Advanced Master Gardener/Steward Page

This is a page for Virginia Cooperative Extension Advanced Master Gardeners and Stewards.  We will answer questions here, and provide information about the Advanced Master Gardener Volunteer and Steward Programs of Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners.

The Advanced Master Gardeners of Virginia maintain their own informational web site at:

www.AdvancedMasterGardener.org

What is a Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Steward?

A Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) Advanced Master Gardener or Steward is a Master Gardener that receives advanced training in a specialty area of Master Gardening, AND volunteers in this advanced discipline.  It is not just advanced training.  It is advanced volunteerism, for which you receive additional advanced training particularly in program development. 

What types of Advanced Master Gardener or Steward Programs are there?

Currently VCE Master Gardeners can become VCE Master Gardener Tree Stewards or VCE Advanced Master Gardener Water Stewards or an Advanced Master Gardener in Land Care.

How much training do I get?

You'll get the training you need to do the additional tasks associated with being a Steward.  Generally there will be an additional 30 or so hours of training (over and above your Master Gardener Training).  It will be different that the Master Gardener training you initially obtained because in addition to technical training, you will receive training in programming.  This additional programming training will enable you to take a greater role in fulfilling your communities needs.  You will be expected to volunteer more as an Advanced Master Gardener or Steward, generally an additional 20 hours of steward activities in addition to your 20 hours of Master Gardener activities annually.  The amount of training and the additional volunteering are to a certain extent decided locally.

How can I become and Advanced Master Gardener or Steward?

Ask your local Unit coordinator or Agent about it.  If your Unit already has a program, you can probably take the training the next time it is offered. The training is advanced training, and it is not usually offered every year.  You may have to wait for the training to be offered, or you may be able to take the training in a county close to yours.  Additionally, Advanced Master Gardener topics will be offered in conjunction with Master Gardener College.

If your Unit does not have any Advanced  Master Gardener or Steward program, you may have to convince your Agent that having a Stewards program would be in the best interest of the community.  There is an initial effort to arrange the training, but when your stewards become active they will be able to really help the Agent to deliver high-quality programs to the community, help with Master Gardener training, and begin to take over some of the programming for even more service to your community.  If your agent wants more information he or she can contact the State Master Gardener Coordinator.  VCE has developed manuals, teachers manuals, and training materials to facilitate the training of:

• VCE Advanced  Master Gardener Tree Stewards
• VCE Advanced  Master Gardener Water
• VCE Advanced  Master Gardener Land Care

What's the difference between an Urban Forest Council Tree Steward and a VCE Master Gardener Tree Steward?

Urban Forest Council Tree Stewards may or may not be associated with VCE.  Their focus is on performing actual tree stewardship duties.  VCE Master Gardener Tree Stewards receive advanced technical training AND programmatic training.  VCE Master Gardener Tree Stewards are equipped to help put on the training for Urban Forest Council Tree Stewards, help to develop programs, and otherwise plan for the forest health of their community.  Just like Master Gardeners, VCE Master Gardener Tree Stewards are supposed to do more teaching than actual hands-on work.  

What is a VCE Advanced Master Gardener Land Care?

With so many of our clients moving out to live in the country there is a need to help them live at (here's a new buzzword for you) the Wildlands/Urban Interface.  VCE Advanced Master Gardener Land Care will be equipped to design and implement programs to help people:

• really appreciate planting the right plant in the right place;
• employ sane landscape design to reduce yard waste;
• live safely where there is a chance for wildfire;
• live intelligently where they may encounter wildlife;
• make their own mulch and compost; and 
• much much more.

The Land Care Stewards Handbook and Instructional Materials are available now.  The initial class of Advance Master Gardener -Land Care Stewards began training at MG College in June of 2005.  Subsequently, a class of Advanced Master Gardener Land Care was organized this summer in Hanover County.   The syllabus includes planting to avoid yard waste, The three "R's" (reduce, reuse, recycle), including mulching techniques and compost generation and use, and living at the Wildlands/Urban interface including fire-safe landscaping techniques, enhancing habitat for Wildlife, dealing with Wildlife damage, and Invasive Species. 

All Advanced Master Gardener programs REQUIRE programmatic training.  Those who wish to become Advanced Master Gardeners in Land Care will be required to attend Programmatic training offered all afternoon of Friday during MG College (an additional fee is required for the manual), or they must prove to The State MG Coordinator that they have already completed this Programmatic training in preparation for another Advanced Master Gardener program in Virginia.  Finally all participants in this training will be required to return to their units, and using the technical knowledge, and programmatic training they receive, prepare an action plan appropriate for their community to adopt Land Care techniques.  Final delivery of this planned program will be required in order to complete the training.  Please contact Frank Reilly (reillyGroup@msn.com) for more information.

Urban Land Care Stewards Web site!!  Click here for the link

What is a VCE Advanced Master Gardener Water?

Most localities in Virginia drain into the Chesapeake.  A very few of them drain "down the other side of the hill" to the Mississippi river.  Regardless of the ultimate fate of the water, land care practices adjacent to the water ways impact the water quality and quantity of every body of water even those most transient of drainage swales.  Advanced Master Gardener Water receive advanced technical training in the impacts of land management to water quality and programmatic training to help implement programs in their communities to help people:

• understand water quality and quantity
• learn the relationship between their practices (e.g. lawn care, erosion control, gardening and fertilization) and water quality
• learn and practice good well and septic management; and
• adopt best management practices for water quality and quantity control.

Why do I need Programmatic Training?

All of the Advanced Master Gardener or Steward Programs are set up to enable well-trained Master Gardeners to increase their community involvement in their particular discipline (Tree Stewardship, Water or Land Care).  They are not simply additional training in these disciplines, but a volunteer opportunity to increase the outreach in their communities in these important disciplines.  Advanced Master Gardeners and Stewards are expected to:

• establish links with their localities;
• determine the communities' needs with regard to Trees, Water, and Land Care;
• develop programs to meet those needs;
• implement the programs;
• manage the programs; and
• evaluate the programs.

These activities require a thorough understanding of volunteer management, project organization, Extension Programming principles, and many more items that are not part of the traditional Master Gardener training.  Advanced Master Gardeners and Stewards are expected to "take the ball and run with it" and truly extend the agents impact in the community.  Each of the Advance Master Gardener or Steward programs has a programmatic training developed specifically with examples and case studies pertinent to the discipline.  Many of the topics covered (e.g. Extension Programming principles, volunteer management, project design, management and evaluation) are common to all of the programs.    Therefore, it may be possible for a Master Gardener to receive this programmatic training just once but be proficient enough to participate in other Advanced Master Gardener or Steward programs.  The Programmatic training will be offered at Master Gardener College, but the offering will be pretty generic.  It is essential to carefully study the case studies and examples specific to each of the Advanced Master Gardener or Stewardship programs.  In fact, the most successful Advanced Master Gardener or Stewardship programs integrate the programmatic training into the process at each step of the way, and "learn while doing."  In other words, while taking the class; find out what the community needs are; develop the program(s) that address those needs during the class time; and culminate with a plan for the community.  No matter how your Unit approaches the Programmatic Training, it is a required part of Advanced Master Gardener training, and must be documented to the satisfaction of the State Master Gardener Coordinator,.

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