Become a Penn State Master Gardener in Tioga County, Pa

TIOGA COUNTY, Pa. (WETM) – Residents of Tioga County, Pennsylvania, interested in gardening and giving back to the community, are invited to participate in a several-month training program to sharpen their skills.

The Penn State Master Gardener program will be offered virtually from October 2025 through March 2026, offering participants over 40 hours of training in a variety of gardening subjects, including botany, plant propagation, soil health, fertilizer management, composting, safely controlling pests, entomology, plant diseases, lawn care, pruning, weeds and much more.

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The program is open to everyone, whether you are a beginner or someone with existing gardening expertise. Those who complete the program will use their skills in the Tioga County community to do the following and more:

Help maintain the educational flower beds at the Tioga County Courthouse, demonstration gardens at the Tioga County Fairgrounds and the pollinator gardens at local elementary schools

Lead hands-on youth and adult gardening programs

Host monthly seed library programs at the Wellsboro Library and in the community

To become certified as a Master Gardener, participants must complete over 40 hours of basic training through Penn State Extension between October 2025 and March 2026 and fulfill 50 hours of volunteer service during the year after training. After becoming certified, Master Gardeners must fulfill 20 hours of volunteer time and attend a minimum of 10 hours of continued education training yearly to maintain their status.

All courses will be offered in a live virtual setting via Zoom and will be taught by Penn State Horticulture educators. Participation in the class is $250, which includes all basic training classes and materials, an 800-page hardcover copy of the Master Gardener Manual, a Master Gardener t-shirt and a Penn State Master Gardener name badge.

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Those interested in participating in the class must submit an online application for consideration. Acceptance into the program is not guaranteed, and payment will not be required upon application submission. All applications are due by the extended application deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 30.

For more information about the program, contact Tioga County Master Gardener Coordinator McKayla Accettulla at mqa5887@psu.edu.

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