I’m surrounded by Master Gardeners. Next door, across the street, around the corner. I don’t have a lot of gardening experience, so it’s a little bit daunting trying to experiment and learn within sight of such experts.

“Wasn’t there a disclosure clause in the paperwork when you bought the place?” a friend asked. “Something like ‘This house is free of toxic chemicals, but is surrounded by Master Gardeners'?”

Since we have young children, there’s precious little time for gardening, and I often find myself in the middle of some project or another when kid duty calls me abruptly away. The next day I’ll find the trowel and a bag of dirt neglected in the front yard. Or small plants might wait weeks for me to pot them.

I imagine myself the bane of the neighborhood, especially during garden tour season. You see, with all these Master Gardeners, their yards are definitely worth being seen (by the entire city it seems). It always happens when I have a stack of old sod or lumber in the front yard and a weekend full of other activities to pursue. “Just put up a sign that says ‘You should see us next year’!” joked another friend.

The title “Master Gardener” invokes such a sense of authority and wisdom that it’s easy to constantly feel ignorant, or even apologetic, about my meager efforts. After spending more time with my neighbors, though, I’ve realized that they all began in the same place, and they still profess not to know everything. They call each other for advice, help each other put in flower beds, find resources for more garden rock and wild flowers, and encourage people like me to start small with a vision for bigger and better.

After learning more about the Master Gardening program, I realize that it’s more about education than a vanity title; more about community work than resting on laurels. Interested gardeners can take an intensive course in all aspects of horticulture to earn a Master Gardener certificate through the Cooperative Extension. Then they must volunteer in the community (40 hours a year in Alaska), answering questions from home gardeners, giving lectures, helping with gardening events.

So if you find yourself being approached by a Master Gardener who has a bit of advice or a vision for your yard, you can take it less as a comment about your own skills, and more as a function of their mandate – sharing their knowledge, and getting to that magic 40-hour mark!

A couple of resources if you're interested in becoming or getting in touch with Master Gardeners:

• The American Horticulture Society has this map with links to Master Gardener programs through the U.S.


• "So you want to be a Master Gardener?": Myths and truths of the Master Gardener program.