Master Gardeners support teachers, parents and 4-H leaders in youth gardening efforts

Former California superintendent of public instruction Delaine Eastin has challenged the University of California Cooperative Extension’s Master Gardeners “to sow a sense of wonder and magic” in children by joining her initiative to create a garden in every school.

“Art, music and gardening are not frivolous activities,” Eastin said. “They make education come alive. Treat the garden as essential a part of school as the library, the computer lab or, dare I say, the football field.”

Easton inspired participants at the Master Gardener conference this fall in San Jose, the first since UC Cooperative Extension formalized the statewide structure of the Master Gardener Program and appointed an academic statewide coordinator.

Pamela Geisel, the new statewide coordinator and a 25-year veteran Master Gardener administrator, believes Master Gardeners’ knowledge and energy are invaluable assets to youth gardening programs in California.

“I see a role for our Master Gardeners,” she said. “They can train parents, teachers, 4-H leaders and school staff – anyone involved in school gardening – about integrated pest management, sustainable gardening, composting and plant selection. They can be instrumental in providing educational curriculum and offer guidance in setting up gardens.”

California Master Gardener program established 26 years ago

The Master Gardener Program started in 1972 in the state of Washington. Since then, Master Gardeners have helped meet the education needs of gardeners in at least 45 states and four Canadian provinces. The California program was initiated in 1980 in Sacramento and Riverside counties, with the Fresno County program, led at the time by Geisel, following in 1981. Today, California has 36 counties with active Master Gardener programs and more than 3,200 certified Master Gardeners.

UC Cooperative Extension scientists invest considerable resources preparing Master Gardeners for their educational outreach duties. Each county carefully selects volunteer applicants and UC scientists present a series of seminars to teach the budding Master Gardeners on such topics as preserving water quality, reducing pesticide use, pruning trees effectively, preparing soil, irrigating and managing fertilizer. In turn, the Master Gardeners extend UC’s research-based gardening information to the general public.

Master Gardener Bob Vieth of Ventura County is one of those volunteers. He and his wife Kathy meet regularly with home-schooled children and their parents at the Conejo Valley Botanic Garden in Thousand Oaks.

Vieth, a retired Hughes Corporation physicist, places an emphasis on science as he aims to develop children’s understanding of food systems and increase their willingness to eat fresh, healthful foods.

“I’ve had kids that wouldn’t try anything new,” he said. “By the time they’re done with the class, they’re willing to try everything, to the point that I’m scared. You can see the kids grow up, and it’s fun.”

Master Gardener offers resources to support school gardens

The Fresno County Master Gardeners produced a 50-page resource guide for teachers, school staff, administrators and others interested in developing school or youth gardens.

“We were getting a lot of requests for help from schools,” said Fresno County Master Gardener coordinator Leslie Feathers. “We found that there were many components of a successful garden that weren’t well understood at the outset.”

The resource guide goes over potential funding sources and explains how to establish a team of collaborators involving administrators, staff, teachers and parent groups. It describes the role of Master Gardeners and how they can support the effort.

“The guide gives details on local issues, such as gardening in our Fresno soils, composting, irrigating, constructing raised beds, growing plants from seed and much more very practical information,” Feathers said.

Copies are free on request by calling Feathers at (559) 456-7224.

In San Diego, 60 Master Gardeners act as consultants to schools in their neighborhoods, helping teachers start and maintain gardens. When a request for help comes in from a school, a Master Gardener who lives nearby is assigned to contact the teacher or administrator.

“It’s a personal decision on the part of the Master Gardener whether they get active in the garden and work directly with the kids,” said Master Gardener Lita Bender, who chairs the San Diego Master Gardener’s school program committee. “However, they never serve as a gardener. They are in a teaching role at all times, working with the teachers, the parents or students.”

In addition, the county has developed a support team of Master Gardeners with specific expertise, such as irrigation, garden design, plant selection and grant writing. Bender, a retired fifth-grade teacher who maintained a native plant garden with her students at Fuente Elementary School in the Cajon Valley, shares her expertise in tying the garden to school curriculum in science, environmental studies, social studies, fine arts and language arts.

San Diego Master Gardeners developed a comprehensive Web site with information and more than 100 links on school gardening at http://www.mastergardenerssandiego.org.

“We presented the Web site at the statewide conference so Master Gardeners all over the state interested in school gardens can use the resources,” Bender said. “Some of it is local, but certainly much of the material could be used anywhere.”

Master Gardeners present grants for school gardens

The Monterey Bay Master Gardeners, a non-profit organization that includes Master Gardeners from Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties, raises money to support school gardens. Grants of up to $500 are available to teachers for expenses related to the development of gardens with a long-range vision. An application form is available by calling (831) 763-8007 or e-mail montereybaymastergardeners@yahoo.com.

The Monterey Bay Master Gardeners also work with the Santa Cruz County probation department on a youth garden in a formerly vacant lot next to the UCCE office. Youth who are carrying out court-ordered community service learn good gardening practices, garden cooking, making birdhouses and marketing in the garden. Master Gardener Candice McClaren coordinates UCCE’s involvement in the youth garden.

“We’ve got thousands of hours into it with our volunteers,” McClaren said. “It’s wonderful.”

At the Master Gardener Conference, Eastin urged the Master Gardeners to continue helping teachers grow students’ interest in learning and nurture their creativity by gardening, even as they face increased pressure to ensure students achieve on standardized tests.

“We have to help teachers out of the straight jacket we put them in,” said Eastin, who is visiting professor of educational leadership at Mills College. “In gardens, kids work together and own what they’re learning. This is the key to American education, raising student achievement and improving nutrition.”

(November 2006)

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