Welcome the Friends of the Gardens! 

Last year the JCMGA Board approved this programming expansion to help us reach more gardeners who are either unable or uninterested in going through the full Master Gardener Program but still want to learn and volunteer. We are happy to announce the Garden Friends is kicking off this spring! 

What is a Garden Friend? Garden Friends are volunteers who are not Master Gardeners but want to get hands-on learning by maintaining the demonstration gardens alongside our GEMs (Garden Education Mentors). In the past, MGs have brought their spouses, children, and close friends to work together and help in the demo gardens. With the official launch of the Friends of the Gardens program, we are opening this opportunity to everyone in our community.  

 

This expansion will bring more community involvement and awareness to our demonstration gardens. These gardens take many hands to maintain and can feel quite large when working in them. Not many people know these gardens are here to view unless they have already visited the Extension Office for an event or class. Inviting more people to volunteer builds a wider community while splitting the load of work for everyone. It gives our organization another fun opportunity to interact with and educate the public with hands-on practice.   

Last year we had a handful of people interested in doing this type of volunteering instead of going through the entire Master Gardener Program. With advertising this opportunity, we hope to get even more people excited and involved in the Garden Friends initiative. Hope to see you out in the demonstration gardens this year!