Upper Shore Master Gardener Programs to hold Basic Training

As we patiently await crisp fall days, the Upper Shore Master Gardener Programs are preparing for their annual basic training course, which starts on Wednesday, February 07, 2024. 

This program is intended to train volunteer representatives as Master Gardeners for the University of Maryland Extension to extend our services and programs to the public. Classes will be held virtually on Wednesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. and will run through May 8, 2024. In-person classes will be held in person every other Friday at Eastern Shore Higher Education Center on the Chesapeake College Campus in Queenstown, MD and are held in conjunction with the University of Maryland Extension in Dorchester, Talbot, and Queen Anne’s Counties. 

This well-rounded 40+ hour course includes classes on: ecology, botany, soils, plant diseases, insects – both pests and beneficial, weeds, and much more. This program emphasizes community involvement and outreach as well as environmental stewardship. A $185 fee is charged to cover all costs including the Maryland Master Gardener Handbook. All Master Gardener interns are required to undergo a University of Maryland background check (+$15) prior to taking the class. The deadline for registration is December 1, 2023. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in any event or activity, please contact your local University of Maryland Extension Office by November 17, 2023.

The University of Maryland Master Gardener vision is a healthier world through environmental stewardship.  In keeping with this vision, University of Maryland Extension Master Gardeners volunteers work on a variety of projects in cooperation with local schools, help maintain various public gardens, volunteer at local Senior Centers and Assisted Living facilities working with therapeutic gardens and hands-on gardening programs, provide community education through free workshops and classes open to local residents, visit home and public gardens as part of our Bay-Wise certification program…and much more.  

For more information about the program, please visit https://www.facebook.com/talbotcountymastergardeners
We are looking forward to working with a new, energetic class of horticulture enthusiasts! 

For Talbot County: Mikaela Boley, Master Gardener Coordinator (410) 822-1244 or by email at [email protected]

For Queen Anne’s County contact: Rachel J. Rhodes, Master Gardener Coordinator at (410) 758-0166 or by email at [email protected].

For Dorchester County: Emily Zobel, Master Gardener Coordinator (410) 228-8800 or by email at [email protected] 

University programs, activities, and facilities are available to all without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, age, national origin, political affiliation, physical or mental disability, religion, protected veteran status, genetic information, personal appearance, or any other legally protected class.