Tillamook County Master Gardener Association
Our Mission
Tillamook County Master Gardener Association (TCMGA) is committed to offering educational opportunities to area residents on sustainable gardening principles and research-based horticultural practices in conformance with the Oregon State University (OSU) Master Gardener Program™.
The goal of Tillamook Master Gardeners is simple: they love gardening and they love solving problems.
Master Gardeners are trained volunteers, educated through OSU Extension Service to offer the local community Reliable, Relevant and Reachable gardening information and education opportunities.
Reliable: our gardening advice and education is science-based.
Relevant: customized information for your gardening situation.
Reachable: Call us on the phone, email us a question and photos, find us on Facebook – or visit with us at markets or gardens in your community.
Interested in Becoming a Master Gardener?
Master Gardeners are people like you, interested in learning more about the art and science of growing and caring for plants in the garden, the landscape, and the home. In exchange for classroom instruction, Master Gardeners agree to help local Extension faculty and staff extend horticultural information to people in their communities.
OSU Master Gardener Program
The Oregon State University Master Gardener™ Program is an Oregon State University (OSU) Extension Service program that educates Oregonians about the art and science of growing and caring for plants. This program also facilitates the training of a highly educated corps of volunteers. These volunteers extend sustainable gardening information to their communities through education and outreach programs.
How Does it Work?
- Class is held one full day a week from early January to early April.
- Participants learn basic botany, entomology and plant diseases.
- The course covers methods of sustainable gardening and growing vegetables, berries, fruit trees, ornamentals and lawns.
- It also covers soil management and plant nutrition directed at the local bioregion.
- Participants learn how to diagnose plant problems and find research-based solutions.
- After the class is completed, participants donate 40 hours of volunteer time working in the office under the supervision of a certified Master Gardener answering gardening questions from the public.
- Volunteer hours can also be earned by working in the Learning Garden, at farmers market plant clinics, in community gardens and on other Master Gardener activities.
What do Master Gardeners Do for the Community?
- Provide research-based answers to gardening questions free of charge at a variety of venues including Farmers Markets, community gardens and the Extension Office
- Provide advice and assistance to community and school gardens
- Partner with community organizations to extend education mission
- Manage a Learning Garden at the county fairgrounds as a demonstration site for sustainable gardening practices.
- Organize biannual tours of local gardens
- Put on a spring Plant Sale that serves as a showcase for vegetables, flowers and local artists.
OSU Extension is part of the division of Extension and Engagement.
OSU recognizes the impact that its land grant history has had on Indigenous communities in Oregon.