, and answering questions for the garden hotline.
There is a program fee of $200 to cover the cost of training materials and expenses. Financial assistance is available to individuals where this fee is cost-prohibitive to their participation in the program.
For more information, please contact the Penn State Extension office in Fulton County, located at 610 E. North Street, McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania 17233; 717-325-4870
