Our Agent here in Harris County Texas are wonderful. They go to most all of the functions and are always available if you need them.

Ours is wonderful, the class ended in February and she attends all our garden tours, swaps and monthly breakfasts even though she has officially retired now.

The agent in Jackson County is a really great young guy. He holds very loose reins, and we appreciate that.

The other agent that I am knowledgeable about does not.

Janie

You wrote:
"record your feelings on the need, value and necessity of on-going CEA involvement in the MG program."

That's an interesting comment/question.

Hereabouts, a CEA *must* be available (to oversee/manage/supervise) the MGs, this to ensure that the distributed information is research-based.

In other words: No CEA, no MGs functioning on behalf of the Extension Service. (Not the other way around!)

In some counties, it's a long distance relationship in that one agent covers MGs in several counties.

That said, the Master Gardener Program was begun so that trained volunteers could answer the common, everyday questions from the public, this to free up some of the agent's time for other activities with large growers and such.

And, as has already been mentioned, each agent -- whether in-county or long-distance -- has his/her own style when dealing with MGs.

In California the county farm advisor/extension agent has the choice of establishing a master gardener progam or not. If he does not want to deal with a lot of volunteers he does not have to. Those counties that have established the program usually have a county agent who works well with a variety of people, some of which can be very difficult. Al

In Jefferson County Tx. there is an excellent MG gardener program. The people in SE Texas are fortunate to have the extension agent, Vince Mannino. He is very active in the MG program and really put together a wonderful program.

Well, when I started the MG program here in Spartanburg two years ago, we had a county agent, and although our program is run independent of the local extension office, he was quite helpful and supportive, taught at a class or two, attended others, and stood knee-deep in November lake water with me helping plant some aquatic plants as a breakwater at the county reservoir.

Since then, with the budget cuts, although we're, by population, the third-largest county in the state, we don't even HAVE a county agent any more... they have him working directly out of Clemson University (about 70 miles away), with a 1-800 number you can call if you need him.

I KNOW MG programs were begun to supply helpers and "ambassadors" for county agents, but in some places, overzealous budget-cutters are doing their best to just make master gardeners free labor to entirely REPLACE most of the staff at extension offices, and I don't think it's right.

I've yet to volunteer at the extension office (the only approved project I haven't spent time on). I've thought about it, but every time I think about how the state is approaching this my blood starts to boil all over again and I say, "NO!"

chuck is a great guy, and I miss him. If they bring him back, I may volunteer at the office, but I'm not going to go pretend to be something I'm not just because some politician wants to keep getting elected by "cutting fat" when it's really muscle.

Just a little perturbed,
Jeff

Our agent here in SMith Co. started the program 10 years ago & is still at it. I marvel that he has enough hours in the day to do everything he does.