What comes to mind when you hear “Master Gardener”?

- Increasing food security
- Creating safe green spaces
- Beautification projects in downtowns and parks
- Garden therapy programs with seniors to maintain their physical and mental health
- School garden programs to promote science awareness in kids
- Display gardens to protect pollinators, combat invasives, and encourage gardening
- Answering gardening questions, using the internet in addition to the phone and face-to-face
- Facilitate gardening projects at schools, libraries, and other public community sites
- Use gardening to teach life skills to the incarcerated
- And much more
Being a Master Gardener has opened up so many opportunities for me in this area, just in the friendships alone. And learning has been a wonderful benefit, too.”
Learn more about what Wisconsin MGVs do in the Annual Report.
Connected to Extension
By becoming a Master Gardener Volunteer you become a representative of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and assist Division of Extension staff with scholarly community programs relating to horticulture and the environment. You DON’T need to know everything about gardening — you’ll learn more and more as you participate in the program. You DO need to have an interest in learning and giving back to your community by working with your Extension office to deliver timely research based information. Scientific and digital literacy is also recommended.
With an office in each Wisconsin county, Extension develops practical educational programs tailored to local needs and based on university knowledge and research. We deliver our expertise to the public, addressing a wide range of needs to people, plants and animals, in both urban and rural areas of the states.