It is midsummer and we are in the midst of the gardening season. As county director for U of I Extension in Coles County, I'd like to use today's Yard and Garden column to provide the regular reading audience with a better understanding of what Extension Master Gardener volunteers accomplish and to highlight some of their projects.

There are currently 49 Master Gardeners in Coles County. These individuals have completed 14 weeks of intensive horticulture classes and have agreed to contribute 30 hours of volunteer service back to University of Illinois Extension each year. These are some of the numerous choices available to complete volunteer hours:

* Office call-ins – Master Gardeners maintain office hours in the Coles County Extension office three days a week. They are available to answer horticulture questions from 2 – 4 pm on Mondays and 9 – 11 am on Wednesday and Friday's. The general public can stop by or call during those hours and speak with a trained Master Gardener. If you find it necessary to call at another time, a message will be taken and left for the Master Gardener volunteer to answer when they are at the call-in desk.

* Idea Garden – this educational garden is planned and maintained by the Extension Master Gardeners at the Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center. The purpose is to provide gardeners from the area with ideas for their own gardens. Plants are labeled in each of the eight sections and hand-outs are available for later study and research at home. It is helpful to stop by the garden often to see how the plants change throughout the growing season. Some of the sections are herbs, children's, cottage, grasses and shrub.

* Plant-a-Row for the Hungry – this garden plot is also at Sarah Bush Lincoln Heath Center near the greenhouses. Planted, maintained and harvested by Coles Master Gardeners, all the produce is donated to the area food distribution sites. During the summer of 2007, over 2210 pounds of produce were given to local food pantries for their clients. This year the garden features tomatoes, potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers and pumpkins, peppers, onions, cauliflower and head lettuce.

* Open Air Seminars – These are short workshops presented by Coles County Extension Master Gardeners for the general public. They are usually presented at the Idea Garden or Plant a Row Plot on Saturday mornings. Over the years, topics have included pruning trees and shrubs, planting bulbs, container gardens, growing a bucket of tomatoes, ornamental grasses and composting

* Youth Gardening Program – The Extension Master Gardeners have worked with the Mattoon Middle School Stretch Time program to provide after-school horticulture session for over five years. They have assisted the students in planning and maintaining a courtyard garden, building birdhouses and many other learning activities. For the past seven summers they have also coordinated a summer day camp for young people ages 8 – 11. They meet to learn about outdoor subjects like insects, plant growth, trees and caring for the environment. This year they also taught a two day intergenerational session titled 'Gardening with Grandkids.'

* 4-H Project Judging – The master gardeners have served as volunteer 4-H judges for gardening projects at the county fair for many years. They meet with each member in an individual conference to discuss the exhibit and the knowledge they gained during the year. As a judge they turn the conference into a learning experience for the youth and provide guidelines for project improvement. They discuss vegetable, flower and indoor plants with the 4-Hers.

* Public programs – Community organizations have benefited from the expertise of the local Master Gardeners. Numerous presentations and panel discussions have been taught on a variety of topics. Program chairmen of organizations have found the Master Gardeners knowledgeable and enthusiastic speakers when sharing their love of gardening.

* Garden fair/walks – Master Gardeners have served as 'experts' in the garden to answer questions for area garden walks.

The Coles County Extension web site features photos of many of the above mentioned projects. Log on at www.extension.uiuc.edu/coles/ and check out the photo gallery feature on the home page. You will find slide shows for the 2008 Insect and Gardening with Grandkids classes. Click through the photos of the Idea Garden and the Plant a Row project to see some of the accomplishments of the local Extension Master Gardener volunteers.

This is a partial listing of the numerous volunteer activities Master Gardeners complete during a year. From January – December 2007 the Coles County Master Gardeners tallied over 1910 hours of volunteer service in the county. They taught 866 youth and adults through seminars and public programs and shared their love of gardening with over 100 young people in hands-on 4-H and Youth Gardening programs. They answered questions for 124 individuals through the office call-in service. In addition they provided 52 weekly columns for your reading enjoyment. If you use $18.77 as the value per volunteer hour as suggested by the Independent Sector, then Coles County Extension Master Gardeners provided a $35,850 value to the citizens of the county. What a service these dedicated volunteers provide to area gardeners and to University of Illinois Extension in Coles County. They are remarkable!