Master Gardener Program

The third audience which the Peoria County

Office provided programming support was those

involved in horticulture.

One of these programs that has seen a wonderful

impact on Peoria County citizens is our Master

Gardener program.

Master Gardeners provided over 3,500 volunteer

hours in 2006 to many programs, including:

* Master Gardener Help-Line - Over 330

hours volunteered and 401 calls answered

* The ICC Demonstration Garden - 146 hours

* ICC Garden Day- with over 2,000 visitors

* Plant-A-Row Garden - 263 volunteer hours

which resulted in over 1,250 pounds of

vegetable donations

* Alpha Park- 17 hours volunteered

* Whittier School- 10 hours volunteered, with

100 children involved in the program

* Jubilee Herb Garden - 65 hours volunteered

* Luthy Botanical Garden - 15 Master

Gardeners volunteered over 850 hours at

Luthy, where 130,000 people visit yearly

* Master Gardener Newsletter - Distributed

monthly to over 550 people

* In The Garden Radio Program - 11 Master

Gardeners hosted 39 two-hour programs that

reached 7,000 listeners a week

* Bel-Wood Nursing Home Gardens -

26 Master Gardeners volunteered 1,000

hours in working these gardens which are

enjoyed by 300 residents, staff and family

members each year

* Youth Farm -29 volunteer hours working

with 20 different youth on four gardens

* Speakers Bureau - 11 Master Gardeners

volunteered 47 hours, with 393 clients

served by these speakers

* Telenet Classes - 138 participated in Telenet

Classes offered in 2006

As you can see, our Master Gardeners shared the

belief they have in the Peoria County Office and

produced results that we can all see.

One project which touched many lives is the

"Enabling Garden Project "at PARC (Peoria

Association for Retarded Citizens). Master

Gardeners and PARC consumers had the opportunity

to work, side by side, while both "grew" in the

process. During 2006, Master Gardeners volunteered

84 hours of hands-on guidance to 288 consumers

at the PARC Enabling Garden, and were

awarded "Volunteer of the Year" during a recent

PARC Annual Meeting.

Angela, one of

the Peoria County

Master Gardeners,

performed a dual

role. In addition to

being an Master

Gardener, she also

performed the role

of Mom.

Pictured at right

is Angela and her

son Dan, a consumer at PARC, digging potatoes in

the Plant-A-Row Garden.

We salute our Master Gardeners for all the many

lives they touch each year, helping the citizens of

Peoria County put knowledge to work!