Gardening is an activity with many rewards, said Debi Kelly, state Master Gardener coordinator for University of Missouri Extension. MU Extension offers online training for those who can’t take weekly classes in person.

The spring session runs now through May 31.

“One of the joys of becoming an Extension Master Gardener is the satisfaction of sharing your plant knowledge with others,” said Kelly, in an extension press release. “The Extension Master Gardener program was initiated to do just that. Its motto, ‘helping others learn to grow,’ emphasizes service to others as the program’s main objective.”

Kelly, retired MU Extension state horticulture specialist David Trinklein and MU Extension horticulture specialist Sarah Denkler teach the 15 online sessions. Students work at their own pace through a series of narrated and scripted presentations plus optional hands-on activities that students can do at home.

Topics include basic botany, soils and plant nutrition, vegetable gardening, fruit production, insects and diseases, woody and herbaceous landscape plants, landscape design principles, turf management and pesticide safety.

Core training is the first step toward Extension Master Gardener certification. After completion of core training, participants are required to complete at least 30 hours of volunteer service. Local Master Gardener coordinators help online trainees find opportunities to meet the volunteer service requirement.

Since its inception in 2013, more than 3,000 people have gone through MU Extension online Master Gardener training.

Register at https://mizzou.us/MGspring25.