The Alabama Master Gardener class is offered twice each year in the North Alabama Region, January-April and August-November. There is a maximum class size and a fee is charged for the course to cover training material and the cost of the Alabama Master Gardener's Handbook. The course consists of a 2-hour orientation and twelve 4-hour training classes. Classes meet once a week. Each class begins with a 15-minute quiz on the previous week's instruction. A 15-minute break for lunch/supper will be given halfway through the class. Only two excused absences are permitted. Guest speakers will present classes on a variety of topics pertaining to gardening and horticulture. You will be quizzed on the material and must maintain an overall average of 75% to graduate. The classes will include:

• Annuals & Perennials
• Designing with Annuals & Perennials
• Home Orchards and Small Fruits
• Vegetable Gardening
• Plant Physiology
• Home Lawns
• Landscape Design
• Soils and Fertilizers
• Care and Maintenance of Plants
• Plant Pathology
• Entomology
• Plant Propagation
• Horticultural Therapy
• Trees and Pruning Techniques
• House Plants and Water Gardens

Following completion of the classroom training, each MG Intern must complete 50 hours of community volunteer work to be certified as an Alabama Master Gardener. There are many and varied opportunities for fulfilling the 50-hour volunteer service commitment. The County Extension Office and your County Master Gardeners Association can suggest other local volunteer opportunities. Here are a few examples of projects that Master Gardeners have been involved in:

• Create displays or booths at lawn and garden shows
• Coordinate and organize local farmers markets
• Teach horticulture therapy activities at nursing homes
• Write a column for a local newspaper
• Write a local Master Gardener newsletter
• Answer horticulture-related telephone calls at the county extension office
• Serve as a judge at horticulture exhibits at county fairs
• Assist 4-H'ers with garden projects and exhibiting vegetables
• Teach horticulture programs as a guest speaker in the public school system
• Participate in horticulture radio and TV programs
• Conduct educational meetings or workshops
• Assist with community solid waste reduction programs
• Coordinate projects at correctional facilities
• Plant and maintain a demonstration garden and host field days
• Help at public parks, arboretums, and botanical centers
• Assist with community Arbor Day festivities
• Answer homeowner questions, one-on-one
• Help at the community garden plot
• Serve as a Master Gardener class volunteer coordinator