Extension offers garden, landscape training
By Bob Eller,
Commercial Horticulture

During the frosty months of winter, area residents may enroll in Extension programs to become gardening experts and train for careers in the growing horticulture industry. Most of the training is conducted in the heated comfort of classrooms but there are also labs where you can get out and enjoy the invigorating low temperatures!

The choice depends on whether you prefer to be a trained volunteer, who helps educate the public, or you'd prefer to reap the daily rewards of actually working in the landscape/nursery field.

Candidates for the Cornell Master Gardener program are trained in Botany, Entomology, Plant Identification, Plant Pathology, Soils and a host of garden related topics at the Ontario Cooperative Extension Center, beginning at 9 a.m. on January 26.

Master Gardeners perform many functions that help communities take advantage of Cornell research information and make better-informed decisions regarding their homes and environment. As volunteers in the program, the Master Gardeners donate 50 hours per year for two years to the community.

Participants in the Landscape Technician program also study Botany, Soil Amendments and Plant Identification, and Turf Culture while preparing for careers in landscape horticulture. They will practice the skills of Pruning, Transplanting and Identifying Plant Pests. Graduates of this certificate program can upgrade their present employment or start their own business.

An advanced level of the Landscape Technician course is available for those with prior experience. This season's classes start on January 31 in Newark where the course fee of $150 includes great handouts and hot refreshments.

Call Mary Durham at 331.8415 to register.

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