Knox County Master Gardeners will celebrate its 40th anniversary on Friday, October 17, 3-5 p.m. at the UT Gardens pavilion with the dedication of new planting bed at the University of Tennessee Gardens. The “Birch Grove Garden” is designed by Knoxville landscape designer Jack McCoy, funded with a donation from Master Gardener Walter Fain. It will be dedicated to celebrate 40 years of KCMG, which was the first Master Gardener program in Tennessee.
With its establishment in 1985, Knox County Master Gardeners began a history of community service. Today, KCMG volunteers contribute more than 20,000 hours each year at 16 projects throughout Knoxville and Knox County. Soon after the Knox County program began, other counties in the state started programs, resulting in 46 active programs in Tennessee today. The national program was founded in 1975 as a joint program between land-grant universities and the federal Cooperative Extension System. Now Master Gardener programs are active in all 50 states and in eight Canadian provinces.
Master Gardeners complete a 40-hour course in horticulture topics, then complete volunteer hours to become certified. KCMG has 246 active Master Gardens and graduates approximately 40 each year.
UT Extension agents Doug Dalton and Harry Bryan created the Knox County Master Gardener program, which grew out of necessity. “We were getting lots of questions about plants and landscapes from county residents,” said Bryan. To keep up with demand, he and Dalton created the program to increase their outreach with people.
The two extension agents who founded the Knox County Master Gardener program achieved a huge success in increasing outreach to county residents. “We accomplished all we planned and a whole lot more,” said Dalton.
Knox County Extension Agent Rylan Thompson agrees. “We have benefited over the years from the great work of Doug and Harry and those early master gardeners who created the foundation that we are building on 40 years later.”
The Oct. 17 event is open to the public. For information, go to the Knox County Master Gardener website at https://knoxcountymastergardener.org/
KCMG, a Tennessee non-profit 501 (c) (3), is a joint program of the University of Tennessee and Tennessee State University Cooperative Extension Services.
Nancy Howell, is president of the Chapman Highway Garden Club and is the spokesperson for Knox County Master Gardener.
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