Throughout this site there are links to documents of various file types. Please contact our Statewide Program Leader if you require this information in a different format.
News from around the state
News from CAHNRS
Through a gift from Lamb Weston, WSU Master Gardener Program volunteers in central Washington will help their communities become more sustainable and food secure.
We are thrilled to announce the official launch of “The Evergreen Thumb” podcast, brought to you by Washington State University Master Gardener volunteers and sponsored by Master Gardener Foundation of Washington State.
“The Evergreen Thumb” is a podcast dedicated to all things gardening and environmental stewardship. Our team has been working diligently to bring you valuable, research-based insights and tips to help you nurture your green spaces while contributing to a more sustainable future.
Read the article in Washington State Magazine
“It’s just not WSU anymore, and it hasn’t been for a long time. Other states saw the value in doing this and jumped on board and adopted the program early on. Now, we’re in all 50 states and most recently in Puerto Rico as well as the United Kingdom, Canada, and South Korea.” -Jennifer Marquis, Statewide Program Leader for the WSU Master Gardener Program.
Support the educational efforts of the WSU Master Gardener Program.
- WSU Master Gardener Program hopes to extend reach through Endowed Chair Fund The Endowed Chair Fund will elevate the WSU Master Gardener Program and further increase its impact by supporting the appointment of a faculty member focused on engaging in impactful research projects, developing curricula, and teaching master gardener volunteers.
- Lamb Weston donation helps WSU Master Gardeners enhance sustainability education Through a gift from Lamb Weston, WSU Master Gardener Program volunteers in central Washington will help their communities become more sustainable and food secure.
- 50 years, 50 states: WSU’s Master Gardeners program became a national—and global—model Diana Pieti leads the way down the garden path, pausing to point out particulars. See the serviceberry, already blooming.
- Master gardeners of the future: Evolving with the needs of the communities they serve As the WSU Extension Master Gardener Program celebrates its 50th anniversary, volunteers are focusing on how they can support the program’s evolution over the next 50 years and beyond, all while helping sustain healthy and resilient communities.
- Colville youth restore fire’s path with WSU Extension-improved seed bombs Youth from across the Colville reservation joined WSU Extension to revitalize the environment, help pollinators, and serve their community.
- Washington master gardeners today: Nine ways WSU Master Gardeners make healthier communities WSU Extension Master Gardeners use decades of accumulated training and knowledge to help build healthy communities.
- From humble roots: Approaching 50th anniversary of Extension Master Gardener Program in Washington State How Extension agents launched a novel program that turns 50 in 2023: Extension Master Gardeners.
- WSU co-organizes first annual Pacific Northwest Citizen and Community Science Summit Learn how anyone can make an impact on discovery at the first Pacific Northwest Citizen and Community Science Summit.
- Master Gardener volunteers awarded for helping grow program opportunities Two volunteers and one WSU faculty member were awarded for their service with WSU Extension’s Master Gardener Program on Friday, October 1 by the Master Gardener Foundation of Washington state. Island County resident C-J Nielsen was recognized as the 2021 Master Gardener of the year for her commitment and leadership to the program. Nielson served […]
- WSU Master Gardeners urge caution, awareness of unsolicited seeds Extension experts urge gardeners to be aware of and report unsolicited seeds mailed from overseas.
- Extension Integrated Pest Management team helps Northwest residents attract insect predators, pollinators with Hortsense Through a new upgrade to their popular Hortsense website, a team of scientists at Washington State University are helping Extension agents, Master Gardeners, and Washington residents attract beneficial insects, predators and pollinators to their gardens, farms and landscapes. Carrie Foss, director of the Urban Integrated Pest Management program, partnering with David James, WSU entomologist, added […]
- Marriage of vegetables: WSU expert writes new grafting guide Worldwide, gardeners and growers are using grafts to create hardier, healthier vegetable plants. Tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, cucumbers, and nearly all the watermelon produced in Japan, Korea, southern Spain and Italy, Turkey, and Greece are grafted. By merging the roots and stalks of two separate vegetables into a single plant, grafting helps vegetables fight soil-borne pests […]
The WSU Extension Master Gardener Program is raising $1.5 million to hire a horticulture professor fully dedicated to the Program and to the volunteers who give their time and talents. This professor (endowed faculty chair) will teach volunteers, develop cutting edge, research-based curricula and publications needed by master gardener volunteers, and will engage volunteers in horticultural research projects.
Currently, our endowment stands at just over $70K, but we have set our sights on reaching $100K by the end of this year. To make this goal more attainable, we have received an extraordinary offer. WSU Extension Skagit County Master Gardener, Deborah A. Smeltzer, and her husband David T. Kingsbury have generously issued a $20K challenge. For every dollar contributed to this campaign, Deborah and her husband will match it, up to $20K, resulting in a total contribution of $40K.
Imagine…
Imagine the impact this campaign will have on our WSU Extension Master Gardener Program. With a horticulturist fully devoted to our cause in perpetuity, we will experience a profound transformation. Our program’s status will be elevated within WSU, throughout the state, and across the nation. This Chair will become our advocate, championing our program’s best interests alongside influential chairs and directors of the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences. In essence, they will have a seat at the most crucial table in the college.
By participating in this campaign, you are empowering our program and shaping the future of horticulture education and research.
Congratulations to WSU Extension Benton Franklin Master Gardeners for their first-place David Gibby Search for Excellence award.
They won the youth category for their project “Washington Working with Incarcerated Youth: Growing and Giving Back to the Community.”
Cultivating plants, people, and communities in Pierce County, Washington since 1973, the Pierce County WSU Extension Master Gardener Program has since been emulated across the U.S. and into other countries around the world. With more than 300 volunteers between the ages of 18 and 95, learn more about these incredible volunteers are dedicated to providing this unique service to all of Pierce County.
More Extension Master Gardener Program news
- Garden ‘Remodeling’ with the Kitsap Master Gardeners Salvage Team It happens when you’ve been gardening in the same place for a long time: You realize you are living in an overgrown jungle. Read the original article published in the […]
- Waterville Wanderings | Community Garden Series on vermicomposting It all started with a book: “Worms Eat My Garbage: How to Set Up and Maintain a Worm Composting System,” by Mary Appelhof and Joanne Olszewski. Read the original article […]
- Chelan-Douglas County Extension Master Gardeners to celebrate 50 years with Garden Faire People can celebrate the 50th anniversary of the WSU Extension Master Gardener Program in Wenatchee at the Community Education Garden in June. Read the original article published on the Wenatchee […]
- Rep Newhouse Speech Commemorating WSU’s Master Gardener Program Congressman Dan Newhouse honors the Extension Master Gardener Program’s 50th anniversary by entering remarks into the official Congressional Record on May 24, 2023. His floor speech is available to view on […]
- Home & Gardening | Five gardening ideas to reduce reliance on chemicals An ounce of prevention in the garden is worth a pound of cure in the form of pesticides and fertilizers that have potential to impact wildlife, waterways, beneficial plants and […]
- Master Gardeners by the Numbers For almost 50 years, Extension Master Gardeners (EMG) have educated millions about sustainable and environmentally friendly garden practices. USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) provides crucial support to […]