Rockbridge Area
Master Gardeners Association
Who Are Master Gardener Volunteers?
Master Gardener Volunteers share an enthusiasm for gardening in its many forms and for landscaping and protecting the environment.
Some Master Gardener Volunteers have created successful gardens at home, while others are relative newcomers to gardening who want to enhance their knowledge through training in the Master Gardener Volunteer program.
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Many Master Gardener Volunteers work at jobs full time; others are retired or working part time. All enjoy the rigors and rewards of gardening as well as making friends and acquaintances with common interests.
What Do Master Gardener Volunteers Do?
As a public service to the Rockbridge area, Master Gardener Volunteers assist the Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in educating and informing the public. They accomplish these goals in a number of ways:
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Answer questions and volunteer solutions to common gardening and landscaping problems through the Extension Office Hotline and plant clinics.
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Conduct a number of community outreach functions.
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Teach children at nearby schools with both classroom instruction and demonstration gardens.
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Work on a team to plan and implement public gardens as models of design and content.
Virginia Master Gardener Volunteers
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The Rockbridge Area Master Gardener Volunteer program is a part of Virginia Master Gardeners, an educational program of Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE). In turn, VCE is a partnership of Virginia Tech, Virginia State University, the United States Department of Agriculture, plus state and local governments. Virginia Tech and Virginia State University spends considerable money and energy on horticultural research, finding better methods and plants for the gardener and ways to protect the environment. Virginia Cooperative Extension and Master Gardening serve to educate the public on the results of this research.
Master Gardener Volunteer programs are active in many states. There are sixty-two units in Virginia, all working with Virginia Cooperative Extension in various ways and with the state-level organization, the Virginia Master Gardener Association. The Master Gardener Volunteer program is open to all, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, veteran status, national origin, disability or political association. It is an equal opportunity and affirmative action association.